Paver installation
The base is the job. The pavers are the finish
Almost every failed paver job we get called out to look at failed below the surface. The pavers themselves are dense units that last for decades. What moves is the ground under them, and on the Peninsula the ground moves a lot. Clay soils swell when the winter rain arrives and shrink back through the dry months, so anything built on a thin or poorly compacted base will dip, rock and open up at the joints.
So we spend most of the job below the finished level. Excavate to depth, compact the subgrade, lay geotextile fabric where the soil is soft, then build an aggregate base in layers and compact each one before the next goes on. Only after that base is flat, firm and pitched the right way do the pavers come off the pallet.
We only work in interlocking pavers and natural stone, and every installation is built to ICPI specification. That applies to a small entry path, to a full driveway, and to a back garden terrace in exactly the same way. Family owned and operated, and every estimate is free.
How deep do you dig, and what goes back in?
Depth follows the load. A patio or a walkway that only carries people sits on four to six inches of compacted aggregate base. A driveway that carries cars every day needs eight to twelve inches of the same material, because the load spreads down through the base in a cone and the base has to be thick enough to spread it before it reaches the soil. Those are the ICPI numbers and they are how we build every job we take on the Peninsula.
Where the subgrade is soft clay, and a lot of the flat ground near the bay is, we roll geotextile fabric over the soil first. The fabric keeps the base stone and the clay from mixing together. Without it, the stone slowly punches down into the wet clay and the base gets thinner every winter. The base then goes in around four inches at a time and each layer gets plate compacted before the next one, because one deep dump of rock never compacts all the way through.
What is bedding sand for, and what is it not for?
On top of the compacted base goes about one inch of washed coarse sand, pulled flat with screed rails so the depth is the same everywhere. That layer lets each paver seat itself and take up the tiny differences between units. One inch is the number. Not two, not three.
Here is the part that separates a good installation from a callback: bedding sand is never used to level a dip. If the base has a low spot, the temptation is to rake in extra sand and carry on. That sand has not been compacted, so the first winter it settles under traffic and the dip comes straight back through the finished surface. We fix low spots in the base with base rock and a compactor, then screed a uniform sand bed over the top. You can read the specification our crew is certified to in full.
Get a free estimate on your paver installation
ICPI Certified Paver Installer. Every installation built to specification and backed by a 20 year warranty.
Call (650) 705-0628Why does the edge decide how long the paving lasts?
Interlocking paving works because every unit leans on the units around it. Take away the last row of support and the field has nothing to push against, so the pavers at the perimeter creep outward a fraction at a time. The joints open, the sand washes out, and the edge starts to look ragged. That is called unraveling and once it starts it works its way inward.
So the edge gets a real restraint. Spiked edging pinned into the compacted base, or a mortar set border course where the design calls for one. The restraint sits on the base, never on loose soil, and it goes in before the joint sand. The same detail carries just as much weight on a driveway that takes cars every day, and it is one of the first things we look at when somebody asks us why their old paving has spread.
Why choose Exterior Designs for paver installation?
Todd Chandler runs this company and is an ICPI Certified Paver Installer, a Belgard Master Craftsman and an Allan Block Certified Installer. Those are trade certifications you earn by being tested on the build, not badges you buy. We are family owned and operated, based on El Camino Real in San Carlos, and our crew works the Peninsula every week.
We lay Belgard, Calstone and McNear, and we only work in interlocking pavers and natural stone. Every installation is built to ICPI specification and carries a 20 year warranty. Estimates are free and we give you one honest number after we have walked the site. Call (650) 705-0628 or ask for a free estimate.
Ask a paver installer
Straight answers about paver installation on the Peninsula
How long does a paver installation take?
Most residential jobs run three to five working days. Excavation and haul out come first, then the base compacted in layers, then the sand and the pavers, then cutting, edging and joint sand. Drainage work adds time.
What is polymeric joint sand and do I need it?
It is a fine sand with a binder mixed into it. We sweep it into the joints and mist it, and it sets firm. It holds the joints against heavy winter rain, ants and weed seed.
Can pavers be lifted and put back later?
Yes, and that is a real advantage. If a plumber needs to reach a line, or a root lifts one area, we take up the affected pavers, fix what is underneath, re-screed the sand and set the same units back.
Do pavers get weeds growing between them?
Far less than people expect. Weeds in paving come from seed that blows in and roots in the top of the joint, not from underneath. Polymeric sand in a tight joint gives that seed almost nothing to hold.
Will my paving fade in the sun?
Modern pavers hold their color well, because the pigment runs through the whole unit rather than sitting on the face. There is a slight mellowing through the first year, and after that the color stays stable.
Which towns do you install pavers in?
We work out of San Carlos across San Mateo County, Santa Clara County and parts of the East Bay. Belmont, Redwood City, San Mateo, Burlingame, Hillsborough, Menlo Park and Atherton are regular stops, and we have jobs in Foster City, Los Altos, Pacifica and Fremont.