Raised Pavers Patio is Redesigned to be more Functional

Multi-Level Paver Patio is reconstructed to One Level for added space

Old Multi-level Patio

This Raised Pavers Patio in Saline, MI was installed by a local landscaper over 5 years ago.  Though the design concept was appealing for the homeowner, the execution of a quality installation and functional design failed.  The quality of detail & cuts was poor to say the least, but the biggest complaint by the homeowner was the lack of useable space.  The scaled drawing they supplied looked so nice on paper but it did not serve the needs of this young growing family.

 The homeowner hired us to re-design this pavers patio to be more functional while using as much as possible the current products on-site so the project was economically possible.  This is where a true experienced brick pavers contractor works at their best.  Any contractor can start a paver project from scratch with nothing there!  Qualified and highly trained brick paver contractors know how to maximize current products and foresee issues & obstacles that may arise. 



My first suggestion was to make the entire pavers patio one level.  This would create one larger patio giving the added space needed for patio furniture, chairs, grill, fire pits, etc.. .  Multi-level raised paver patios are aesthetically pleasing but unless you have a very large design, you end up with 2 smaller patios.  Sometimes the smaller of the two is unusable like in this homeowner's situation.


The pavers patio redesign required us to reconstruct the paver steps coming out the doorwall.  We wanted to make sure they had a safe 3ft out landing step for the young ones & guests.  Because we eliminated the upper level patio and the steps leading down to the lower level patio, the paver steps needed to be transferred to the landing step at the doorwall.  With 12" wide treads, these paver steps were a comfortable and safe transfer to the newly expanded patio.

After disassembling the existing upper level patio pavers, block steps, & sitting wall, the back breaking work of removing the upper level base material began.  We needed to lower the base to the level of the lower level patio so we could install the paving stones flush with the current lower level patio height.  This took 4 workers approx. 7 hours to accomplish. We could not excavate with equipment since it would have disturbed the lower level patio which was to remain.  Many times you have to weigh the decision and trade offs of using good ole fashion man power versus power equipment use.


We completed this redesign and reconstruction of the raised pavers patio in 2 days.  We finished by completely power washing the patio & joints, and sweeping in new paver joint sand.  The transformation was incredible and the homeowner's were ecstatic.  The homeonwers had an upcoming party where they wanted to show off their newly designed patio.  Now, they had enough room for seating and Summer enjoyment!

Brick Pavers Patio and Step Tune-up in Canton

Repair, Rebuild, Cleaning, and Sealing of Brick Pavers will bring back life

In Canton, MI this past week, we performed one of our popular Pavers Patio & Step Tune-ups that will restore some of the original beauty & function of this outdoor living space.  My crew and I have been a leader in this area of expertise in Southeast Michigan for quite some time now offering full brick paver services, education, and follow-up maintenance programs.

This paver patio needed the current paver step rebuilt. The patio had several sunken, gapped, & loose paving stones throughout. The outside soldier course row of pavers where raised and needed re-leveling and we replaced the raised plastic edge restraint with a hidden cement bead.


After performing all the necessary repairs & rebuild of the paver step, we cleaned the patio and prepped it for sealing.  We returned a couple days later to apply a proper brick paver sealant.  The restoration of this pavers patio was very dramatic and well within an acceptable budget for the homeowner. 


Restoration of brick pavers has become a popular option for homeowner's who have neglected or inherited distressed paver patios, walks, driveways, steps, porches, etc.. .  Many homeowners believe they have to replace the current brick pavers with something new paving stones or other products, but in most of my estimates, they are surprised to learn that with some repair, rebuild, redesign, cleaning, & sealing, their existing paver products can look new & beautiful again!


 Of course some weathering effects may exist that can not be reversed, but with some minimal replacement or applying paver sealant, imperfections can be somewhat masked.  Paver restoration benefits usually outweigh the costs of replacing the existing pavers.  Unless a homeowner is adverse to the style or color of the current paving stones, I will always suggest re-using the current products in the restoration, rebuild, or redesign.

It is important for homeowners to know that the restoration of brick pavers is a viable option before getting frustrated and considering replacing them with another product. Your paver installation project needs to be evaluated by an experienced brick pavers contractor to get the best options that will meet your long-term expectations and budget.

Brick Pavers Repair, Cleaning, & Sealing Peaking this Summer

This past week we completed some intricate brick pavers repair, cleaning, and sealing jobs that restored some of the original beauty & function. Each of these brick paver installations have been installed over 10 years.  After we completed our restoration service, they all looked like they had been installed yesterday!

With high school graduations, weddings, and parties an integral part of Summer events, restoration of brick pavers patios, walks, driveways, and pool areas are at an all time high request for us brick paver contractors.  Balancing needs with budgets is always a challenge for homeowners but an optimum plan of attack has always been manageable.

Each paver restoration project this week required some extensive and touch-up repairs of areas that had failed or where neglected over time. Each project was power washed & cleaned and paver joints were restored. 

The  "coup de gras" was each project was sealed with an approved brick paver sealant to enhance the color and give the brick pavers the much popular "wet look" appearance.

