patio stuff

[Chuck52]

A post by Cerdarranch (I think) a while back got me thinking about putting in a patio around some new additions to the house. The post I refer to was about a sidewalk constructed by first tilling a path and then pressing flagstones into the softened dirt. Looked like grass would then be planted in the spaces. Great looking walk, and I think I'll add similar walks to connect my proposed patio to the shop and garden sheds. However, I want a grass-free patio around the new part of the house. The dirt is already plenty soft, and in fact I'll probably need to compact it, moving enough around to give a slight slope away from the house. I'd then put down landscape cloth and I was thinking of using some salvaged brick I have, set on edge to make an edging. Then I'd add 2-3" of sand, levelled and compacted. Then set in the flags and fill the spaces with some pebble-type gravel and roll the whole thing with a garden roller. I don't want to set the flags in mortar because I'd prefer to have relatively easy access to the ground beneath....it's where the water line enters the house. Suggestions?

Chuck

 

[MarkV]

Chuck,
As I read your post what I saw as the problem was the new fill. I would sure do what ever it took to compact real well before you put done pavers. Down hear in the south, it may be our red clay, you would remove enough soil to put down 3-4” of stone dust, compact, then an 1” of sand and your pavers. We always use an edging to keep the pavers from shifting in time and fill the joints with more sand.

Let us know how your project goes.

MarkV

 

[Tags]

Chuck,
Sounds like a good project...just make sure that whatever you fill in that it gets compacted or you wait long enough for it to settle.Definetely try to use something under the sand to create a firmer base like 3/4" process or stonedust and only try to use about an inch or less of sand.The only thing you might want to re-think is putting the loose stone between the slates....experience has shown that the pebbles get kicked on top of the slate and it becomes messy and also painful to walk on w/bare feet!Keep us posted and good luck!

 

[jyoutz]

Chuck, I've done this before but with pavers instead of flagstone. The other 2 responses are right on target. Compact first, use a firm non-moveable border (I've used both poured concrete and railroad ties) and DON'T use any more than 1" of sand base. I used about 3" of sand one time, and the pavers were never solid, but kept moving. Bad idea to use too deep of sand bed.

 

[s1120]

<font color=red>and I was thinking of using some salvaged brick I have</font color=red>

If this is regular brick I would not use it. It is not stronge anough to use on the ground. It will brake apart on in a few years. As for the sand. I did a paito at my summer house in Cape Cod and it was ALL sand. I just tamped it down real well, and it has lasted 3 years now.

 

[Chuck52]

Thanks for all the responses, especially the warnings about too much sand. I would probably have used too thick a layer. It looks like I'll probably have some time to let the new fill dirt settle. The bills for the additions have been impressive! /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif I may be waiting a bit before I buy those nice stone pavers! Now when I do get around to it, I'm wondering what to put down between the pavers. I was thinking that sand would tend to get tracked into the house, but I can also see that my pebble idea might cause some problems too. I wonder if there's any kind of moss or grass or something that could be planted between the stones.

Chuck