Hi Wafster, We sell Glowstone (Australian trade mark) in Australia and also do some export. Check out details in our website www.nite-glo.com . In the right application, glow in the dark (photoluminescent, charged by sunlight or lights with reasonable uv content) can look and work fantastically. In other situations, a customer may have unreasonable expectations of the performance of the product and can be disappointed. Looking at the photos displayed recently on Houzz, they will definitely have been taken immediately after the glow products have been charged, and look their brightest. Also modern digital cameras enable low levels of light to be picked up, and corresponding photos may look quite a bit brighter than actual observation by eye. In the photos, one has to say WOW, but taken into a home, perhaps not fully charged, with some delay before viewing, maybe with the eyes not adjusted for night time vision, the result may not be as spectacular. Quite a few of our customers are concreters around Australia who use Glowstone for embedding into driveways, paths, around pools etc. If you would like more information or wish place an order, get in touch with me at info@nite-glo.com Charles Hrubos

I like the idea of patching over some green, especially if it is an investment property. 5 car spaces would be ideal in NZ.

Sweeping steps could work, because this will make the sweep of the driveway work as part of the visual welcome to your home. It will also give them a bit more presence. The current steps look quite small and abrupt, so do not invite you in. The fence creates quite a barrier there. It shuts off the access to your home visually, and is very harsh. If you really need a fence there, can you make it at least partly permeable to at least have some sense of there being somewhere to go? A front entrance needs to lead you in and it presently leads to the drive then stops very suddenly. A horizontally slatted fence could work with the current balcony balustrade and help to update it while keeping its character. If the fence could be behind the steps and the front door, as well as being semi permeable, it would be even more welcoming. Some plantings will also help to soften all the hard surfacing.

Hi Emily, This does seem quite extreme for such a small renovation. I recommend that you investigate getting a CCTV inspection done. They will put a camera down the closest manhole and follow the pipe along. Make sure if you do this, you ask the CCTV drain inspectors to locate the drain for you and place pegs on site. You may be able to find a solution from there. Second option is to re-look at the floor plan to establish if there is a better place to relocate the toilet without needing another gully trap. 2.5 bathrooms is quite generous so for resell it may not be necessary, although there may be other alterations you could do to improve circulation, flow and functionality. Good luck with your renovations.