Lay a paver patio

A proper patio with no concrete truck. Most of it is the base, and the base is the whole secret.

How big is the patio?

square feet

This one needs a trailer

About 7227 lb of materials. That is more than one pickup load — your shopper will need a trailer, and may make 10 trips. The rental is $35.00, it goes to them in full, and we take nothing from it. Only shoppers who can tow will see the run. ⚠️ 3 items on the list have no weight on file, so the real load is a little heavier than this.

Before you start

Call 811 before digging — a patio dig is wide enough to find anything buried. It is free and takes a couple of days. Cutting pavers throws silica dust: cut outside, wet if the saw allows, with a dust mask and eye protection. The base bags are 50 lb each.

What to buy — untick anything you have

Stone

67 bags of paver base gravel, 0.5 cu ftThis is the heavy part. Over about 30 bags, a landscape supply yard sells it by the ton and delivers — worth it.
17 bags of paver sand, 0.5 cu ft
480 Concrete paver, 4 × 8 inAll from the same lot number so the color matches. By the pallet, the store can deliver it on a flatbed.
2 bags of polymeric sand, 50 lbMatch the color to the pavers. Gray is the safe choice.

Hardware

5 Paver edge restraint, 8 ft
2 packs of edging spikes, 10 in (25 per pack)
1 roll of landscape fabric, 4 × 50 ft

Tools — already ticked off, since most people have them

Tools

1 Plate compactor
1 Paver splitter or masonry saw
2 Screed rails, 1 in pipe
1 Rubber mallet· most people have this
1 String line and stakes· most people have this
1 4 ft level· most people have this
1 Wheelbarrow· most people have this

It lands in the shopping form, where you can edit anything and say what you think each thing costs. Nothing is ordered until you send it.

How it goes · about two weekends · confident

Mark the patio 6 in bigger than the finished size all around and dig it out about 7 in deep, sloping away from the house about 1/4 in per foot.
Compact the dirt, lay the fabric, then add the base gravel in two layers, compacting each one hard.
Lay the pipes on the base as rails, fill between them with sand, and drag a straight board across to screed it flat. Do not walk on it after.
Lay the pavers from one corner outward in your pattern, setting them straight down rather than sliding them.
Cut the edge pieces, fix the edge restraint around the outside with the spikes, and run the compactor over the whole patio.
Sweep the polymeric sand into the joints, compact again, sweep every grain off the surface, and mist it with water as the bag directs.