Winterizing your Brick Pavers

I am asked alot about the need for "winterizing" brick paver patios, walks, or driveways. The great news is that interlocking brick pavers are designed and installed to withstand the ill effects of winter climate & frost cycles and do not necessarily require any winter prep.

I do have some suggestions that will help in the long-term success and aesthetics of your brick paver installation.

• Remove any heavy items or vehicles that you plan on leaving on your brick pavers throughout the winter months. The reason is that the area under a heavy item or tires will not flex to the freeze thaw cycle, thus possibly causing sunken areas as the base below shifts. Over the years I have noticed, especially on brick paver patios,where homeowners leave there patio table base (filled with sand or water), leaves a slight indention in this brick paver area. Also, on driveways where homeowners leave boat trailers, campers, motor homes, etc.. the spots where the tires sat through the winter freeze thaw cycles are sunken.

• Sweep some joint sand in all the joints if needed. I always instruct my clients that brick paver joints will require a resweep of joint sand each Spring after the winter frost effects. But if the sand is low in your brick paver joints heading into the Winter, it would be a good idea to do a quick sweep. Brick Paver joints that are filled will allow for proper drainage of late season rains and also properly hold pavers in place. Really you should always keep your brick pavers filled with joint sand all year round for optimum success.

• Redirect any direct water or ice sources from draining on your brick pavers. If there are any gutter spouts that drain onto your brick pavers, it would be a good idea if possible to connect a solid corrugated pipe to the end of the gutter spout and run into the grass or plant bed. The constant freezing and thawing of snow and ice that runs down the gutter onto a brick paver patio, walk, or driveway will create a tremendous stress on your pavers in this area. Hopefully you addressed water drainage during the original brick paver installation but it will be important to reduce any thaw drainage & refreezing.

These are just a few things you can do to add to the long-term success and aesthetics of your brick paver installation. There is no need to cover your pavers or shovel off your paver patio. Just let the functional beauty and benefits of interlocking brick pavers do there job and enjoy!

Brick Pavers Installation : Step 3 Base Material Installation

After you properly prep & excavate for your brick paver installation or paver patio, the next step is to properly install base materials to insure long term success of your interlocking brick paver project.
In Michigan, you should use a gravel base that is compacted in lifts of no more than 4" thick to insure proper density. We have always compacted the subsoil (dirt) with a plate compacter or hand tamper prior to installing the paver base. We also like to take the extra step of installing a geotextile fabric material between the subsoil & gravel base material as a seperator. This will insure that during freeze thaw cycles, the gravel paver base will not be compromised over the years from the "churning" action of frost. This way your paver base will not be "polluted" from dirt below, thus allowing for proper drainage under your brick pavers.
Always rake out your paver base material close to the final contour of your finished brick pavers before compacting. Make sure your finished grade of paver base slopes away from your house or follows closely the same pitches you want to achieve with your pavers. The height of your paver gravel base should be approx. 3.5" below your desired brick paver height. This will allow for your 1" bedding course and the thickness of the brick paver. If your paver base material is really dry, wet it gently prior to compacting so that the fines (dust particles) will settle and bond during compaction.

Small or tight areas can be compacted with a plate hand tamper but for large areas like a paver patio or paver driveway, a gas powered plate compactor should be used. Rake out any humps or depressions and recompact before installing your bedding course (1" sand layer) over the top of the compacted gravel paver base. Keep in mind that your paver base is the foundation for your brick paver installation and the top (surface) will mimic the foundation (gravel base) over time.
Please consult with your local brick paver dealer or brick paver manufacturer in your area to advise on the proper or acceptable base materials to use in your interlocking brick paver installation. Proper drainage below your brick pavers will insure long-term success and functionality.

Brick Pavers Installation : Step 2 Prep & Excavation

After doing some PLANNING of your brick paver project, it is time to PREP & EXCAVATE the area to install your brick paver patio. Mark out the location of your brick paver patio, walkway, or driveway by using marking paint or use the family garden hose to outline your paver project. It is always a good idea to contact MISS DIG in your area to have all utilities, phone, & cable marked before excavating for your paving stone patio.

The tools that will be required for PREPPING your interlocking brick pavers are simple at this step. You will need a wheel barrel, pointed shovel, rake, and some sweat equity. Always remove any sod (grass), mulch, stone, or existing concrete where you will be installing your patio stones. You can strip your sod or concrete out if your paver patio is not that big, but often it is best to rent a power sod cutter or air jack to help in removals. No sense physically burning yourself out in the early stages of this project. Once the area for your brick pavers is prepped, it is time to excavate the area for base material.


EXCAVATING for brick pavers is usually the hardest physical part of any paver project. Most homeowners do not have a skidsteer or tractor to dig out the area to be excavated for a patio, walkway, or paver driveway. This step will require some sweat equity and is important not to be skimped on. MAKE SURE YOU EXCAVATE DEEP ENOUGH TO ALLOW FOR THE PROPER BASE DEPTH to help insure long term performance of your brick pavers. In the earlier posted PLANNING step 1 I detailed how to set your heights. Now, from the top of your brick paver height, you want to excavate down @9" . I determine this measurement from 2.75" of paver thickness, 1" of bedding (screed) course, and average 5" of gravel base. For a brick paver patio or brick paver walkway, 4-5" of gravel base is sufficient if the soil drains well. For brick paver driveways, you will excavate down @13" from the top paver height. Basically you are doubling the gravel base thickness for normal driveway applications. If you experience clay soils, I would add 2-3" of gravel base thickness for patios & walks, and add 4-5" for driveways. It is important to excavate brick paver areas @4" wider along all outside edges so you have base to install the edge restraint on and also give yourself some flexibility in the final layout when installing the brick pavers.

Once these physically challenging steps of PREPPING & EXCAVATING for brick pavers is complete, you will begin to enjoy the "fruits of your labor" as the paver patio begins to evolve. Check back soon for Step 3 : Base Material for Brick Pavers.