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GUIDE
TO GOOD PAVER LAYING |
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FIRST MAKE A PLAN |
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 Even
before buying pavers you should have a plan. This
way you will ensure yourself of a professional finish.
When working out a plan, it is best to work in a
systematic way, marking out the areas with a can
of dazzle (spray paint ) to help visualize the area.
We need to tie our patio and driveway with existing
trees, planting beds and decks. We measure everything
and make a small scale drawing of our home and existing
landscape on paper. We use a straight edge with
a level on it and a tape measure to get a rough
idea of how much our yard sloped (we noted that
on our drawing as well). Once you complete the concept
plan, mark it down on a planning sheet in pencil,
from there calculate the quantity of pavers and
raw materials required. A well-designed patio or
driveway must take into account the terrain, landscape
and the needs and budget of your family. If you
have any trouble calculating the quantities from
your plan, call into you local paving manufacturer
and they will assist you in calculating the quantities
of your raw materials. |
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EXCAVATE AREA |
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| The first
step in excavating the area is to mark it
out with dazzel or string lines. Then calculate,
using string lines, your finished heights
ensuring that you allow adequate slope for
drainage. Then remove all vegetation and soft
soil to a depth equal to paver + bedding sand
+ base-course. It is important to consider,
the disposal of the surface water, as excess
water can undermine the base, it is recommended
that excess water be removed by the use of
strip drains or like products. |
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BUILDING A BASE |
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| Using the
correct sub-base is essential, as one of the
most important factors in ensuring longevity
in your pavers is good drainage. Most paving
failures are caused by lack of or incorrect
base material being used. It is recommended
that the minimum depth of base course used
is 50mm in paving and 100mm minimum in driveway
applications. All base materials must be compacted
by the use of either a plate vibrator or some
other means of compaction. |
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SCREEDING SAND |
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Well graded, course textured
bedding sand (not beach sand) should now be spread
over the compacted base course layer. To ensure
a consistent layer of sand, screed rails (25mm water
pipe) and a screed bar should be used. Place the
screed rails on the surface of the basecourse in
two tracks slightly narrower than the screed bar,
then spread the bedding sand over and between the
rails, ensuring that the sand is 10mm above the
height of the rails. Now compact the sand, when
the sand is compacted, use the screening bar to
level the sand, always working backwards to avoid
walking on the finished sand. |
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PREPARATION FOR LAYING |
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| You should
now have an expanse of flat sand ready for
laying the product, but before you can begin
you need to set out the appropriate string
lines to ensure that the job remains straight.
You will also need to ensure that your lines
are straight and square. This can be determined
by laying out a right-handed triangle (3,4,5
triangle). |
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LAYING |
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Laying the pavers is best achieved by developing
a routine and working between string lines.
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Lay the border pavers (header
course) and ensure that this is straight and
level. |
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Place the pavers in the
desired pattern flat and gently on the sand
bed, making sure that they are hand tight.
Ensure that there is a 2-3mm joint is created
between the pavers. |
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Ensure that care is taken
to work to your string lines, adjusting the
pavers to fit. |
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Lay the full pavers first,
then measure the pavers required for any cutting.
Pavers should be cut using either diamond
saw or a masonry blade on a circular saw. |
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EDGE RESTRAINTS |
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| Edge restraints
are essential to prevent movement of the pavers
in the sand. The restraints should be set
approximately 10mm below the finished height
of the pavers. Ensure that the edge restraints
are substantial and permanent, suitable examples
are a concrete haunch or ground treated timber.
The concrete haunch should be approximately
100mm wide and 100mm high, and finish 10mm
below the finished height of the pavers. |
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FINISHING |
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 Now
that the pavers are all in place and any cutting
is completed, you need to now apply dry jointing
sand over the surface of the pavers and sweep into
the joints, until the joint are completely filled.
In a driveway application, you may use a plate compactor
to assist in sand penetration. Finally sweep the
excess sand off the surface of the pavers, keeping
in mind that the procedure will need to be repeated
at a later date to ensure adequate levels of jointing
sand |
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