Anyone ever laid Paving Stones?

[Boleyz]

Anyone ever laid paving stones? These things are 3 different sizes and about 4" thick...Concrete with a patterned top (Bumpy) and colored shades of red and gray. This is my first time playing with them and man, are they WORK!

I boxed in a 16' X 24' piece of ground after scraping it off with a bobcat. Then, I shoveled in about 8 tons of sand and leveled the sand with a screed board as I worked my way across the box.

After the stones are laid and seated in the sand with a rubber mallet, Sand is swept into the cracks, moistened, and swept in again as the thing settles. It's hard not to get a few hills and valleys, but everyone tells me that just adds to the charm.

As soon as this patio is finished, it will be time to build my creek-rock barbecue pit. Pics will follow that effort as well.







The dog loves the sand...I have to level it out every day...

[seedspreader]

Yup, done a little in the past. That's an interesting pattern you are using. Where did you buy your pavers?

[Dubai Vol]

Very labor-intensive job, and as you are finding, lots of skill involved. It's a favorite here as labor is effectively free. Otherwise very expensive. Really need to mechanically compact the sand to get a level surface.

[Boleyz]

Originally Posted by ZealYouthGuy

Yup, done a little in the past. That's an interesting pattern you are using. Where did you buy your pavers?

There's a salvage place in Corbin KY. that carries all kinds of 2nds. These were seconds. $161.00 per pallet. I bought 4 pallets and expect to have about 1/3 of one pallet left over.

These pavers are 3 sizes: Large, 2/3 of a Large, and 1/3 of a large. It takes 1 set of these 3 to make a 16" square. I did notice that there are not equal amounts of each stone on each pallet (might be why they were seconds...wrongly stacked).

I ain't really tying to lay them in a specific pattern, I like random the best...Am I doing the right thig with my base and sweeping? Seems like mighty little to hold a 10 ton patio together...

[Dubai Vol]

Oh, one other trick I learned from my FIL: instead of sand, when you're done, fill all the gaps with dry cement and just let the rain set it up. Voila!

[seedspreader]

Originally Posted by Boleyz

There's a salvage place in Corbin KY. that carries all kinds of 2nds. These were seconds. $161.00 per pallet. I bought 4 pallets and expect to have about 1/3 of one pallet left over.

These pavers are 3 sizes: Large, 2/3 of a Large, and 1/3 of a large. It takes 1 set of these 3 to make a 16" square. I did notice that there are not equal amounts of each stone on each pallet (might be why they were seconds...wrongly stacked).

I ain't really tying to lay them in a specific pattern, I like random the best...Am I doing the right thig with my base and sweeping? Seems like mighty little to hold a 10 ton patio together...

That will hold it just fine, I am assuming since you scraped it with a bobcat that it's pretty compact under the sand, and knowing KY it's prolly clay too right?

What do you plan on doing on your side boards, you WILL have to leave them or make sure you have someway of keeping them locked in.

[seedspreader]

Originally Posted by Dubai Vol

Oh, one other trick I learned from my FIL: instead of sand, when you're done, fill all the gaps with dry cement and just let the rain set it up. Voila!

I've always used sand without any problems.

[Wildwood Flower]

Boy that really looks nice!

Thanks for the tip on the dry cement too.

[Boleyz]

Originally Posted by ZealYouthGuy

That will hold it just fine, I am assuming since you scraped it with a bobcat that it's pretty compact under the sand, and knowing KY it's prolly clay too right?

What do you plan on doing on your side boards, you WILL have to leave them or make sure you have someway of keeping them locked in.

You're right on the clay and right about it being compacted...this was actually my gravel driveway for over a year. Very packed bottom under the sand.

I figure to put topsoil and bushes and cypress mulch around the outer edge to hide the side boards. The boards are held in place by re-bar stakes driven about 14" into the clay around the perimeter of the box about 4' apart.

I thought about using cement like the other guy suggested, but it seems to me that any settling would simply crack all the joints open. The sand also seems to allow for good drainage...even with my hills and valleys there hasn't been any standing water.

[logbuilder]

Looks great. Trust your gut. I see nothing concerning. Also, I especially like that rock trim at the bottom of the siding. Nice touch.

Robert

[Boleyz]

Originally Posted by logbuilder

Looks great. Trust your gut. I see nothing concerning. Also, I especially like that rock trim at the bottom of the siding. Nice touch.

Robert

I laid creek rocks all the way around my concrete block foundation. It was easy to do and It matched the creek rock entry steps and post supports on the front of the house...

[Jenn]

Be sure to wear knee pads! 70% of the people I saw the past 4 years medically with water on the knees reported they had been laying paving stones the previous weekend.

[SmartAZ]

Knee pads? I wouldn't get on my knees for any reason. Use a short stool. Better yet, con somebody else into doing it.

