Walkways and Patios are a great way to enhance the look of your outdoor living space and can create a 'finished' look in your yard. They can be a focal point in your landscape or a hidden path from one point to another in your garden. Walkways and Patios are easy to build and can be completed in 1-2 days. Flagstone is a durable, long-lasting natural stone that blends nicely with many different surroundings and can have a rustic charm or a traditional feel depending on the vegetation you choose.
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We found this quick and easy How-to on the the Flagstone Experts website. (link below)
Tools
and Supplies you will need
2. Shovel for spreading the sand and digging out
4" to 5" from the area where the stone will be laid.
3. Masonry or Concrete Sand for laying the stone on.
4. Steel Edging for the border around the patio.
5. Broom for sweeping sand into the joints.
6. Transit, Line Level, or a Long 2x4 with a 4' Level
in order to get a fall on your patio.
7. Compactor for packing the sand down.
To start you need to shovel 4" to 5" deep
in the area where your patio is going to go.
You need at least 3"of compacted Masonry or
Concrete Sand and a 2 inch-thick flagstone.
Let's say you want the stone to extend 1" out of the
ground, then you only need to dig 4" deep. If you want it deeper in the
ground, then dig deeper.
Just make sure that the flagstone you are using is at least
2" thick and you have 3" of compacted sand underneath it.
Drainage
You'll need to make sure there is a fall (Slope the ground away from the house foundation at a rate of 1⁄4" per foot.) in the patio so the
water drains away from your house. You can use a transit, line level, or a
straight 2x4 the length of your patio with a 4' level to get the job done. Just
Make Sure There is a Fall!
Steel
Edging
After you have dug your patio out, you need to put steel
edging around in order to hold the sand and the stone in. You can buy steel
edging from your local hardware store or Lawn and Garden Center.
You'll want to dig the edging in below 4"
to 5", so that it will hold when you start to add the sand.
Compact
Sand
It's very important to compact the sand as much as
possible. Without compacting, the stone will settle or shift and you don't want that to happen. You could rent a
tamper or compactor from a rental shop or make your own compactor out of a 4x4
or something similar.
Make sure you have at least a 3" base of Masonry or
Concrete Sand. That will be enough for the stone not to settle.
Installing
the Flagstone
You can now install the stone. You have to decide how wide
you want the joints. Generally, it is better to have the joints fairly tight,
so that you won't have to keep filling the joints with sand. If you don't mind
filling the joints once or twice a year, then, by all means, have wider joints.
If you will be doing a lot of cutting, we
recommend you rent a Masonry Saw.
Now that you installed all of the stone, all you need
to do is fill in the joints with sand.
Fill the Joints
This part is easy! Just take a broom and sweep
as much sand as you can into the joints. It's best to sweep some in now then let the sand settle and return to sweep more in. You want to go over each joint three or four times.
After that, you're done! Depending on the size of the joints,
you shouldn't have to place sand into the joints more than once every few
years.
Still not certain you can do this on your own? Get connected through our website forum or follow us on facebook or twitter for an upcoming Seminar that will show you step by step on how to build your own sand set patio or walkway.
