How to Make Curves With Pavers
Have you ever wondered how stone masons laid those wonderful curved stone patios and paths in formal English gardens? Making curves with pavers is almost as easy as setting them straight. The main question to determine at the beginning, though, is whether your curves will be gentle or tight. Does this Spark an idea?
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Things You'll Need
- Garden hose
- Chalk
- A flat edge shovel
- Plastic or metal bed edging
- Wooden stakes
- Gravel or crushed rock
- Compactor
- Sand
- A broom
- Tape measure
- Protective eyewear
- Wet saw
Instructions
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1
Clear the area to be paved, the exact same way you would for laying straight pavers. It needs to be fairly level and smooth, free of roots and debris, and slightly sloped away from any structures, like your home.
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2
Use the garden hose to outline the curve you wish to make, laying it on the ground.
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3
Dig out the area to be paved 6 inches to 8 inches deep, using the hose as your guide, and then install flexible bed edging along the boundaries. Make sure to set it securely in place with the wooden stakes.
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4
Lay your substrate (gravel or crushed rock) and compact it with the compactor.
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5
Lay the shorter end of the pavers up against the inside of the bed edging. The pavers can be up to 1/4 inch apart up against the edging, but the closer they are together, the better.
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Continue in this fashion along the entire length of the edging, and then set the next row with pavers. Do this until you have set the entire width of the space you wish to lay, and then install another bed edger to secure the space. This second edger will be parallel to the one you first set.
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Finish the job the same way you would for laying straight pavers, filling any gaps between pavers with sand by pouring and sweeping the sand into the cracks.
Laying Tight Curves
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8
Prepare the ground the exact same way as described above for laying pavers in a gently sloping curve.
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9
Lay pavers on the ground, making sure to exceed the dimensions of the final curved area.
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10
Use the garden hose to outline the curve you wish to make, laying it on top of the pavers.
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11
Using the chalk, draw an outline of the curve on the top of the pavers. Use the garden hose as your guide.
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12
Put on your protective eyewear, and cut the pavers with the wet saw. Remember that you can't actually cut curves with the saw. You will be cutting straight lines. The shape will appear curved, however, when all the pavers have been set.
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13
Install bed edging along the outsides of the curve once all the pavers have been cut and placed. Set the edging securely in place with the wooden stakes.
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Finish the job the same way you would for laying straight pavers.
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Tips & Warnings
It is possible to purchase pavers that are already curved. These units, typically made out of concrete, have been poured and set in prefabricated molds, and you can achieve some beautiful designs with them. Natural material like stone, however, can only be cut in straight lines unless you have access to some very expensive and precise jig saws made specifically for cutting stone.