[jross]

Great job. I really like your choice of pavers. Here with our sandy soils, we have to use six inches of rock under the sand bed, and compact it repeatedly before adding the aggregate. If I have to it again, I will consider tamped earth under the sand instead of the aggregate.

[swamp man]

I use 'em all the time in my landscaping business.Keeping the hills and valleys out is tricky,but it can be done.You can pack the sand with a tamp,but on an area of that size,I rent a whacker-packer.I drive rebar stakes at maybe three foot intervals around the outside of the form,and use a tight line and a measuring tape to keep it even,and if I'm looking for "true level",I use the same system,but with a line level.Beach sand,or play sand is fine for the base/leveling agent.sweeping in the sand,and pounding with a rubber mallet works fine,but running a small wacker packer over the top makes the job go MUCH faster.It's amazing how much sand a patio can swallow before it's locked,and it can seem never-ending.I prefer to use paver sand for the locking,as it's finer,and locks in better,but I've done some with play sand,and it works okay,too.I usually start away from the house,and work back towards it,but it looks like you're on the right track.Personally,I like a little hill and valley,but the mcmansion types I'm usually workin' for dont tend to be too big on the "rustic look",and see it as poor workmanship.When you reach the end of you form,as in,your last course,and the end doesn't hit exactly on the form(which it rarely does),you can use a circle saw with a masonry blade to cut the pavers to fit just right.A wax stick makes the marking very easy.Depending on the pavers,and your saw,you may need to cut the paver on both sides,then hold it in your hand,and pop it with a mallet.Good luck,and don't bust your finger.
Oh yeah...Ya' might wanna' wear a dust mask if you have alot of cutting to do.

[quietstar]

Good work on a major improvment. The look is great...Glen

[moonwolf]

About 12 years ago, I installed a patterned interlocking brick for driveway and walkways....about 500 sq. ft.. Also, for the flooring of an outside dog kennel 16 x 8. I did essentiall as you show, but on the walkways I used landscape fabric to prefent weed growth within the cracks.
I also rented a heavy tamper which is highly recommended.

Here is a picture of the driveway near the reconstruction. remember the drive bricks have been there over 12 years and it's still level. The occasional frost heave in spring will lift a few higher, but they settle back down after thawing.





closeup of the area of brick cleaned. The slab is from where the garage was ahead of the pavers.



In comparison, this shows the pavers they used in putting down a long walkway along the river in the nearby town. Watching the workers, I saw them using the tamper and underneath all that brick is the landscape fabric.

[fantasymaker]

Around here they did that during the depression and everything has just sunk through the sand...................It has been a few yers though.

[Boleyz]

Moonwolf,

Love the pics. Beautiful walks and drive.

Swamp man,

I have heard of people using a mechanical tamper on top of the pavers, but I seems to me like that metal plate bouncing around would tend to break some of the stones. I guess if the sand is wel packed in the cracks, this may not be much of a concern.

This is all new to me, but I do have a lot of experience with concrete and Laying creek rock. I appreciate your comforting words about my hills and valleys...that was kind of worrying me a little, but I'm sure it's probably only noticible to me...I tend to stare a lot and think too much...

[swamp man]

Originally Posted by Boleyz

Moonwolf,

Love the pics. Beautiful walks and drive.

Swamp man,

I have heard of people using a mechanical tamper on top of the pavers, but I seems to me like that metal plate bouncing around would tend to break some of the stones. I guess if the sand is wel packed in the cracks, this may not be much of a concern.

This is all new to me, but I do have a lot of experience with concrete and Laying creek rock. I appreciate your comforting words about my hills and valleys...that was kind of worrying me a little, but I'm sure it's probably only noticible to me...I tend to stare a lot and think too much...

On the flipside,man,people who stare alot and think too much tend to do really good work. It can be a tricky job that bears a bit of starin' and thinkin'.I''ve sold alot of different kinds of hardscape jobs the last few years,and every one of 'em took quite a bit of both.
I'll be interested to see some pics of the creek rock project....I've never worked with it before.Most of my work is with what is available here,being mostly assorted pavers,flagstone,and arkansas stone.
I have,on a very few occasions,had the packer break pavers,but that was with the thinner ,wider materials.If you DO break one,it'll usually be one crack,more or less down the middle.Don't try to pry it out,as you'll push some of the surrounding pavers cockeyed,and wind up with a soulcrusher of a mess.If ya' break one,smash it to bits with a hammer,take it out in pieces,and drop a new paver into place.
Actually,they don't break as easy if the leveling agent is well-packed.It's like if ya' hold a brick in your hand,and hit it with a hammer,ya' dont have to hit it hard at all to break it.If the brick is layin' on a concrete surface,ya' have to hit it harder to break it.I don't get the physics of it,but to my experience,that's how it seems to work out.