 Each homeowner has committed themselves to a routine maintenance program that will insure long-term performance and appearance.  Minimal routine paver services will help avoid any costly future restoration needs. We educated these homeowners about simple steps to take to maintain the appearance of their pavers and explained the need to observe the signs of distress that may lead to future expensive repairs if not addressed early.

Flagstone Front Walkway Replaces Old Path in Ann Arbor

Flagstone Walks & Patios offer a natural looking option to your Hardscape

Last year we installed a Flagstone Path in the backyard for this homeowner in Ann Arbor.  They enjoyed the natural look of it so much, they had us return this Spring and replace their old & original Flagstone front walkway with our much more appealing flagstone.

Old Path

The old & original flagstone path did not compliment the stone work on the home or give it much curb appeal.  The original installing contractor installed the flagstones to low to grade and left considerable wide gaps.  This lead to constant moisture overtaking the flagstone walkway and left it dingy, mossy, & dirty looking all the time.

The new Flagstone used to re-create the front pathway had a more natural grey tone that complimented the stone work on the home, as well as, give some slight contrast color to the landscape.  This particular flagstone was also slightly thicker and had less chance of cracking or splitting.

The homeowner wanted to keep the same shape and curve of the current flagstone pathway.  After removing the existing flagstones and removing all organic matter, we raised the height of the new flagstone path with additional base material.  We also worked hard to keep gaps to an acceptable minimum.

When you are dealing with irregular shaped natural stone, you have to accept some gapping & imperfections. This is the beauty of using natural stone!  At a much higher cost, due to labor & diamond blade use, we can close up gaps up by saw cutting the stone.  This usually is only cost effective for smaller applications.  If you must not have gaps, you may need to consider using a pre-cut natural stone like geometrically shaped Bluestone slabs that fit tight. These of course come at a higher cost.

Flagstone walks & patios do cost more than installing most brick paver projects.  Aside from the high end brick paver units, flagstones per square foot sometimes cost more than double that of the standard paver shapes.

Typically the prep work of base material & screeding is the same for flagstone as it is for brick pavers.  The issue with flagstone is the random thickness of each unit. You have to individual level each unit whereby brick pavers can be laid quickly once the bedding course is screeded.  So, extra labor time of laying is added when installing flagstone walks or patios. Cutting of natural stones is also more difficult than cutting paving stones and the diamond blade use is exponential.


Flagstone walkways and patios offer a very natural and surreal appearance to the landscape. When considering this option, understand that you need to accept what nature allows for this product to perform and that the overall cost may be more than installing brick pavers.

Pictorial of Transformation from Old Wooden Deck to Brick Pavers Patio

Raised Pavers Patio with Landing, Steps, and Planter Creates Beautiful Outdoor Living Space

In Ann Arbor this past Spring, we created this backyard transformation from an Old Wooden Deck to a beautiful Outdoor Living Space.

Designing & building a raised brick pavers patio with a paver landing & steps made the most of the space available. The pavers patio encompassed a duel Planter / Sitting Wall application that created not only some landscape beauty, but useable sitting area for entertaining.

Usually I will go through a stage-by-stage description of the process of installing a uniquely designed paver patio. This post will give you a visual pictorial of the stages of production that lead us to the spectacular conclusion to this project. Pictures will tell the story this post. Enjoy!

Small Raised Paver Patio & Steps Restored in Ann Arbor

Brick Paver Patio is Rebuilt to Restore Original Beauty & Function

On a weekly basis, we are rebuilding Brick Paver Patios to restore the original beauty & function that they were intended to provide.  This small raised pavers patio in Ann Arbor needed a complete rebuild restoration.

When giving an estimate on a paver patio restoration, we always provide cost options for the customer to consider.  In this particular project, a total patio rebuild restoration made the best sense for the homeowner.


The homeowner admitted to never performing any seasonal maintenance or addressing the settling of the wall blocks and paving stones the last few years.  Had the homeowner performed some simple routine maintenance and addressed the first signs of settling, they would not have the current cost for a total rebuild of this raised pavers patio.


My very experienced crew attacked this neglected raised pavers patio with precision and resolve.  The paver steps where re-leveled & re-glued. The raised patio wall blocks & caps were totally torn down and re-installed. Lastly, the paving stones where removed, cleaned, and re-installed in the same dimensions, shape, & design that the customer enjoyed so many years ago in the past. It takes alot more expertise to rebuild a pavers patio then to originally install from scratch.

With routine seasonal maintenance and attention to any settling in future years, this raised pavers patio will last a lifetime of enjoyment & function.  When we witness brick paver patios in this condition the major factor contributing to their demise is homeowner neglect.  Treat your brick pavers like any other outside maintenance need or project you address each Spring and the results will be spectacular.

Old Paver Patio Replaced with New Brick Pavers

Homeowner elects to replace old Brick Pavers if total rebuilding of Patio is required

This homeowner in Ann Arbor, MI had Unilock Classico Pavers for a patio for over 16 years.  The trend in the mid 90's for paving stones was circles, fans, and spirals to create fancy designs & European styles.  Though this homeowner enjoyed this creativity of pavers for many years, they now wanted a more conservative design that best met their change in style.


