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Pavers for the Perfect Patio and Path
3 Landscape Designers Share Tips on Paver Materials, Installation and Cost
Pavers can be a landscaping lifesavers. If you have a walkway, patio, driveway — or even just a blank spot in your yard — the right pavers can transform the space. Pavers serve a variety of visual and practical purposes; they can create outdoor rooms, divide spaces, or direct pedestrian traffic. But the near-endless types of of materials, colors, and sizes can make it tricky to choose and install pavers correctly. We talked to 3 landscape designers on Houzz, who gave us the low-down on paver materials, installation tips, and cost.
Read on for paver pointers from Joseph Huettl, founder of Huettl Landscape Drew Sivgals, founder of AMS Landscape Designs and Christina Bradley, landscape designer at Slater Associates.
Read on for paver pointers from Joseph Huettl, founder of Huettl Landscape Drew Sivgals, founder of AMS Landscape Designs and Christina Bradley, landscape designer at Slater Associates.
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| Materials. The most common paver materials are asphalt, pressed concrete (available in standard or custom colors), brick, and natural stone (such as marble, granite, or flagstone). |
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Pavers are often thought of as pre-fabricated materials, but today's pavers are often made of stone such as this travertine in more permanent settings.
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| "A cast concrete paver is usually going to be the biggest bang for your buck," says Sivgalls. "It's strong, easily customizable, and comes in great colors and textures."
Whether you opt for a cast concrete paver, or a more natural stone, you'll want to make sure that the paver you choose is thick enough and heavy enough that it can be walked on without getting damaged. But, you also want to make sure it's not too heavy, so you can lift it up and place it where it needs to go. |
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| Installation. "When using pavers, you want to make sure you set them up for long term use," Sivgals says. "We try and use a full concrete sub-base, and then apply the pavers to that. But if you're not ready for that amount of work or financial investment, then there are other ways to install pavers too." |
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Completely clear the area you want the pavers to go in, and compact the ground as much as possible. Christina Bradley recommends starting with 95 percent compaction of the sub soil. Add a sand base of about 2 inches for drainage and movement, and compact the pavers on top of the sand.
With a thinner paver, a thicker bed of concrete is usually necessary to keep the paver from cracking.
With a thinner paver, a thicker bed of concrete is usually necessary to keep the paver from cracking.
| If your pavers are going in a high-traffic area, place them in a way that's comfortable to walk on. It's important that people don't have to watch their feet too much when on a walkway. "You want to take the natural stride of an average person into account," says Sivgals. |
"If the pavers are spaced too far apart, the walking becomes self-conscious and stretched," says Joseph Huettl. "If they're too close together, plants or lawn won't grow properly." Huettl recommends using 1.5-inch to 3-inch gaps for gravel, 2- to 4-inch gaps for fine ground covers, and 3- to 6-inch gaps for lawn to grow.
| Cost. The price of pavers depends on what kind of material you're using, how that material has been treated, if it's colored, and how thick it is. Below is a very general price range of pavers, divided by the more common material choices:
Concrete pavers: $5 to $10 per square feet Brick pavers: $5 to $15 per square feet Natural stone: $10 to $30 per square feet |
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| Huettl uses bluestone, which comes in a variety of colors, textures, and shapes, for most of his pavers. The price for this natural stone tends to range between $5 and $25 per square foot. The exact price is going to vary depending on size, thickness, and treatments for color and texture. |
| When shopping for pavers, keep in mind that the color of concrete pavers can change over time. Pavers dyed at the surface will wear, while those with color all the way through will last longer. Also, pay attention to the finish of the pavers. How rough is it? Is there friction? How much texture is visible? Brick pavers, for example, have a smooth surface, but can be slippery in wet and shady areas. |
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| Both Huettl and Bradley recommend avoiding stamped concrete in lieu of pavers. Stamped concrete can chip, and it's hard to hide the chips or replace the concrete. "Pavers usually cost 1/2 to 1/3 times more, but typically last longer," says Bradley. "If a repair is necessary, you can just replace a few of the pavers as needed."
More ideas: Plants for Your Pathway Your Yard: Are You Ready to Lose the Lawn? 8 Great Way sto Use Landscape Pavers |
Ideabook updated on Aug. 7, 2011.
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Bluestone, which is a sandstone, soaks up a lot of water and so do concrete pavers.
Also, when compacting around established trees, be sure to have an arborist aerate around it when you are finished. Compacting tree roots can kill a tree, but it can take a few years before it starts to show the decline. So, when interviewing contractors make sure they have accounted for this!
Stone is a wonderful material that takes on the life of the site much more than concrete products and has a much smaller carbon footprint, so find a beautiful local stone to work with!