DIY

How do i lay paving slabs in my garden, which is has a concrete path and a small grass lawn?

My garden is not very big but i have a concrete path and a area next to my house concreted. The i have a lawn which also needs paving over. Should i be using a wet cement base of should it all be leveled off with sand first and then paved ontop? what type of sand should i be using? I want to do it myself as all the quotes i have been getting are for block paving and i heard ist quicker for the gangs of men jumping out of vans, so have been stronger advise against this.

ok here we go lol

firstly i am a landscaper i lay 100s of square metres of paving a month so i know what i am talking about please beilieve me lol.

dig the area out that you wish to pave to between 8 and 10 inches below the desired finish level,

once the area is dug out fill in with type 1 (hardcore) to between 4 and 6 inces, then hire a whacker plate and whack the entire area till you can walk on it with out any movement under foot.

there are two options for laying paving,

1 laying on sand

for laying on sand you must have a regular depth slab so it needs to be a pre cast concrete paver unless you are using the very expensive caithness natural stone which is designed for laying on sand.apply a course granite or concreting sand to the area and whack the area checking levels all the time, then simply apply the slabs to the top, it is very difficult to get this method perfect unless you have experience.

2 laying on wet cement

easier method but you need a cement mixer and have the cost of buying bagged cement. simply lay the wet cement down on your type one in the same shape as your paver so its peeked all the way round and is higher than your finished level, also put a line of wet cement through the middle of the shape for support of the slab, tap the slab down with a rubber hammer gently, till you achieve a level slab, if the slab is connected to a house to need a 2mm in 1 metre water run off away from the house to stop the paving causing damp in your house.

its that easy,

Bricky Australia