|
Now comes the hard part. Once the stones are delivered,
you're going to have to start digging. If you have the room to rent a machine (or
if you already own one), then this won't be too bad. My backyard is closed in, however, so
everything had to be dug by hand.
If you decide to go this route, I recommend getting as many
people as you can to help. Also, make sure that you have all of your tools in
order. You'll need a shovel, wheel barrow, hand tamper, push broom, pick axe, pitch
fork, and levels (preferably a laser level). I was amazed at how well a pitch fork
worked to loosen those hard-to-dig spots. My backyard has shale, which isn't
the easiest to dig in.
You're going to want to dig 8 inches deep or more, depending
on the drainage of your yard. Make sure to have a place to put all that dirt,
too. You'll be amazed at how much you'll have, and how it piles up so quickly.
Once the hole is dug to the required depth, begin filling it
with crushed stone. In my yard, I filled the hole with 6 inches of crushed
stone. Afterwards, I used the machine tamper to tamp the stones in place. When
that was done, I added the weed prevention cloth.to keep weeds from growing up
through your stones.
Then I added two inches of sand. This is where things gets
tricky. You'll want to grade the stones to make sure the pitch goes away from
your house. Otherwise, you'll have water flowing toward your house when it
rains. Once you've used the sand to get your pitch the way that you want it,
use the machine tamper to compact the sand.
Now you're ready to start laying down stones. (As a side
note, if you're patio has curved angles, you'll need a stone-cutting saw and
grinder to cut the stones to angles that you want.) Work your way from one
corner on (or go in rows if you want) with the pattern you picked out for your
stones. You'll have to add or remove sand for leveling the stones, or use stone
dust for more solid packing when adding.
After all of your stones are in and you're happy with the
way they look, take your plastic border strips and nail them down around the
stones. Once that's done, add your fine sand and push it through the cracks of
the stones with a push broom. Use some of your extra dirt to cover up the plastic
strips and level the area around it.
After the fine sand is filled in, use the machine
tamper to compact the stones and fill in the remaining spaces with sand. You'll
probably have to add more fine sand and then tamp it again. Once that's done and you're satisfied with
your work, your patio is complete. Enjoy!
Editor's Note: Click here if you missed Part 1 of this two-part series.
| 
