Help us choose a patio stone?!

5 months ago

We are re-landscaping our backyard. We’re going to be replacing these fake bricks and part of the grass area..Our landscape architect steered us to Cambridge Pavers, so we went to a huge showroom to look. We didn’t love what we saw because we were really hoping for something more “organic” looking - real stone? At the showroom, our contractor’s mason was there and he was pushing Nicolock - so we looked at those - also seemed less natural looking than what we wanted but we found a few colors that were okay. Then we came home and hopped on line, and we’re reading all sorts of negative reviews - stories of broken tiles on delivery and white spotting and pitting? We’re on Long Island NY — so harsh winters are a real factor. We’re love the look of natural blue stone or slate….. What should be do? Is natural stone not an option? Are these concrete products bad?

Featured Answer

tracefloyd

4 months ago

last modified: 4 months ago

I looked up Nicolock and I agree it looks unnatural.

I'm not familiar with the subject but according to images I found that native New York stone like bluestone, limestone, slate, would be my choice --although dark stone could get very hot in the summer.

I like the scattered stone look as a patio similar to these :

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Comments (7)

gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9)
5 months ago
Both pavers and natural stone have their pros and cons. Pavers are manufactured, usually from concrete, so will always have a less than "natural" look. But they are relatively inexpensive, come in lots of shapes, sizes and colors and are an easy DIY install project. Natural stone looks.........natural :-)) But it is pricey compared to pavers and generally requires more detail and therefore more experience to install. Blue stone is highly desirable but tends to be regional in availability. Shipping stone across the country is not really very feasible.
JAB
Original Author
5 months ago
Yes we knew these things, thanks! Looking for advice based on people’s experiences with these products, particularly the concrete pavers that I posted about…..
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3onthetree
4 months ago
I'm going to back up a bit. The "pictogram" drawing is a bit unclear on what's new and existing. It appears the new is the patio (drawn in running bond), taking up the majority of backyard and along the side of house, is the product choice in question. Then relocating the existing patio's gray interlocking pavers to the other side of house. A new stepping stone path, possibly flagstone from the shape drawn.

Then the house has existing features: a "paver" retaining wall; guessing natural stone sidewalks with concrete steps; guessing asphalt driveway; possibly stone/brick on the house, and a porch/front patio drawn with a retaining wall or something shown; add in the wood deck, white railings and lattice fence. So there is a LOT going on.

So you may have around 6-8 materials with different colors, shapes, and sizes all within your viewpoint. I don't think the product you choose for the patio can tie everything together, but maybe that choice, say for example, might be better in a certain color or shape than another choice.

Without any pictures or other info but the drawing, I would probably choose the same material as the sidewalks, and sell the gray pavers.
tracefloyd
4 months ago
last modified: 4 months ago
Also, why look out on a dining table? That happens to block the view of water fountain? Placing the table under the pergola would allow for less paving, more greenery.
JAB
Original Author
4 months ago
My apologies. We decided to go with natural blue stone - more expensive but a better look by far I hope! Appreciate the input. We have to wait permitting in our town so will be a few months before we can do the work.
tracefloyd
4 months ago
Sounds fantastic. Thanks for the update.