1. Paint your mailbox, or simply get a new one! The mailbox, in suburbia at least, is the first thing people see when they go by your house. A metal one that looks like teenagers tried to destroy it in a drive-by baseball bat adventure doesn’t help your curb appeal. So spruce it up! Add a coat of paint, put stickers on it with your street number, and if you’re feeling creative and kitschy, add some seashells from the seashore.

2. Lay out some pavers. One way to avoid going to that Orange Box Retailer for them is to find a home in your area that is set for demolition. My mom went and asked the builder if she could take the pavers. They said yes! Construction debris is what they would have become and filled even more precious space in our landfills, but instead, they now make a beautiful path from the sidewalk to the front of the house. Keep in mind though that not all builders are this nice! Laying pavers might seem difficult, but there are many tutorials out there for the beginner.

http://www.groundtradesxchange.com/pavers/brick-pavers.htm : This link shows how to install a paver patio, but a simply path works the same way.

3. Landscaping. It IS easy to be green. Planting colorful flowers or leafy bushes in your yard (in a tamed manner that is) makes your home look well-manicured and taken care of. Planting along the driveway, along the sidewalk, and along the house give more life to your property. Plant pricing typically begins at $5 for a flowering plant that will cover around 1 square foot of space and then the prices go up from there. If you feel inclined, buying a small tree (investing around $20) will  turn into a beautiful source of shade and privacy. Another planting tip is to add window boxes. These handy inexpensive planters add color to the façade of your home without the responsibility of maintaining a massive garden. (It also hides an exterior that might need a little bit of paint.)

4. Replace hardware. Getting new doorknobs, door knockers, house numbers, and more all make your home look fresh and well-kept. A rusty doorknob just looks sloppy and it makes people want to wash their hands right after touching it!

5. Outdoor Lighting. Lighting your front path or your front porch makes the house feeling more  welcoming, and now you can even buy solar powered lamps that simply stab into the grass, soak up the sun and provide a little bit of outdoor lighting for a very reasonable price. This type of lighting is low maintenance and it is possible to find these types of lights home improvement stores for roughly  $4.00/each.  Nicer ones tend to start around $10.00/each.

Step 1: Prepare Gravel Base

The first step to creating a paver patio is locating all underground utilities. This can be done by contacting your local utility company. Once all of the utilities have been marked, make an outline of the area you wish to have pavers. After locating the areas you wish to pave and marking out your area, excavate the entire area to a depth of 7 – 7 ½”. This will allow for 4” of a compacted gravel base, 1” of uncompacted sand, and 2 ½” for the concrete pavers. Lay the base material over the entire area 2” at a time, rake smooth, and compact to a level surface with a hand tamp or a vibratory compactor.

Step 2: Add Sand

After the entire base is compacted smooth in 2” increments, the next area is to lay sand over the entire area of a depth of 1”. This will be an uncompacted “cushion” or leveling agent to lay the pavers on. Shovel sand over the entire area and use a straight 2” x 4” to smooth out the surface. Once the sand has been smoothed or “screeded” do not walk on it or disturb it in any way.

Step 3: Lay Pavers

Starting at one end, begin laying the pavers in any type of pattern you choose. For best results, try to lay the pavers in a diagonal fashion. Not only will this keep the pavers tight, but it will also help to keep your lines straight as you go along. Continue to lay the pavers until you have completely laid the entire area, less the places that will require cutting. For any irregular spaces, it may be necessary to use a chisel or masonry saw to cut pieces to fit.

Step 4: Install Edging

Once the pavers have been cut and fitted to the area, the next step is to add the edge restraint. The edge restraint is what holds the entire patio together and prevents the pavers from shifting apart from one another. To do this you can either use concrete or an aluminum edging.

The preferred method is an aluminum edging as it is easier to use and lasts longer than conventional metal or plastic edgings. To do this, measure and cut the edging to the required length to secure the edge of the paver area. When installing this edging, make sure that the edging is sitting on the gravel base below because the sand is not secure enough to hold the edging in place. Secure the edging with 12” spiral landscape spikes, making sure that you are spiking the edging into the gravel base and not the regular soil. This ensures that the edging will remain secure and prevent your pavers from moving laterally.

Step 5: Compact Pavers

The next step is to compact the entire paver area using a vibratory plate compactor. The reason for compacting over the pavers is to ensure that the pavers are settled in the sands below, preventing them from moving around. Do this by taking the vibratory plate compactor over the entire area one time (**do not use the vibratory plate compactor on patio stones or when overlaying a concrete patio).

Step 6: Fill Joints

Once the pavers have been compacted, the next step is to use Techniseal Polymeric Sand over the entire area. Polymeric Sand is a revolutionary technology being used by installers and paver manufacturers around the globe. It helps to deter weed growth and sand washouts in the sand joints between the pavers.

Do this by spreading a thin layer of sand over the entire area and using a push broom to sweep the sand into the paver joints. This will help to lock the pavers into each other creating what is called “interlock.”

Step 7: Compact Pavers (Again)

That’s correct. The vibratory plate compactor is used once more over the entire area, this time forcing the sand from above down into the joints. Once the area has been passed over by the plate compactor one time, you can then sweep the sand over the area to fill voided areas between the pavers. After each paver has sand between them, you can sweep the remaining sand off the area.

Step 8: Activate Polymeric Sand

Once the paver joints have been completely filled with sand, use a small leaf blower to remove any excess dust off the surface of the patio. This ensures that the polymeric sand dust doesn’t remain on the surface, activating with the addition of water.

Now spray the entire area with a water hose and a spray nozzle. Be sure to follow the instructions for activating the Polymeric Sand that is printed on the outside of the bag.

Once the polymeric sand is activated, stay off the surface for 24 hours.
If you have any questions on laying your own paver patio or any other hardscape project, visit our website at http://www.whiz-q.com/ or give a call: 800-648-4551.

-Derek Whisenand