Laying a block edge course
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- Опубликовано: 3 окт 2024
- How to lay a retainer edge course using block pavers bedded onto concrete, as used for path, driveway and lawn edgings. The example shows a single width brick edging which is sometimes referred to as a soldier or sailor course. The full guide is published on the pavingexpert website. This brick edging was used as a lawn edge retainer, as shown on the website - www.pavingexper...
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Tried this method yesterday instead of wet mortar because Tony knows his stuff. I was a little sceptical, but will be doing edges like this from now on. Easy to do, easy to get lined up perfectly, no mess at all and 24 hours later the bricks are rock solid. Thanks Sir you really are the paving expert
Thanks for the confirmation, Paul!
What is the mixture to make this dry mix?
I enjoy popping back here every once in a while to read the comments saying it's being done wrong. This is a guy with a huge amount of experience and expertise doing it by the book, who has also created one of if not the most comprehensive paving websites available.
Always makes me chuckle.
Thanks for the uploads Tony.
UK paving talk on Facebook is a joke for those who think they know better, but you do do get some friendly critism of advice which good.. No need for bitchinness.
Great tutorial with not ‘life story’ but great explanatory captions. Well done Tony.
Absolutely brilliant and clear guide to doing this project. Gave me the confidence to give it a go, and delighted with my first 5 metres
Finally a good video on laying garden edging. Nice detail, step by step. Even though its not exactly the topic I was looking for, it still gave me an idea on how to proceed. Thanks!
Just about a similar job on my front garden here in Londonderry ,N Ireland. I have viewed various other RUclips videos and I am impressed with your attention to future strength and non movement of your install. The trouble with other videos is that the blocks or bricks end up sitting on nothing with no back end support.
Having read negative comments I am fully aware that empty vessels make the most noise .Keep up the great work and thanks for upload.
I'm trying to do something similar and this absolutely wonderful. I don't understand the negative comments for someone has taken the trouble to provide this information. Thank you Tony :-)
There's always naysayers and trolls - ignore them. I'm glad you found it useful!
Van Blue filimhd
Fantastic help to a novice, your web site has everything needed, really great service to the community.
Many thanks from Australia.
You're very welcome :~)
Great tutorial, really good presentation. Thank you Tony for sharing your experience, and for helping others to see how to best do this. Really appreciated. All Best.
You've had your fair share of idiots in the comments section on here! I'm a joiner who needed to brush up on some edging / bedding skills for landscaping my garden, so I thank you not only for this quick vid, but also your related articles / website too. You've clearly put a lot of effort into that site, so the least I can do is thank you, it's much appreciated!
Into every life a little rain must fall, but it's the sunshine that people such as yourself bring to my work that keeps me going, no matter how many idiots feel the need to make a public display of their ignorance.
Thanks, Llyr!
Tony McCormack really good clean job, nice one pal. It does make me laugh reading the comments, I'm a builder from London 😊 thanks again
I
Nice
My only suggestion for next one is a belt. Also that seems expensive having to use that much portland or concrete. Can i use like sand, playground sand and top it off from there?
Hey mate, just wanted to say thanks. I used this video to guide me through laying heaps of recycled brick edging at my place. Some of it is a couple of years old now and looks like the day I laid it.
You're very welcome!
Excellent video...so chilled with the music. Thanks Tony, the number of views says it all!
Fantastic and informative website as well. The one place I always go too for anything relating to driveways, paving etc etc. Thank you so much for all your hard work putting your homepage together. Helps a DIYer like me enormously saving me time and money. 👍
Tony, very good info. I plan on doing a similar job and it never crossed my mind to use "dry" ready mix concrete for the beginning base.... makes it soooo much easier. Thank you.
Great vid thanks! Love your matter-of-factness...no chit chat or fancy music...just you sharing your experience :)
Thanks for the kind words - if I'm known for anything, it's my 'matter-of-factness' :~)
I like this simple edging more than the fussy looking commercial over sized edging blocks. What I did with my edging was alternate the bricks by laying one horizontally, then the next brick vertically. This breaks up the visual line and looks more natural. When the plants mature over the summer, the effect looks very pleasing
Do you have a picture??
There's something oddly hypnotic about this video. Very satisfying.
Andrew Ovenden I agree
I'm a psychologist; that's your Autonomous sensory meridian response (ASMR); isn't it the greatest!
My builder must have watched this video but fell asleep somewhere near the beginning
you're taking those jagged rocks to the knees like a champ
Thank you Tony for posting this. This is exactly what I needed to see. I am in the States working on a European style patio (using small square cobblestones, not standard American pavers) and this info is great!
