Are you looking to install patio pavers in your San Diego landscape? Finding the ideal pavers can greatly enhance the beauty and functionality of your outdoor space. With a wide variety of options available from reputable suppliers such as RCP Block & Brick here in San Diego, it’s important to choose the right ones that suit your specific needs and style preferences. Whether you prefer natural stone or concrete-style pavers, selecting the right styles/materials and considering factors such as durability, color, texture, and size will ensure a successful installation. By following this helpful guide, you’ll be able to find the perfect patio pavers to transform your San Diego landscape into a stunning outdoor oasis.
Choosing the Right Pavers
Pavers for patios, driveways and walkways should be a compliment to your existing landscape and design. It’s easy to get confused and indecisive when looking at pavers, so let’s try and breakdown some of our favorites and the “why” behind them!
Bella Vista Pavers
Here is a selection from Bella Vista Pavers, from their Catalan Concrete Pavers collection. You can see these modern contemporary interlocking paver stones come in a variety of different colors and styles. Features of these pavers include:
- RCP Lifetime Warranty
- 8000psi is 4x stronger than poured concrete
- Interlocking concrete paver systems are flexible and will not crack
- Low maintenance, easily replace pieces if needed
And here is a great educational video from our friends at RCP Block & Brick:
A different style collection from Bella Vista are the Courtyard Concrete Pavers. They are relatively large and have a smooth classic look. This paver is available in the San Stone Mocha pictured below:
Features of these pavers include:
- 5-piece system
- Includes 4-piece “Courtyard Combo” and separate Jumbo Square
- Interlocking concrete paver systems are flexible and will not crack
- Low maintenance, easily replace pieces if needed
Paver Base & Getting Started Installing Pavers
When installing pavers, either DIY or if you’re using professional installers, you’ll need to start with a base layer on as flat and even surface as you can create. This base layer is important for proper drainage of the pavers and patio. It’s best to use a long “spirit” level, rake and usually a plate compactor. Generally speaking, as all locations and requirements are different, you’ll want a base layer of gravel or crushed rocks (often referred to as Class 2 Road Base), then masonry bedding sand, then you will lay the pavers. We will not go into that procedure as there are some variations to methods. We use professional methods for installing pavers at Designs 4 You Remodeling that ensures the best chance at long term success.
After the pavers are properly installed, use polymeric sand over the paver tops at the joints to further secure and boundary your pavers. Ensure the paver sand is not too thin or it won’t provide proper support, and not too thick, or else it can create sinking and possibly uneven pavers. You will also want to look into Paver Sealers, of which your local masonry supplier likely has a variety of different kinds, including Wet Look, Stabilizing, Penetrating, Color Enhancing, Impregnator, and Seal & Enhance. It’s best to ask your local professional at the store which works best for your chosen paver and situation.
For post-installation of pavers, you’ll want to look into Waterproofing products and masonry cleaners. Be very careful with the majority of these substances, as not only can they be expensive or damage when not properly used, but also some (cleaners specifically) can be poisonous in larger quantities. So when working with chemical substances of any kinds, keep your pets and kids at a distance until completed and safe.
Why Choose Pavers Over Concrete?
Pavers have grown in both variety and popularity recently. At Designs 4 You Remodeling, we often recommend pavers over concrete for a few key reasons. If anything cracks or breaks over time, you can simply and easily remove and replace the broken section with new pavers. With concrete, you would need to demo and redo the entire concrete when it inevitably cracks over time (especially since we have earthquakes). If you tried to re-do just a section of concrete it will always be a different color and look patchy (this is because the color can depend even on the weather of the time you are pouring it). Also, if you wanted to change a section or add some lines (water, electrical, gas) underneath the hardscape in the future, it is much easier to remove pavers to add underneath it rather than having to demo all of your concrete.
If you have are thinking about integrating pavers into your driveway, patio, or perhaps a walkway, please give us a call at (858) 939-9998 to schedule your free estimate and consultation. We offer our services in the San Diego county area.