The current brick paver patio required some extensive rebuilding & repair.  The paver patio had not had any maintenance done for over 16 years and the paving stones had become uneven, loose, gapped, and areas pitched back towards the home.  The paver joints had been taken over by dirt, moss, weeds, and other organic matter due to neglect and lack of sand sweeping over the years.  

My recommendation was for total re-installation & cleaning of the paver patio.  The "band aid" approach of repairs was not an option in this case.  Cleaning & sanding would only be a temporary improvement to the appearance unless the extensive repairs where done.  Due to the cost of this paver repair & restoration service, the customer wanted to explore the option of replacing the existing paving stones with a new style of paver.  Though the overall cost of the restoration project will be more, the paver patio will be brand new & updated!

They now wanted a style of brick pavers that was more linear, geometrical, and tighter fitting, while having some flexibility of being creative.  I suggested using the traditional 4" X 8" Holland Paver shape.  Even with it's simple shape, there are many laying patterns & colors that allow for some easy creativity at an economical price.  By using "quilting" techniques like colors, textures, & shapes to achieve creative designs, brick paver contractors can use re-invent boring old paver patios, walkways, driveways, and more.

Every paver repair &  restoration project that I quote, there needs to be a cost / benefit analysis by the homeowner as to the approach to take in restoring their brick pavers.  Function & performance is always the most important approach.  Improved appearance, creativity, and design is then evaluated whether the additional cost is worth the benefit.  For this homeowner, the additional cost to use new pavers was well worth the additional costs.

We slightly changed the dimensions of this paver patio and installed an impressive design that the customer loved and admired.  The size was increased to create two usable patio areas, one for seating & dining and the other for casual seating, lounging, or sun bathing.  The homeowner plans on adding a decorative fire pit or chimnea to complete their outdoor experience.

 The simple creativity of this new pavers patio is not only functional, but improved the appearance of the home's landscape. Now educated and aware of simple routine maintenance, this homeowner will never need to restore their paver patio again. What turned out to be a undesirable situation for the homeowner resulted in a very positive experience and new addition to their outdoor living space.

Paver Steps Leading Down to Patio are Rebuilt

Poorly designed & installed Brick Paver Steps are our number 1 repair request

These set of Paver Steps in Ypsilanti where not only poorly designed but also poorly installed.  The inexperienced landscape contractor that the homeowner hired used an inferior garden block to construct these paver patio steps.  These garden blocks where not intended for paver step construction but more suited for landscape walls around plant beds.

Upon evaluating the cost of replacing the existing paver steps with a more appropriate engineered block & cap system versus reconstructing the pavers steps using the same products, the homeowner elected to have us reconstruct using the same products.  Due to budget and other household priorities, the repair cost made more sense for the homeowner at this time.

 Aside from the fact that these paver block steps may violate a few building codes, the attention to detail for construction was ignored too.  The end result was a set of paver steps that slowly deteriorated and became extremely unsafe for the homeowner & their guests.  The paver steps where sagging, separating, loosening, and collapsing quickly.

 Upon reconstruction we used the proper adhesives and geotextile fabrics inside the structure to reduce future erosion & settling.  We took every step to maximize the performance of these paver blocks & caps.  We instructed the customer to keep an eye on any future failure and make sure it is addressed immediately to avoid the same adverse situation they had just experienced.


There is no guarantee that these garden blocks will perform properly in the long-term because they are not intended for this particular application.  It may require routine touch up repairs, but for some homeowners weighing the cost for total replacement, this is the "cost/ benefit" chance they are willing to take.

Pavers Patio and Walkway Restored after 25 years

Brick Pavers are resilient and offer the best long-term pavement solution

 
We recently restored this Pavers Patio and Walkway in Ann Arbor that was originally installed 25 years ago.  The homeowner gave up about 5 years ago removing weeds from the open & gapping joints. I assured the homeowner that we could re-use the existing brick pavers and re-install the paver patio and paver walkway to their original dimensions, design, and appearance.  Aside from the normal effects of weathering, the original function of the paving stones would be restored.

We completely lifted up the brick pavers, removed any organic matter, re-compacted the original base material, added additional base as needed, and reinstalled the paving stones in the original shape, size, and design.  We cleaned the pavers and re-sanded with regular joint sand.  We then returned a week later when all was dry and applied an approved brick paver sealant.  The main purpose for sealing was to protect the paving stones from any further weathering.


  The homeowner was never instructed by the installing contractor that they needed to keep the paver joints filled with joint sand. The installing contractor at the time told them that "brick pavers are NO maintenance" and they " will never move".  This was a constant theme I encountered through the early years of brick pavers in Southeast Michigan. 

At the completion of this brick paver restoration project, we spent the much needed time educating the customer of the minimum maintenance requirements of interlocking pavers.  Spring sand sweepings of the paver joints and periodic spot repairs of any settled pavers will insure endless years of beauty and function.