Good luck with it - send me a photie when you get finished!
Very good video. I'm in the process of doing the same with monoblock except it's along my slabbed path on both sides. I'm also using sand as I don't have the proper equipment for the concrete.
Thanks again for your video
I like that he didn’t talk to much and over explain
This is the best edging video on RUclips. One question though, you put dry concrete down as the base but it was never wetted, correct? Then wet concrete on top. Wouldn't it be enough to do what I've heard called a "dry pour" where you put the concrete down as a base, add the stones then wet the whole line lightly so that base concrete hardens over time?
What ratio is the bedding concrete? Thanks
Did you get an answer to this question? I was wondering the ratio also
Thanks for posting buddy - i will be following your instruction in my next project.
Many thanks for the video. Qq, what mix did you use for the initial bed?
got to get some knee pads!!! but loved the project! I use reclaimed Chicago and Detroit brick on my pathway projects! Love the olde look...
best how to video i have ever seen...thanks mucho much!
You are very welcome :~)
This is helpful. I appreciate your vedios.
Ha!
Did anyone notice the music went to drum and bass a bit.
Good job🤣
I live in Texas and I did something g like this to help keep in extra water and added a 2" corrugated hose under the bricking inside the cement. Nothing big or fancy just a way to help divert excess water to a collection pond where I reuse for my garden.
I'm assumed the 'hose' is perfoarted to allow water ingress, but if so, why bury it within the concrete, where little water can penentrate? It would be better positioned just inside the edging, buried within whatever fill material (soil/lawn/gravel/etc.) is being used. Good tip, though, Caoimhin (a name more normally seen in Tipperary than Texas!)
You my friend are a godsend.
...and you are obviously a person of excellent taste! :~)
Looks easy if one's got the good knees to bend and squat like it's shown in the video. Thanks anyway for a great demonstration.
Perfect video for what I just need to do now.
Never hit a level with a mallet.
I know lol just get a 2x4 and hammer that down...you don't wanna point anything that we rely on for sensitive accuracy..
This is an excellent video. Thank you.
+Teri Guerin You're welcome
a great video, and would also like to say thanks for your website and all the information you have shared, ignore the cowboys below!
Thanks for the kind words
@@TonyMcCormack you're welcome, may i ask a question, do you know the best place to buy metal road pins? so far i have only been able to find wooden ones and they dont seem as good for setting out accurately? thanks
@@ronanduffey Greenham Trading, Parkers, York Survey Supply - lots of links to good suppliers on the Tool Supplier Listing page on my website: www.pavingexpert.com/links14 ....naturally, this assumes you are in Britain
Thank you for the reply, sorry did not see the traders page on your excellent website, and yep in England!
@@TonyMcCormack I used the road pins very successfully on a patio and block paving project thanks to all your information. Moving onto a block driveway next. How would I haunch against a fence of a shared drive? Is this a scenario where the splash strip is useful (noted your website comments!)
Great job mate.!!.I have stones in my back yard that are just sat there. .may as well put them to some good use.
Could you add another course of bricks on top of these to give a little more depth to the flower bed? It would be retaining a little more soil/weight but not much more..
Obviously the work is not from professional, but I like it. I do the same in my garden and it looks very nice. Well done!
I like to think of myself as a professional. Mind you, I've only been laying paving for 47 years so still a a way to go.....
Compressive strength at it's best
Could anyone give me a link to the type of concrete used in this video, I’m in the UK? Thank you
Lovely job mate!!
Why wasn't the cement under the blocks wet or why wasn't the cement under the blocks wetted after the blocks were laid??? Surely when there stepped on or any weight is placed on them they'll just sink into the powdered cement?
Hello mate - nice helpful video. Can you give the ratio of the concrete mix (how to make it) which is put at the base and for the one used for haunching?
Please read the explanatory text, the linked wbsite page or any of the dozens of other messages asking the very same question.
Stunning video Tony, on to my tenth view now...at least!! I envisage that the additional blocks that will go inside this edging course, would be laid on top of further sub-base then part compacted sand, then top sand layer done with screed bars as per your other video. Would you remove the concrete on the inside of the edging course to the full depth of the block to accommodate this? And then, if so, when laying the blocks would you lay them bit proud of the edging course to compact down to same level, and while doing so take (extreme) care not to compact the edge too? Thank you for educating us mortals!
Yes to all your questions!
