Pool paving considered

Pool paving can be tricky

In most cases I recommend clay paving around a pool. Most pools in South Africa have the Corobrick Cederberg paver as the paving brick around their pool, but there is a growing trend to install flagstone around pools. It is a personal taste and often people are price conscious after they have spent a fortune building the pool.

Paving with Corobrick Nutmeg and Cederberg

Then there is the question of whether the pool should be a chlorine or salt water pool. It is common knowledge that the water in a salt water pool is or feels so much softer on the skin and eyes but one has to remember that salt deteriorates almost anything it comes into contact with. Decking, rock waterfalls and most untreated pool paving gets rapidly eaten away around a salt water pool and can incur additional repair costs after anything from 6 months to 3 years.

Pool paving with LaCotta 3 size cobble paving

Sealing can also be a bit expensive as it is needed on a regular basis and is not just a once off cost. I have installed paving around most types of swimming pools and have found that it is most often paving around a salt-water swimming pool that needs replacing or repair, more so with cement or concrete style paving bricks.

Lapa paving done with Cederberg

So as you can see, paving around a pool can be quite complex, but, if tackled correctly, one can get a long lasting paver plus a quality finish with just a little patience and understanding of which paver is best suited for your need. Coping is the most expensive item in the pool paving price and the pool coping should outlive the life of your paving by many years if installed correctly.

Boma with flagstone paving

Spend a little time selecting your pool paving brick and style to ensure that the paving ends up being an investment and not an expensive failure. Check how long a company has been doing paving and also whether they belong to any pool/brick or paving association. This will tell you whether you are dealing with a reputable company and not some fly by night who you won’t get hold of if you encounter a problem with your paving later on.

 

invest in your paving.

Is your paving an investment?

There are literally 100’s of different types of paving bricks/stones available and then there are a multitude of colours that most are available in as well. Even though paving has been around for 1000’s of years, it can still be a bit tricky ensuring that your hard earned cash becomes an investment when the paving types/style is selected. Your driveway and pathways might look good in a particular type of brick but you might find out later that the brick on the driveway is breaking up as it was not really designed to be laid as a driveway stone/brick.

Patio with style

In almost every case the brick used on your driveway should not be less than 50mm thick, there are very few exceptions to this rule. Another thing to consider regarding the look and feel of your driveway is the practicality of driving on the paving during a rain storm. Will the paving allow your tyres to grip or will they slip and slide? Obviously this will also depend on the gradient of your driveway.

Flagstones and clay combined

There are so many factors that come into play regarding your paving, but when looking to increase the investment return on your house, it is always worth the effort to ensure that you have made the right decision. Don’t get bullied by a salesman who is more concerned with his/her commission than your investment. Don’t also fall into the neighborhood syndrome where everyone is paving with a certain style or a specific brick and you feel compelled to comply and do the same. Often it pays to be a little different but obviously with some knowledge of what is the correct type of brick to be used at various places around the house.

Steps build with Corobrick nutmeg pavers.

Now that you are armed with some paving knowledge, you are bound to be a boss in your neighborhood and can expect people to ask your advise regarding their paving. Paving styles in South Africa are not very different to the styles around the world but there are styles which are unique to every country, do a little homework with Google and ensure that your paving turns out to be one of the best investments you make at your house.

Smartstone Cotswold

Get solid advice, phone Richard today on 011 867 2957 or 084 300 4220

Paving maintanance

Paving maintanance

If you have grass growing on your paving the chances are that you have been negligent regarding the care of your paving. Every item we buy today needs some maintenance, this includes paving. Grass not only spoils the look of the paving but it can also destroy your paving in a short space of time.

In most cases but not all, a simple medium to soft spray from a garden hose and a house broom can be all that is needed to maintain the new rich luster that your bricks had when they were first laid. But, as I said earlier, it is not always the owner’s non-care that degrades the paving, it could also be bad workmanship. The Master builders association and those paving companies that are registered with the Master builders association have a strict method of installing paving. This is no guarantee that things can still not go wrong, but it does give peace of mind knowing that the company is still going to be around to repair anything that might have gone wrong. Price is always a factor but long term satisfaction can always trump price.

3 size flagstone pavers

Richard Arthur has been in the paving industry and sales for most of his 38 year working life and suggests that you should test your salesman to see if he has your project at heart. Most salespeople are only focused on their commission from your job but seasoned salesmen think of the referrals that a good installation always brings. A real professional will want to spend some time with you to ensure that your purchase is not only exactly what you would like, but is the right product for the job as well.

Drain in front of a garage.

Do a little research of your own concerning the different brick types either online or at your local brick yard, suggest a brick type as a possible selection to the salesman and see if he/she runs only with that selection or if they offer something different. They should then give reasons why your selection is or is not the right selection for your needs and offer alternatives which they feel could be better for the job. You will soon get the feeling whether the salesman is there for just your order, or if they are being professional and will turn your order into an investment.

Now obviously is always better if you are on hand to watch the way the contractor is going about doing your paving, but often we buy a house and the paving is already done. I suggest that now that you know a bit about paving, that one of the areas that you take a look at before purchasing that new house is the paving. If you can identify the fact that the paving is busy disintegrating you could get a nice discount on the property as you can point out that the paving will have to be redone. Paving today is not a cheap installation and you could be looking at R20000 or more for renewing the paving. So, take paving a bit more serious and you could be having your next holiday on the money that your paving knowledge has just saved you.