Had to rip out my whole paver patio after 2 weeks because I skipped the base layer

Laid a 10x12 paver patio last spring in my backyard near Seattle and it looked great for like a week. Then after a few heavy rains, everything started sinking and shifting. I was too impatient to dig down 6 inches for a gravel base and just put sand down. After 2 weeks it was a wavy mess. Ended up tearing it all up and doing it right with 4 inches of crushed rock and a compactor rental from Home Depot for $65 a day. Has anyone else made a dumb shortcut like this and had to redo it?

2 comments

2 Comments

lewis.finley3d ago

Same thing happened to me with a shed foundation in Portland. Skimped on the gravel, just leveled dirt and put down some pavers. First rain turned the whole thing into a mudslide. Spent a whole weekend digging it out and hauling in crushed rock, rented a plate compactor from the same place. Ended up costing me twice as much in time and materials because I had to buy new pavers too. That compactor rental paid for itself ten times over, should have rented it from the start.

mark_carr72d ago

Same thing happened with my patio last year in Denver. I thought I could save 50 bucks by skipping the gravel base and just leveling the dirt. First big thunderstorm turned it into a muddy swamp and half the pavers sank like 3 inches. Ended up renting a plate compactor from Home Depot for 60 bucks and hauling in a yard of crushed rock from the landscape supply. Took me two full weekends and I had to replace like 15 cracked pavers. That compactor rental would have paid for itself if I used it first lmao.