Although this particular edge course was used as a retainer edge for a lawn of artificial grass, the principles are the same. You can read much more about the block laying process on my website - www.pavingexpert.com/blocks2.htm - where each of your questions is addressed and answered far more fully than I could manage here....
I need to lay 10 bricks in a straight line in grass. I will dig a line to put the bricks into. How deep should I dig and simply placing dry ready mix concrete is enough? Or should I use sand and cement mix to place the bricks onto?
Just curious why there is a mountain of concrete along the front.
Hi Tony, I like the idea of the semi dry mix being used, but would the edging blocks bond to it better if the under side of blocks were coated with a cement slurry ?
They would, but that bonding isn't essential to the performance. The haunching is the critical component, as it is that, along with the rest of the concrete mass, which provides the restraint. The blocks are merely the 'icing on the cake' - it's the concrete beam formed by the bedding and haunching that's the real functional part of the construction.
Very nice demo - thanks very much. I'd prefer to work with a wetter concrete - would it matter? Isnt that just mortar you are using and not concrete?
no gravel spotted when levelling. it is mortar not concrete
no pic of the finished product?
Steven Smyth -I kinda feel the training started in the middle and didn’t show the final product. How about showing us how to set up the string line too.
Great video. Just wonderd how i could apply this technique when creating a border around a gravel driveway. I was hoping to lay the bricks on top of the subase and use 50mm of gravel with a grid on the drive. I see though that you recommend at least a 100mm bed.
Rest in peace Tony 😢
This is awesome. what a great way to approach this project. Wouldn't it also work OK if you used less concrete under the bricks and let them set up on the concrete? This would hide the concrete better?
You need a minimum of 100mm of concrete, really. I know some people use just 50mm but this often cracks and fails, so we never use less than 100mm.
This video's got a KILLA BEAT son! Yea Yea!
Exactly how my landscaper son does it but today I did over 50 metres my way. My way was to make some 2400mm lengths of 1.2 aluminium in to channels just wide enough to fit the pavers. I was going to cement them in but it's rock solid so I'm not bothering. Time will tell if it's successful.
Hi can you please explain it more I need total of 56 meters done of it
@@hdwaghela You need to find a sheet metal workshop to make the 2400mm aluminium channels that should be just wide enough to fit a paver and with a lip on both sides about 15mm high. Lay them in a trench at pacers depth then you have a perfectly straight footing for your pavers if you use a string line. For angles you just mitre the channel & pavers to suit. Mine haven't moved in over 18 months but if that concerns you then drive a spike through the channel to about 300mm deep. Where the channels meet make sure a paver overlaps.
@@petersnape4972 how much was the cost?
@@hdwaghela I have access to a guillotine & brake press so my cost is material only. For you to do 56 metres using 115mm wide pavers you'll get 8 channels per 2400 x 1200 sheet so that's three sheets of 1.2mm aluminium plus cutting and bending.
Great video, thanks. Please could you advise the best way of removing old haunching, when it covers a downpipe that is connected to a fragile clay drain gully?
Exceptionally careful chiselling and an acceptance that the clayware will probably break, I'm afraid!
That's a lot of concrete for a simple row of brick. I feel bad for the homeowners if/when they want to enlarge the beds and have to break all of that out. Unless of course they wanted bombproof edging, in which case, great job!
It's the correct bed depth and haunch width for a restraining edge. I'm a professional paving installer with over 45 years experience. Why would I skimp and do a weaker job on my own garden?
just because you are a professional doesn't mean that you're right...that is a lot of concrete on and in the ground for one level of brick as a garden edge...
In this case, I'm right. You can build flimsy edge courses if you wish: I prefer to do it correctly, in accordance with the British Standard.
Great video. One question though, can you use pavers turned sideways and buried halfway down as edging?
You could if you wished to, but how "presentable" is that side face? Some pavers have prominent spacer nibs that might detratc from the finished look, but then there are plenty of pavers that are 'nibless' and might be ideal. If you like them, then that's all that really matters!
@@TonyMcCormack I'm using simple brick pavers and I only ask cause that's one of the two options I have other then cement and would like to know which would hold better. If it were available here, I'd definitely do plastic or metal edging cause of the more cleaner look that it provides.
@@brokenbutterfly3178 A concrete bedded edging offers firmer support than any plastic or metal edging system (unless they are bedded into concrete), but bvear in mind that concrete as an edge restraint isn't suitable for all countries. Those experiencing significant frost heave need a different strategy than the one we use in Britain and Ireland.
