Brick Pavers Driveway installed in Ann Arbor

Old asphalt driveway replaced with long-term Interlocking Brick Pavers

In Ann Arbor this Fall, we replaced an old dilapidated asphalt driveway that was not only unsightly, but pitched rain water back towards the garage.  There are many decisions to be made when replacing an old driveway and considering interlocking brick pavers. Brick pavers is usually your best long-term option.

It is true that interlocking brick pavers are going to be one of your more expensive options but over the course of several years, it becomes one of the most economical solutions.  When you factor in aesthetics,routine maintenance, repair & replacement costs, interlocking brick pavers will be your best long term financial option.

The biggest reason brick paver driveway installations cost more is because the base prep under the pavement far exceeds, sometimes 5 times, any prep work done for concrete, asphalt, or stamped concrete installations.  Make sure you are asking the right questions and and what are warranty periods when considering your pavement options.

We started this brick paver driveway project by doing some core tests to check the base material under the asphalt.  When I bid a brick paver driveway, I always discuss the possibility of some cost savings or additional costs due to the unforeseen conditions below.  In this case, we discovered that there was approximately 10-11 inches of gravel base under the pavement.

Since we were going to raise most of the driveway height 1-2", we were confident that there was an adequate depth of base material present for a brick paver driveway.  We did skim off the contaminated layer of  top base and installed a reinforcement layer of strata grid in the upper half of the existing base material.

We did saw-cut the garage floor to give a clean transition line for the paving stones and set the pitches to better flow surface water away from the garage.  It is always a challenge to properly channel water flow when the street is higher than the garage floor.  The homeowner really wanted to avoid the use of drains if possible and we made that happen. We properly surveyed the project to achieve maximum water flow across the surface of the paving stones.

We installed 2 large circle patterns in the middle of the pavers driveway to match their current paver patio design. We filled in the "field", the area between any designs & soldier course borders, with a random pattern to improve the weight distribution strength of the paving stones.

The final result was a dramatic transformation from the drab potholed asphalt drive they endured for many years.  They now enjoy a dry garage floor and are the envy of the neighbors.


We were able to contract a neighbor for another paver driveway transformation next Spring.  The creative design and long term performance of brick pavers is unmatched in frost states such as Michigan.

Common Paver Driveway Repair: Ruts into Garage

Interlocking pavers are perfect for driveways in Ann Arbor

We performed a brick paver driveway repair this week in Ann Arbor. This paver repair is a common repair you see not only for interlocking pavers, but also for cement, gravel, or asphalt driveways. Look at your current transition area between your driveway and cement floor and I am sure you have experienced imperfections, settling, chipping,and / or gaps.

Driveway ruts leading into the garage are very common and somewhat of a mystery.  Years ago I began reinforcing this area of pavers directly in front of the garage floor by installing extra layers of grid within the base material that was installed & increased layers of compaction.  I have seen good results but this area of a driveway, whether using brick pavers or not, seems to be susceptible to repairs or visible stress.

I have concluded that because this is an area of transition from one pavement, paving stones, to another pavement, usually cement, there is added load stress or frost damge.  One conclusion is that base material under the paving stones may slide under the cement floor of the garage during freeze thaw cycles. Another reason may be the load transfer from the cement surface to the paving stones creates vertical and/or lateral load force that stresses the paving stone & paver base material.

By adding additional reinforcement products like geo-textile fabric (below the base) and strata-grid (within layers of the base), extra layers of compaction (2-3" lifts), and stronger paver laying patterns (herringbone or random joints) have help eliminate the severity of this common brick paver repair. 

This paver driveway repair we performed in Ann Arbor this past week had approx. 8ft long ruts leading into all 3 garage door entrances.  When performing this paver repair, it is necessary to lift up the entire stretch across the garage floor, not just where the ruts exist.  Another brick paver contractor recommended to this customer that they lift and repair the actual rut areas only.  I easily showed the customer with a carpenter's level that the areas in between the ruts are usually raised and the paving stones are tilted.  The whole area in front of the garage was compromised and needed proper attention.

We lifted up the entire paving stone area in front of the garage, re-compacted the base, added more base material, screeded the area for proper pitch, and re-installed the pavers.  I expect that the problem of having future driveway ruts will be minimal but not entirely impossible. This paver repair will reinforce the area for years to come. 



When we were completed with this driveway repair, there was not visible evidence that this area had been repaired. This is the long-term benefit and beauty of using interlocking brick pavers for your next driveway installation!