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Fall, 2004
 Content: • Tips From the Pros Help Homeowners With Clay Pavers Tips From the Pros Help Homeowners With Clay Pavers Trends in home improvement indicate that outdoor spaces, such as patios, continue to be just as important to curb appeal and market value as the gourmet kitchen and luxury bathroom. Smart Money magazine estimates that landscaping and hardscaping can increase home values by as much as 15 percent, while the National Association of Realtors found that outdoor rooms can deliver a 77 percent return on investment at sale time -- and they're less expensive per square foot than additions or kitchen and bath remodels. Whether you're a do-it-yourselfer or have already hired a landscape designer, you can capitalize on this outdoor home improvement movement with some simple tips from professionals. You'll learn how to bring the warmth and charm of clay pavers into your own backyard. Choosing materials for your hardscapes (paved areas) is crucial to creating the "feel" you want. No other landscape decision will play such an important role in making your yard a livable extension of your home. And only genuine clay pavers are created from the earth itself, making it a natural covering for outdoor areas. Susi Thompson, owner of Dallas-based Thompson Landscape Architects, frequently uses clay pavers in her residential and commercial designs. She offers the following tips for homeowners who want to make a statement with clay pavers: • Real clay-fired brick pavers are more appropriate for traditional settings than concrete unit pavers. • Consider all the elements when making a paver selection. Very crisp wire-cut brick is suitable for formal designs, whereas soft and sandy textured wood-mold brick tends to work well in a more laid-back setting. • Laying the pavers on edge (with the narrow face showing) gives a more refined and elegant look than the typical broad face showing and works especially well in a herringbone pattern. Of course, more bricks are required, and it is, therefore, more expensive. This installation is also difficult and should not be undertaken by a do-it-yourselfer.
INSTALL A PATIO YOURSELF You don't have to be an award-winning designer, however, to enjoy the outdoor ambiance that only comes from genuine clay pavers. Do-it-yourselfers can install a small patio themselves in one weekend if they follow the tips below: • Purchase materials and have them delivered in advance so that you can devote all your time to completing your project. Two full days will be required to make this a weekend-only job. • Have the delivery truck drop the materials off as close to your project site as possible to minimize heavy lifting. • Make sure the area you will pave has proper drainage (1/4 inch per foot slope away from foundations or other permanent structures). • Preparation is the hardest part of the project -- 70 percent of the real work is done before you start laying the pavers. Use any available equipment or resources to make the excavation of the necessary four inches of soil easier on you. Some tricks are wetting the ground, using a garden tiller to soften the soil, or recruiting two able-bodied assistants. • Renting a plate compactor to tamp down your gravel base is a must. The peace of mind you will receive from knowing you have built on a solid foundation will be worth the money. If this is not done thoroughly, your bricks will move over time. • Lay your pavers in a double basket-weave pattern so you don't have to cut brick. For complete instructions, check out the Brick Industry Association's publication "Seven Easy Steps to Installing Your Own Walkway, Driveway and Patio" at www.gobrick.com/pdfs/7steps.pdf. For more information on genuine clay pavers -- including videos and project photos -- visit the Brick Industry Association's Web site at www.gobrick.com.  RETURN TO TOP |
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