@@TonyMcCormack thanks alot. I think I'll use pavers as edging since getting a clean look with concrete is a bit of a task. Plus, I wouldn't have to worry about redoing the edges after every few years. Thanks again and I hope you have an awesome day 😊
How will you get the sand and a level block next to the edging if its bedded into concrete? Youd need to chip away at all that excess on the inside or the main paved are near the edge would sit proud.
Very helpful, thank you. I'm just about to do the same for the garden side of my new block driveway except I'm going to have one sweeping in & out curve rather than a straight line like this one. I might need to have a small slope away from the house too. Can you give me an idea how you set up the string levels for a curved sloping edge ? Thanks
See this page on the website.... www.pavingexpert.com/edging3.htm
Thanks for your expertise
Hi Tony, great tutorial!Could you give me a rough idea of how much of the 4:1 mix I'd need to bed a line of single blocks (as in vid) either side of an existing slabbed garden path 14m in length. So 28m in total? From the vid, it looked like 4 shovels per 4-5 blocks, but I've no idea how big your shovel is! 😄
It depends on bed depth. There's some guidance in the table here.... www.pavingexpert.com/edging3.htm#lay, but that little project of mine used almost two barrowfuls to bed and haunch 6 linear metres. Two bags (20kg) of grit sand per barrow plus a quarter bag of cement (5kg)
Tony, that's really helped thanks, but just to confirm the ratio- your 6m edging used almost 40:10kgs?
If so, I reckon 160:40kgs should be adequate for my requirements.
No: Just spotted my mistake - it needs 10kg of cement to make a 4:1 mix with 40kg of sand.
So, two mixes @ 2x20+1x5 = 80kg sand + 20kg cement to lay the 6m, including haunching. There was a bit left over, but if you reckon on 4 times as much, so 320kg sand plus 75-80kg cement, you'll not be far off.
@@TonyMcCormack so Mortar, not concrete.
Hey Tony,
I really like your video and that's exactly what I want to do. I read your website and couldn't figure it out what kind of cement, sand and gravel I should use to make the semi-dry and wet mix. Could you please refer me to the right products in HD or lowes?
We don't have HD or Lowes in Britain or Ireland, so I don't know what they'd call it. It's sharp sand with optional 6mm or 10mm gravel, and Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC)
Thank you, really appreciate it. I should be able to find them.
Very easy to follow video thanks Tony, how do I make the dry mix mate
It relies on the natural moisture of the sand. Full story on my website - www.pavingexpert.com/layflag3.htm#s1
Tony McCormack
R.I.P Tony.......some man for one man xxxx
How would I run an edger down the edge of this...
Thanks for the video. Very nice. Quick question.. How do you determine that your string line is completely straight? Is that just eyeballed ?
When it's just between two points, as long as the string line is taut, it *will* be straight. When there are more than two points, or when there are intermediate points, then an explanation is given on this page of my website - www.pavingexpert.com/setout01.htm#straight
Great video, is the first bed wet at all?
Hi Tony, I have some concrete edging that I want to use to hold in MOT type 1 on a patio I'm DIYing. Patio will be higher than the lawn, so wanted to use the concrete edging soley to contain MOT 1 went I compact it, and so it wont start crumbling away. Edging is 150mm in width. How deep would the concrete base need to be for it to sit in? I ideally I just need the 100mm of it pretuding for the mot sub base of 100mm. Woukd you recommend using a dry mix for it to sit in, then wet for haunching etc? And what mix sand / concrete to use? Thankyou in advance for any advice you could give.
Excellent video. Obviously a man who does not half do his work. I am intending to lay a paving block lawn edge , have you any tips on laying blocks on a lawn that has a slight run off from level. The lawn is mature and I want to protect grass as much as possible. Also should I wet sponge joints or leave them level to the paving block.
Many Thanks
Always lay the blocks to a straight line, not to match the ups and downs, humps and hollows of the lawn. The grass will adapt over the years, but the concrete-bedded blocks are immovable. Follow any fall or slope on the lawn, but keep to a straight line. I wouldn't bother mortaring the joints.
@@TonyMcCormack Many thanks , for the quick reply.I will do as you say. Thanks Again
Good video thank you. What sand cement ratio for the dry mix?
As I've replied to dozens of others asking the same question, the details of the concrete mix are provided on the accompanying web-page referenced in the video
Thanks, found it on your site. It's excellent btw!
Very informative video and your website is such a brilliant source of advice. I'm planning on laying a concrete path with brick edging either side. For a garden path, do I need to use a DPM, and if so, would the method shown in your video be ok on top of a DPM?
