That $200 paver patio I laid last summer is now a weedy mess

I spent a whole weekend in July putting down a 10x10 paver patio in my backyard, leveling sand and all. By spring, weeds were sprouting between every crack and the whole thing looks like it's about to sink. Did I just do a cheap job, or is there a trick to keeping pavers from turning into a garden?

3 comments

3 Comments

david_jones3824d ago

Dude, y'all are acting like a few weeds is a total catastrophe. I got a buddy who laid pavers straight on dirt with a bit of sand, no joke, and his patio still looks decent two years later. @evan_green52 made a solid point about drainage and compaction being big factors. Way I see it, sometimes people on here treat a little backyard project like you're building a driveway for a dump truck. A couple weeds ain't the end of the world, just hit 'em with some weed killer and call it a day.

jamie94025d ago

Wait, you're saying you just put them straight on sand with nothing else? Like no gravel base, no edge restraints, nothing? Dude, that's basically gardening with extra steps... I can't believe the sand held up for a whole summer without just washing away the first time it rained. You've got to dig down at least 4-6 inches, put in crushed gravel, compact it, then the sand layer, and even then you need polymeric sand in the cracks or they'll be a weed farm by spring.

evan_green5224d ago

I hear you on the "gardening with extra steps" thing, but I actually think people overcomplicate this a little. Not everyone needs a full 6 inch gravel base for a small backyard patio that's just for casual use. I laid my own 8x8 paver patio three years ago with just a sand base and some basic edge restraints, and it's holding up fine. I did use polymeric sand in the cracks though, which made a huge difference for weeds. The key is to compact the sand really well before you put anything down, and make sure the ground underneath has decent drainage. If you're not driving cars on it or dealing with heavy rain runoff, skipping the gravel layer can still work out okay.