Major Brick Paver Step Repair for Paver Patio & Porch

Step Repair and Reconstruction

We spent alot of time & effort tearing down and rebuilding some major brick paver steps for a paver patio and porch this past week in Saline. This was another example of a reputable local landscape contractor installing interlocking pavers and modular retaining wall steps well above their capabilities.  The design was good but the execution of these paver patios, walks, & paver steps was poor. Appearance & safety became the urgency for the paver repairs to these brick steps. It did take some time and expertise to solve this step problem.

Most contractors can install flatwork of brick pavers but the truly experienced brick paver contractor is needed for the proper design, layout, and execution of intricate paver steps, raised or multi-level paver patio walls, or elevation changes.  For the amount of money that customers pay for this premium landscape upgrade of paving stones, they deserve the best installation possible.

From the "before" pictures of these brick paver steps, you can easily notice the amount of gaps through out the blocks & caps. The landscape contractor did not take the time & effort to properly install these paver steps.  Base material behind & below the retaining wall blocks easily eroded and settled and therefore allowed the paver steps & paving stones to shift, slide, and fall.  With a family of 3 young children, this customer needed to address this safety issue quickly and did not have time to haggle with the landscape contractor anymore.

 We tore these brick paver steps completely down and rebuilt them from the ground up. We needed additional retaining wall blocks to help with a stronger redesign and structure.  Aside from the gaps throughout the structure, the paver step structures where installed on top of paving stones instead of anchored below grade for stability. These massive paver step structures were just sliding out over the paving stones. The rises were also way off and inconsistent.  The paver patio step landing had a 11" rise going into the doorwall!

We just performed the simple installation techniques that should have been done originally for these brick paver steps.  We began by using a transit to shoot heights we could set the wall blocks properly to insure safe & consistent rises. It was necessary to add another bottom paver step in the paver patio to eliminate the 11" rise into the house.  We also reset the paving stone areas around this step structure to make sure the water pitched away and into the yard.

We also set the retaining wall blocks below grade on proper compacted base, and though tedious with this particular product, we saw cut each block to close any & all gaps that would allow base material to filter out.  Compaction under, behind, and next to all brick paver step structures is crucial and usually ignored by inexperienced installers. Brick paver specialists pay attention to these details!

As you can see from these "after" pictures of the brick paver patio steps & porch steps that we reinstalled properly, the appearance & safety has been greatly enhanced. The homeowner was so happy that their brick step ordeal was resolved.

 

I always preach that the more intricate brick pavers & retaining wall projects are best installed by the pavers expert. Please do not be a victim of this kind of work by an inexperienced landscape contractor selling you a package.

We are currently on another brick paver patio steps & porch step repair that will be my next post this coming week. The house calls keep coming and we keep getting pavers healthy.

Raised Paver Patio Repair of Wall Cap

Building a raised paver patio takes some experience & expertise to insure a functional and creative paver installation.  This particular brick paver patio was installed by a reputable local landscaper that obviously lacked the foresight & experience to accomplish this goal.

The capping of all modular retaining walls to retain the paver patio and paver steps leading into the doorwall were capped using the pavers, not the proper cap units for the retaining wall blocks.   This would not be such a big issue if they had properly installed the paving stones without gaps that allowed the paver joint sand to seep out.

As a result of this poor paver capping, the pavers behind the brick caps settled all along the perimeter of the paver patio, paver steps, and sitting walls.  The inexperienced landscaper did not use the right size paver to cap with so it would allow them to mitre cut nice & tight.  This fear or neglect of cutting has now cost this customer aggravation and money to correct.

We removed all the old brick paver caps and lifted about 16" behind the wall to reset sunken paving stones through out the paver patio.  We could NOT use the proper retaining wall cap units because they are 3 1/2" thick and the brick caps were only 2 3/8" thick.  For us to install the proper retaining wall caps, we would either have to re lift ALL of the paver patio to reset the height or lower the modular retaining wall blocks.  Both these options are more expensive than recapping the raised patio wall with a larger paving stone and cutting them in properly.

The new brick paver caps were cut to fit tight and re adhered to the modular blocks. The paving stones behind the brick caps were reinstalled, compacted, and finished with paver joint sand.  Brick Doctor Bill and his experienced staff have made another customer happy & confident.

