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Stage
7: Course grit sand |
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 | 50mm
(2") of course grit sand is laid to the entire area approx. 20mm higher than
the finished height to allow for compacting. Different parts of the country have
different grades of sand and as a rule of thumb get the coarse grit sand rather
than a fine grain sand.
Do not use building sand as it is too soft a type
of sand plus when it gets wet it turns into a slurry, over a period in time the
sand laying coarse will start to wash away underneath the block paved driveway
and the block paving will start to loose its flat appearance and start to hold
water in the low area |
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Stage
7: Level the grit sand |
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Using
a spade in a swinging motion you need to level the sand roughly to the correct
height |  |
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Stage
7: Cover the total area |
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 | And
continue over the total area until you have covered all the hardcore |
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Stage
8: Compact grit sand |
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Once
you have covered the entire area with sand this needs to be compacted with your
vibrating plate, you will see the lines and your footprints going less and less
after going over your sand 2 - 3 times. Continue until you don't leave any marks
on the sand when you walk over it.
It’s advisable to have your sand
harder and higher than to leave any low soft spots
Note
There
are two methods you can use as the bed for block paving, one is where you have
fully compacted sand like I describe making the sub base and the laying coarse
much firmer so you can achieve a much flatter surface and no chance of the paving
dipping into any low spots when compacted with the vibrating plate once the paving
is laid, to achieve this you need your sand approx 10 – 15mm higher than
the finished screeding height, this surplus sand is screeded off to the correct
height and then you lay your block paving. The other way is to have
2 thirds compacted sand and a third loose sand which you screed to the desired
height, this is easier to screed as the sand is loose and not compacted but can
result in soft spots which the paving will compact into resulting in possible
low areas which could hold water We always use the fully compacted
method as the tolerance on block paving manufactured these days by Marshalls
and Plaspave is 1 -2 mm per block so there
is not the same requirement to bed down the difference of the depth of the blocks
as the vibrating plate will compact 2mm quite easily |  |
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Stage
9: The finished height |
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 |
To get the finished height of your block paving we use a block as a guide and
push it back and forwards and down into the sand until it is 5mm higher than the
finished height to allow for the final compacting once all the block paving is
in place
The finished level of block paving should be 150mm below the
house D.P.C. Level |
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Stage
10: Steel Screeding Rails |
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To
get a perfectly flat bed for your pavers to lay on you can use 18mm galvanised
steel electrical conduit, the type that are used by electricians for putting cables
through, they are not expensive but are better than using timber because the piece
of timber or aluminum you use to screed the sand will slide along them much easier
Using a tight string line to get the screeding rails to the correct finished height
prior to screeding the sand, they are checked for being level or falling towards
any drains, 1:60 fall is required, that's 1" in height to 60" in length
minimum fall to ensure any surface water disburses into your drainage system or
soak a way |  |
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Stage
11: Screeding the sand |
|
 | Once
the screeding rails are in place we begin to screed the sand to the correct height
prior to laying your blocks. When the screeding is finished we remove the steel
screeding rails and fill this gap with grit sand sand using a steel trowel to
give a smooth flat finish
Do not leave the steel screeding rails in the
sand, they must be removed and the gap filled in with sand
Note
you don't have to use screeding rail they are used just for speed of screeding
and to make sure you have the correct levels and fall, instead you can free hand
screed but the finish will not be the same unless your experienced at this particular
trade |
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Stage
12: Laying the block paving |
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The
next stage is to commence laying the block paving, the full blocks are laid first
to a straight line either using a string line or an aluminum straight edge and
then continue laying the blocks until the total area of your drive is completed.
The block can be laid either square to the house or on a 45 degree angle. On this
drive the full blocks started at the front corner of the house working towards
the boundary edge restraint. It was done this way so full blocks showed all round
the house and any cuts were only visible at the garden side of the drive
Note:
To ensure an even distribution of colour and texture mix and
lay blocks from at least 3 packs of block paving |  |
 | When
you have completed the laying of your full blocks you need to cut in the edges,
this can be completed either using a 2 stroke
brick saw with a diamond blade or a block
splitter.
These can be hired from your local hire shop. Using a straight
edge or string line mark the width of the border using a block as a guide and
mark a line onto the full block, cut off the surplus and put the cut block in
its place.
Continue cutting the block paving pieces until all the cuts
are completed |
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Stage
14: Kiln Dried Sand |
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When
all the cut blocks are in place brush all the driveway to remove any broken pieces
of block or dust to ensure they don't get down the joints between the block paving.
Brush kiln dried sand over the entire area making sure all the joints are full
to the top prior to giving them the final compacting with the plate vibrator,
you can leave surplus sand on top of the the block paving driveway so when the
vibrating plate passes over it will spread it about filling any joint which may
require more sand |  |
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Stage
15: Final Compacting |
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 | The
vibrating plate is run over the total area 2 to 3 times to ensure the blocks are
fully bedded into place and any surplus kiln dried sand is now removed
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| The Block Paving driveway is now completed and ready for you
to use.
Note
Some block paving contractors insist on the
customers not driving on the new block paving for a few days after the job has
been completed, trust me if you have followed these steps you can drive on your
new block paving driveway as soon as you have compacted the kiln dried sand in-between
the blocks, the joints are full and any surplus kiln dried sand is removed
You
may have to add more sand a few weeks later to keep all the joints in the paving
topped up |  |
 | Curved
block paving border with edging detail
To achieve this curve cut the
200mm x 100mm blocks in half making them 100mm x 100mm, then they will bend to
your required curve without leaving a large tapering gap between each block
if you want a tight curve then you will have to taper both sides of the blocks
to achieve a neat finish otherwise you will have lots of sand in the joints |
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