Do-It-Yourself Pool Patio: Part 5

House Doctor | Gary Dymski

November 8, 2001

IT'S FINISHED. Too late for my daughter Melissa's sweet 16 party or for enjoying those last sun- drenched days of summer, but my project of building a pool patio out of concrete paving stones is finally finished.

If you are a regular reader, you might recall that I began this project in April with some pretty thorough planning. I had hoped to finish by late July or mid-August, so my daughter could have a poolside party and I could enjoy what remained of summer along with some beverages that feature paper umbrellas.

Well, I blew deadline, finishing in late September, my head a little wiser about paving stones, my hands a lot more callused and my liquor cabinet filled with unused paper umbrellas.

It was among the most time-consuming and physically demanding do-it-yourself projects I have ever tackled. I figure I saved anywhere from $8,000 to $10,000 by doing it myself. And I would consider doing it again - with a few changes.

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My patio is rectangular - 32 feet wide by 61 feet long - surrounding an 18-by-38-foot in-ground pool. I used a 6-inch base of crushed gravel and then spent the summer setting paving stones in a running bond pattern on a 1 1/2-inch bed of washed sand. If there is a next time, I plan to use crushed bluestone as a top base instead of sand, and I would consider having more of the preparatory work done by a landscaping contractor.

First, working with sand is just too tedious; one gust of wind or a soft rain shower, and you have to start screeding - making the base flat and level - all over again. Sand is cheaper, however. I used 12 yards of sand, including sweeping about 1 1/2 yards into the joints of the paving stone at the end. Including delivery, I spent a little more than $300 for the sand. Delivery of 10 yards of bluestone, which would have been needed for my project, runs from about $450.

There are some differences in preparing the base with bluestone, too. With sand, you add the 1 1/2-inch layer, screed and lay the stones. With bluestone, you spread a layer about 3/4 inches deep, then level and hand tamp. In both cases, power compacting the surface with a plate vibrator (rental is about $60 for four hours) comes after the stones are set and the sand is swept into the joints.

After seeing a couple of contractors work with bluestone, I think it makes for a more stable base, too. Some friends and neighbors have pool patios with a concrete base, but I was advised to use sand - or bluestone - for better drainage, especially around a pool. "What happens if there's a problem with the pool pipes beneath the patio?" asked one mason who advised against a concrete base. "It's a lot easier to tear up a sand-and-gravel base than a concrete base."

The most difficult part of the project was moving all that sand and gravel, about 30 yards total, from my front- yard driveway to the backyard pool area. I had help, thanks to my friends Howie, Steve, Wayne and my oldest son, Al. Hiring a landscaping company for most of the preparation would have saved lots of time and sweat. I probably will hire a landscaping contractor for some of my final steps, including moving some soil and leveling the area around the pool. Several yards of topsoil are needed to plant a lawn or lay sod, and I don't have much mileage left on my wheelbarrow tires (or my back).

My last bits of advice involve renting a wet saw and sweeping sand into the joints. Renting a wet saw can be expensive, $80 to $90 a day, excluding blade rental. In some cases, rental companies charge for how much of the blade is used. With a 1,500-square-foot patio, I needed lots of cuts and feared a $300 bill for saw rental. However, I had an out. Last year, I bought an inexpensive wet saw for $89 for a bathroom tiling project. Because this saw blade cuts through only about three- quarters of the 2 3/8-inch paving stone, I had to cut first one side, then turn the stone over to finish the cut. The process was slow, but I was able to make most of the straight cuts on stones around the foundation of the house with this saw. I didn't save a lot of time, but I did save money. Your stone supplier might rent wet saws. Ask if it would consider supplying you with a saw - for a discounted rental fee or for free - on weekends until the project is finished.

When sweeping sand and vibrating the stones, the last step is using a couple of sheets of 1/4-inch plywood to protect the surface of the stones. Pushing the metal surface of a plate vibrator directly over the paving stones can scratch and mar the surface. First, sweep all the sand into the joints, and this might take as long as a day for one person working a large area. Lay the 1/4-inch sheet of plywood down, then run the gas-powered plate vibrator over the plywood.