Sometimes your backyard is just a litter box for a pet or a romping ground for a child. Sometimes it's a place of tranquility that aids in releasing your your tensions after a long day of work. Whatever your backyard is used for, Most people do something more with it than just let it be a mowing ground.
My wife and I live next to a park that is adjacent to our rear fence. There are times when the weather makes the backyard less than desirable to walk through. With a young child and frequent visits to the park, we decided to build a walkway.
A pathway is a great way to add value, both aesthetically and financially. But it is your backyard. Don't build a path that you will hate, you will regret or that doesn't make sense to you. Now let's talk about what you'll need.
My wife and I live next to a park that is adjacent to our rear fence. There are times when the weather makes the backyard less than desirable to walk through. With a young child and frequent visits to the park, we decided to build a walkway.
A pathway is a great way to add value, both aesthetically and financially. But it is your backyard. Don't build a path that you will hate, you will regret or that doesn't make sense to you. Now let's talk about what you'll need.
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Signing UpStep 1: Tools, Tools, Tools,...some advil and a bed.
Regardless of the style of walkway you build, you will want the following:
Wheelbarrow
Shovel, Round Point
Gardener's shovel
Gloves
Mason Line
Stakes
Depending on the type of walkway you may need:
Hand Tamper
Hammer
Wood for forms, i.e. 2 x 4s
concrete mixer
Shovel, Landscapers
Sand Plate aka compactor
Wheelbarrow
Shovel, Round Point
Gardener's shovel
Gloves
Mason Line
Stakes
Depending on the type of walkway you may need:
Hand Tamper
Hammer
Wood for forms, i.e. 2 x 4s
concrete mixer
Shovel, Landscapers
Sand Plate aka compactor
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We built a flag stone version about 20 years ago.
Over time he stone "crawled" eventually needing some rework.
Here is a little trick i learned then.
When preping, mix concrete into the sand (DRY).
After placing all of the stone and checking it is all level,
just turn on the sprinkler for around 20 minutes to set it
Mostly dry cured concrete is always the best.
works great and no "crawl"
One question though... In the last photo of the completed path I see small triangular pavers along the edge. Did you buy those? Or did you have to cut those?
FYI, any pin (vs. threaded) type fastener over 6" is generally considered a spike.
Love the pattern.
Oh and nice path
How would one do a curved pathway?
Any idea?
If however you have a lot of time you could devide bricks into segments and lay them out to follow the curve as tightly as you need. It would get quite tedious though!
Laying out the curves using an appropriate guide such as a hose, thin wood, etc.
If the stones are square, a straight line would be placed along the path somewhere to determine the orientation of the pattern. You would lay out the stones similarly to what I've demonstrated here, with the exception of the edge stones. The edge stones would need to be cut to follow the contour with a stone saw or masonry chisel.
If you choose a stone or shape that is more of a odd profile or shape you may choose to just edge the pattern with the edge of the untrimmed stone itself. In this case, you wouldn't necessarily use an edge strip as shown and the polymeric sand.
If you wanted an edge, I would lay out my stone pattern on the pathway or patio directly on the gravel and use a flexible edge, cut down to a shorter length, to edge my pattern in.
Then I would lay out my sand and finish the pattern similar to this instructable. Hope this helps.
excellent instructable!
Beautiful !!!