How to Pavement Tiles

Are you looking to create a beautiful path leading to your home, a unique walkway or an eye-catching yard? If you’re reading this, you’re on the right track. Brick or concrete tiles can give a great look to any yard. These materials are strong and flexible, and you can even design them to be as “grand” or as casual as you like. Moreover, this job is easy as hell! Ah, pretty easy. The correct paving process requires patience, blueprints, and energy, but you can absolutely do it yourself to save money.

Table of Contents

Begin

Make design drawings. A successful tile project requires good design. You need to consider the location where you want to make the path, the entrance to the house, or the yard, and then use the grid paper to make a scale drawing for the building. More or less you will have to adjust the design, so you should use a pencil and keep the drawing clear. The building must have good drainage if you want sustainability and safety. You also need to make the slope of the building gradually lower away from the house and other structures. To ensure drainage, the building should have a slope of at least 10 mm for each next meter (many experts recommend 15 mm for each next meter).

Check with utility companies before starting any work. The process of laying tiles is not difficult, but you should consult the utility company before you start work to make sure you do not accidentally hit or obstruct pipes or cables. You can call local companies for information. ^{[1] X Research Sources} When you call, you can ask them to come to your home to mark the locations of pipes and cables.

Select material. There are a variety of materials to choose from, mostly brick or concrete in a variety of sizes, shapes and colors. You can find a suitable and affordable one online or in building materials stores.

In general, if the building does not have a very special shape, you can calculate quite accurately how many bricks to use just by measuring the area to be tiled and adding 5%. If the building design has many curves, you need to add 10% of the estimated area.
You should buy a little more tiles, as you will most likely have to cut some tiles to fit the design. The more complex the design drawing, the more tiles will have to be cut.
Remember that patio tiles are very heavy. Your best bet is to order to your home. There may be an additional fee for brick containers.

Mark the area with white marker paint. Marking paint helps to determine the exact location of the building. Another option is to draw a line around the construction area. You can wire or use a garden hose to do this. Drive piles to hold the contour in place and use a keke to create a straight angle.

Calculate slope. To prevent water from pooling on the tiles, the court surface should be slightly higher than the surrounding ground. So, when calculating the slope, start from the highest point. Usually it is the point on the doorstep or the point closest to the house.

Drive the pile at the highest point and mark the height where the brick yard meets the door step or building. Tie the rope around the stake right at that height.
Pile at the opposite edge (if not already available). This will be the lowest point. Attach the nivo ruler to the string and tie the other end to the stake on the opposite edge right at the point where the ruler indicates it has reached a leveling height. Starting at this height, measure down at least 10mm for each next meter (that is, if the distance from the door to the outside edge of the yard is 2.5 meters, you need to lower the height by 2.5 meters. cm) and mark this height. Lower the rope to the point just marked. Spread the rope along the width of the yard to ensure that the correct depth of the building is marked.
If the course has a lot of slopes or has a complex design, you will have to do this at multiple points. Creating the correct slope is a very important step, so the more piles you use, the better.
You can hire someone who knows how to use a laser gauge and measuring tape. They can produce the same results faster.
Remember to remove the rope before you start digging to avoid tripping.

Dig topsoil

Dig the soil on the tiled area. In general, a pedestrian-only area will require a 10-15 cm thick layer of substrate, but if you are building a vehicle walkway or building on soft ground (wet soil), the substrate will need to be thick. up to 30 cm. You need to consider how deep the subfloor should be (ask the manufacturer or building materials store), and add about 2.5cm-4cm for the sand layer, plus the thickness of the tiles. (the thickness of the tiles will vary depending on the brand and type of tile, but usually around 6 cm or 8 cm) The total thickness of the substrate, sand and tile is the depth you need to dig in the area. project area. Remember to dig an additional 15-30 cm outside the building boundary to leave space for the curbing material. This is an important factor.

In addition, you should level the soil at the edge of the yard. You can also spread the base material slightly outside the edge, then level with a compactor or hand compactor and pave the contour firmly.
Measure the depth from the rope used to mark the slope instead of from the ground.

Select background material. The base material is usually crushed rough stone, sharp edges, irregularities. The two most important elements of the substrate are to maintain its strength when compressed (to serve as a base for the tile) and to have good drainage. Poor structural integrity and poor drainage can ruin an otherwise perfect brickwork.

Pour the background layer. Pour the base material no more than 15 cm thick at a time and use a hand compactor (for very small projects) or a compactor. It is important that the base layer is compacted. Repeat this step until the base layer has reached the desired thickness. This is your last chance to adjust the height of the building when it’s finished and make sure the pitch isn’t bumpy. Increase or decrease the thickness of the base layer slightly if necessary, regularly measuring the depth from the rope to the substrate.

Remember to spread the base material even to the edges of the building. Spread the base layer over the edge to make the building more sustainable.
Continue spreading the base material and compacting it with a 5 cm thick layer at a time until it is about 7.5 cm from the desired height. When compacting the foundation, be sure to maintain a slight slope – usually away from the house.

Sidewalk. Curtain materials have the effect of maintaining the shape of the building over the years. This material is usually made of plastic, aluminum or steel, surrounds the perimeter of the building and is fixed to the ground with nails 30 cm long. If the building has a special design, you will have to cut the curb material to fit the contour of the design.