Remember to hire an interlocking brick paver specialist for your next brick pavers or retaining wall project.

No Heat, Rain, or Sleet will stop our Brick Paver Repair

We are currently working on some severe brick paver step repairs in Saline.  Even though the heat has been 90+ with heavy periodic rains and occasional sleet, we are pushing forward with our paver repair services. Keeping hydrated, taking shade breaks, and ending our work days early has kept us producing. We also have an unconventional way of cooling off (see pic).

As Ann Arbor and Saline has been hammered with severe weather this summer, the need for properly draining interlocking brick pavers and safe brick steps has never been so important.  If current paver patio repairs are not addressed, the sunken areas will increase and become more costly & unsafe for the homeowner.

We are working feverishly through this hot & wet summer to insure safety & appearance of brick paver patios, walkways, driveways, porches & steps, etc.. .  Brick paver repair work will continue into December before the frost sets in. It is never too late to get your brick pavers restored or revived.

The next post will be a pictorial "before & after" of reconstructing some brick paver steps that needed immediate repair & reconstruction.  This week's weather seems more tolerable and we will continue meeting the needs of our customers.

Paver Patio Repair, Cleaning, and Sealing

We completed a paver patio repair, cleaning, and sealing this week.  This customer has kept up with yearly paver joint sand sweeping but a few minor paver repairs where needed.  The paver joints did exhibit moss, weeds, and grass growth which became unattractive and evasive. 

This brick paver patio had never been sealed and the customer wanted to improve the appearance of the paving stones while slowing down the weathering of the paver surface.  After 5 years being installed by a brick paver contractor, this paver patio was in need of some tender loving care.

We first performed the brick paver repair, then spent a 2 1/2 hours powerwashing out the old paver joint sand, moss, weeds, and grass growth. We also powerwashed the paving stone surfaces to remove mold, dirt, and other patio stains.

We returned a few hours later when the paving stones & paver joints were dry so we could sweep in new paver joint sand.  After joint sand sweeping, we blew off the excess joint sand with a leaf blower, and lightly misted down with water to help clean the paving stones of excess sand on the surface.

The next day was sunny and dry and we returned in the late afternoon to seal the paver patio. We needed to touch up some excessive sand spots on the paver patio with a wisk broom and leaf blower again. We made sure everything was dry especially the paver joints before sealing the pavers. We used an approved brick paver sealant known as "Super Diamond Clear" by Ever Clear.  We sprayed on a generous coat of paver sealer and instructed the customer to stay off for 24 hours. 

Raised Paver Patio Repair in Saline

This past week we performed an extensive raised paver patio repair in Saline. This multi-level brick paver patio was in distress and needed the raised patio walls & caps to be firmed up.  Brick Doctor Bill and his qualified staff was up for the challenge and the paver patio repair service began.

We first removed all the paving stones from each level so we could evaluate & re-compact the old base material. New paver base was added to set the proper paver patio height & pitches. The biggest challenge was to relevel and sure up all the modular retaining wall blocks & caps.  Most of the current retaining wall caps were loose and shifted. This resulted in alot of the paving stones shifting and eventually sinking & gapping. Loose caps also present a safety issue.

We removed all the caps, re-leveled blocks as needed, and reinstalled the caps to fit tight and accurately. Some new caps where needed for replacement and re-cutting proper angles. All caps were adhered using a SRW adhesive.

All the paving stones were reinstalled with proper brick paver installation techniques & pitches. It was necessary to use an additional bundle of a new style of paver around the inside of the raised paver patio caps laid in a sailor's rope pattern.  The reason we needed some additional paving stones was that the current style of pavers was no longer available.  When you reinstall most large brick paver projects, you will need to recut pavers as they will not all fit back into place.  The customer actually liked this new added detail and said it helped freshen up the look.

It is very important to keep the caps of any raised paver patio, paver porch, or steps secured so the paving stones do not begin to shift or gap.  The same holds true for the modular retaining wall blocks. As they shift or loosen, all base material & paving stones will follow.

A minor brick paver repair service call now will save $1,000's of dollars later as this homeowner experienced.  Remember that brick pavers are low maintenance, not NO maintenance!