Why does nobody talk about how bad pea gravel is for patio bases

I spent two summers putting in a 10x12 patio with pea gravel as the base, following some blog I found. Last week after that big storm in Denver, half the pavers sank and tilted like they were trying to escape. A landscaper friend drove by, laughed, and said pea gravel acts like ball bearings instead of locking together like crushed stone. So which is it, should I stick with crushed limestone or is there another base material that actually holds up long term?

2 comments

2 Comments

grantp141mo ago

My buddy laid a 12x16 patio with 3/4 crushed limestone and it's been solid for 5 years through Colorado winters, so that's definitely the better call. Pea gravel is basically just round pebbles that never lock together, you need angular stone for proper compaction.

quinncarr1mo ago

Ngl I went with 3/4 crushed for my walkway last year and it's way more stable than the pea gravel I tried at first. Took a bit more work to compact but zero regret seeing how it held up through the freeze thaw cycles.