Spread a layer of sand. Sand is the material that helps to hold the tiles in place. Use coarse sand and flatten into a uniform layer, at least 2.5 cm thick, but not more than 4 cm. If it is a large project, you can put pipes with a diameter of 25 mm in the ground, fill in the gaps between pipes with sand, and level the sand in small areas (10-20 square meters per area). Take out the tubes and pour more sand into the openings.

Check to see if weed blocking mats need to be used first. Usually these materials are spread over the soil before the subsoil is poured.

Brick

Start tiling along the longest edge. Fortunately, laying the tiles is a pretty easy process compared to anything you’ve done before. Start paving at a 90-degree angle, preferably on the edge adjacent to a house or other construction, and continue paving along the longest straight edge. You need to remember to take tiles from many different bins to mix the tile color evenly. Courtyard tiles are usually made of natural materials, so colors may vary slightly for colored tiles. It is recommended to use tiles from multiple crates to blend slightly different colors on the surface of the court. Spread out from the first point, paying attention to arrange the tiles in straight lines. Lay tiles by placing them directly on the sand – do not push the tiles in the sand or press on the tile placement and disturb the sand surface. Slide each tile along the edge of the adjacent tile. Keep the bricks as close together as possible. If there are wide gaps between the bricks, you will need more ppymer sand to fill the gaps. Check from time to time to make sure the tile is flat, using a string or ruler to check the alignment of each row. Regularly use a ruler on the tile surface to ensure the correct slope and flatness on each row of tiles.

Do not step on leveled sand. Put your feet on the paved bricks and continue to pave out, Do not get too close to the edges of the tiles that have just been laid, or you may disturb the sand in front of the bricks.

Cut bricks if necessary. You will almost always need to cut a few bricks to match the edges of the yard. Do not try to fit curved bricks along the contour. Instead, place all the bricks in the correct row and cut them to the correct size to fit the edge. Use a mason’s saw (which you can rent from tool rental stores) or a cutter for a neat cut. If you have prepared many bricks in advance, you will have a lot of materials to deal with, even if you make a few mistakes!

Press the tiles into the sand. When you have finished laying all the tiles according to the pattern, use a bench compactor to compact the tiles into the sand. Run the compactor over the tile at least three times to press the brick firmly into the sand.

If there is a gap between the bricks, you can sweep ppymer sand into all the seams until half full. This will keep the tiles from shifting during compaction. If the bricks are loose during compaction, the surface of the bricks may be uneven.
When compacting materials and tiles, you need to try to work in different directions or patterns.
Remember to cover covering material such as thick sacks over the table compactor when compacting the tile surface to prevent abrasion.

Sweep sand into brick joints. Fill the joints with coarse sand like the one used, or use a slightly finer sand, such as packaged silica sand (available at building materials stores). Pour sand over the tile surface and sweep into the gaps until all the slots are filled. This sand will help fix the brick. Make sure the sand is dry.

Use a large brush to sweep a large area or a small brush to sweep a small area. Scan in different directions.

Fill tile slots. For added durability and less maintenance, seal tile joints with a suitable sealing product. Look for non-toxic (plant-safe), and don’t forget to clean the tile surface before filling.

Do not use too much water when washing the tiles and make sure the tiles are completely dry before filling.

Advice

Geotextiles are not required but are recommended to prevent soil from moving below the surface of the tile, and to increase the strength and durability of the tile system. Geotextiles are especially useful in high traffic areas.
In non-freezing climates, you can replace the curbing material with concrete, and with some structures, such as driveways, the paving process is unnecessary. You can pave the sidewalk after you have tiled it.
The above are general guidelines only. You need to check the manufacturer’s instructions before paving.
If paving bricks on sandy soil, you can mix a 42 kg bag of cement for every 3 square meters of soil to make the base. Only use this method if you have a walkway or yard that is free of traffic.
To calculate the required amount of gravel and sand, you can use an online calculation tool like Calculator Soup. ^{[2] X Research Source} Remember to add 2.5 cm to the base material when calculating to reduce loss in compaction.
Clay can be unstable over time. You need to increase the stability of the building by spreading the geotextile on the bottom of the foundation and the excavated base to create a stable layer before pouring the foundation.
Spray a little water on the gravel to moisten. This will make the compaction process easier.
Instead of using curb concrete, you can mix wet Portland cement and base material poured under the brick siding. Let’s say you are using a 15cm x 20cm brick as a border for the path. You must peel off the backing along the length of the border, then pour in Portland cement mixed with water. Place border tiles on wet cement mix and tap flat. So you have built a concrete border that no one can see. Even if the floor tiles are cracked, the concrete pavement will not change.

Warning

Always check with your local utility company before digging. Remember that you can be injured or even killed if you hit power lines.
When sawing cementitious materials, the saw and those nearby are exposed to dust containing silicon particles, which can have serious and long-term health effects, including pneumoconiosis.
Be careful when using tools such as a table compactor or a saw. Follow the manufacturer’s instructions and heed any safety warnings. Remember to wear safety glasses when cutting tiles.

Things you need

Paving stone (tile)
Base material – coarse gravel, etc…
Sand
Boundary material or curbing concrete
Hydrometric theodolite
Strings, stakes and rulers
Measure
Checkered paper and pencil
Table compactor or manual compactor
Wiper plate or tube
Masonry saw or brick cutter
Eye protection glasses

Steps