Showing posts with label raised patio repair. Show all posts
Showing posts with label raised patio repair. Show all posts

Jun 28, 2017

Raised Pavers Patio Repair and Restoration

Brick Paver Patio in Canton restored to its original beauty and function


As the 2017 summer continues in Michigan, we are hard at work bringing back some of the original beauty and function of raised brick paver patios.  It has been 20+ years now since the new home building boom in Canton, Plymouth, and Northville, Michigan.

There are many factors over these years that have contributed to the settling, deterioration, and excessive movement of raised brick paver patios.  One obvious reason for settling is winter frost which has ill effects on all pavements in frost states like Michigan.  Also evident for the settling of raised paver patios is the grade settling along the basement foundation of homes over the years.  Another contributing factor of raised paver patios excessively settling was from the original installing contractor not compacting the base in 4" layers or lifts as they built up to
the finish height.  But really the biggest reason for excessive deterioration of brick paver raised patios is the neglect by the homeowner to perform or hire an authorized brick pavers contractor to maintain these structures.

Simple touch up repairs and Spring sweeping of joint sand in the paver joints and periodic compacting will do wonders for maintaining these awesome outdoor living spaces.  Keeping paver joints filled is required for long term performance and compacting the brick pavers to help relock is also essential to the structure.
We also recommend that all brick pavers, especially raised paver patios, are cleaned and sealed every 2-3 years.  Sealing pavers contributes to keeping joint sand harder, thus slowing down any erosion or invasion of foreign organic matter.  Protecting the surfaces of paving stones and  paver blocks & caps will greatly improve the appearance and structural integrity of these popular patio structures.

Apr 11, 2013

Elevated Brick Pavers Patio & Steps are Rebuilt

This week we performed a total rebuild of a highly elevated brick pavers patio and steps that had severely settled.  The landscape contractor that installed this pavers patio 3 years ago would not address their original warranty period.  After 2 years of frustration & safety issues, the customer contacted us to help them.



The outside paver block retaining walls had drastically settled and pitched back to the home.  The paver
steps coming out the doorwall and leading down to the yard off the paver patio were crumbling and loose.  The brick pavers on top had sunk almost 3 inches below the height
of the retaining wall caps.  This paver structure was eroding fast and after this years winter frost, it was in threat of collapsing.


The only solution in this paver repair situation was to totally rebuild the structure.  There was no feasible way
to "band aid" this poorly installed brick paver patio.  I assured the homeowner that we will re-install this raised paver patio & steps in a stronger and better appearance than the original installation.



We completely tore down the outside paver block & cap walls to the ground.  We re-installed the retaining walls with a slight pitch from the house on recompacted base.  The wall caps where re-cut and adhered with the proper adhesion.  The paver steps were more of a challenge but we completely rebuilt them too.  The final step was to remove the brick pavers (surface).  The existing base was recompacted, additional base was added, and the existing brick pavers were reinstalled properly and at the right height.

When the customer returned the last day to see their paver patio and steps repaired, it ended 2 years of disappointment and frustration.  They commented that it looked better and cleaner than the original installation and they looked forward to entertaining this coming Summer.  Another successful Brick Doctor Bill brick paver restoration!