How to Lay Block Paving for a Driveway
Paver blocks offer an easy way to spruce up the appearance of your driveway. They are also called paving stones, pavers, pave blocks and interlocking paver blocks. The modern technique of installing them leaves tiny spaces between them that can be filled in with stand, which creates surfaces that are resistant to cracking and wear. Does this Spark an idea?
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Things You'll Need
- Shovel
- Cracked gravel
- Sand
- Paver blocks
- Manual compactor (can be rented from a home and garden store)
- 2 PVC pipes (at least 6 feet long)
- Broom (ideally a sweeper)
- 1 long 2-by-4 or similar flat device (at least 6 feet long)
- Rubber mallet
- Hammer and chisel or masonry saw (optional)
- Trowel
Instructions
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1
Clear the area you wish to make into a paver block driveway with your shovel. Clear to a depth of at least 10 inches below where you want the top surface of the paver blocks. Clear away all grass, turf and loose soil.
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2
Install a layer of gravel that is at least 4 inches thick. The necessary thickness of the layer of gravel depends on how compacted the soil is below where the driveway will be. If the soil is loose earth, you will need a layer of gravel up to 12 inches thick.
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3
Go over the entire area where the gravel has been laid using the manual compactor. This will push the gravel down so that it does not settle unevenly later.
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4
Lay the PVC pipes parallel to one another. Fill in between the pipes with sand. Take a flat surface (a long piece of wood, metal, etc.), and slide it down the pipes perpendicular to them, creating a flat surface of sand. Do not walk on or touch the sand. Do not lay sand over a greater area than you can lay pavers in one day, because the sand may collect moisture or settle unevenly overnight. Remove the PVC pipes and fill in the indentations gently with sand.
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5
Lay pavers on top of the sand, working in an outward radial manner (not one row at a time). Every time you lay a paver, tap the sides and top of it with a rubber mallet to push it into place. If you need to cut a paver, use a hammer and chisel or masonry saw.
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6
Sweep sand into the tiny gaps between the pavers. Go back over the entire surface and tap every paver again with the rubber mallet. Repeat at least once. Save leftover sand to fill in gaps that come later from settling or weathering.
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Tips & Warnings
You may wish to mark the area you wish to pave with wooden stakes and chalk string.
Do not slope the driveway toward your house, or you will be diverting water to your foundation every time it rains.