Yes, a DPM will help maintain w/c ratio of the concrete, when you pour it, and protect the underside of the concrete from aggressive groundwater, once the path is completed. Extend the DPM so that there is 200-300mm spread beyond the outside edges of the path and lay your brick edgings onto a concrete bed placed directly onto that DPM.
I want to do this but I want my brick to be horizontal not parallel.
I like the background song too
tony, im suprised you dont use a cement slurry bridging bond these days. no need to haunch, faster and superior strength
+Mission Dan Not worth it on this project, and besides, it would have prevented me showing how haunching is used, as it is on the vast majority of installations, residential and commercial.
hi tony, we wont haunch anything these days, it can still fail and it ruins the final look of the work. bridging bond is quicker and i would say 3-4 times stronger than a haunch. i know you are the final word in the paving world and i owe you a great deal of thanks as i learnt my trade almost exclusively from your site and forum, but i think its time to change the way we think about edging pavoirs
+Mission Dan But as long as the BS requires haunching, you have to use it to be compliant. Unless you are instructed to rely solely on a bond bridge, why would you risk it?
+Tony McCormack i truly believe bs is out of date and the method is inferior, i give ten year warranty on my driveways, ive seen 6 yr old haunching fail, in fact when i remove old driveways the haunching is always a mess, that could be the fault of the installer, but i believe its a poor method.
+Mission Dan Hi Dan, can you explain a cement slurry bridging bond please? Are there any videos?
Is there a minimum amount of gravel recommended below the dry mortar bedding layer?
Hi Tony, is it necessary to use priming slurry? And will it be necessary to bond two blocks by the means of pointing
Thanks for sharing Tony, never too old to learn it seems, but I'm just getting too old to remember! lols Do yourself a favour though and consider knee pads, i find they save my knees and making kneeling so much more bearable or is the bare-able?
Ona bigger job, I definitely would use them, but for the 5 metres in this little video project, it was hardly worth the effort
Hey Tony, just wondering whats your dry mix base blend?
What mix for the bedding and what mix for the haunching please?
Great work
If im growing the grass to the outside can i cut back the initial semi dry concrete back on the outside after haunching the inside
As long as you don't undermine the paving units and leave enough in place to keep them locked in position.
Great video.
The concrete you are bedding the blocks down on - is that how it comes or are you adding a small amount of water to powder dry mix?
As explained in the supporting text: it's a semi-dry mix that relies on the natural moisture in the aggregate.
is the dry mix just cement and ballast?
Good job. A quick question. Can that method be used to edge driveway? Thank you.
Yes - it frequently is!
what sand are you using says concrete but appears more like screeding sand as no aggregate can be seen?
There are *so* many regional and local names for that type of sand. We refer to it as concreting sand, but it is also known as sharp sand, grit sand, bedding sand, and as you pointed out, screeding sand, plus many, many more - read about them here - www.pavingexpert.com/aggs01.html#sand - The official name is the flows-off-the-tongue "Gf85 0/4 (MP) fine aggregate"....but we call it concreting sand :~)
why is wet mix concrete used for the haunching but not for underneath the bricks?
To ensure it bonds to the bedding concrete and makes for the strongest possible undowelled day joint. Laying kerbs/edgings onto a wet mix is very, very tricky
Thanks for this video, I am about to lay a new garden path using flags and I got block paving bricks to go down the sides so this is really helpful. I guess as I can see here, I do the edging blocks first leave it for a few days and then do the flags in the middle, is that right?
Yes, or you could lay one edge of blocks as an edging, then the flags straightaway, and then the other edge course of blocks. That way, it will all harden as one mass and you can be sure of a perfect fit between flags and blocks - no overly wide gaps and no sections where the blocks are a bit too tight to squeeze in the flags.
Thanks Tony, really appreciate that!
I was going to make a brick path but have decided to use bottle tops off beer bottles instead.
Hi, great video! Can you give me any information on setting up the height line you have shown on this video?
See the website - www.pavingexpert.com/setout01
I've a pathway to lay, (bricks or slabs not decided yet). What's best to lay them on....Base of mot1, sharp sand /cement mixed dry to bed or as per this video to lay onto? Thanks.
Depends on overall width and type of paving. Blocks can be bound or unbound construction, but, generally speaking, flags are bound. Loads and loads of guidance on the main website - www.pavingexpert.com/blocks2.htm
Thanks. I'Il take a look.
Tony McCormack fuck you and this McCormack!! go back to writing books cuz that driveway luks like dog shit wrapped in 🐈 shit
great video. thanks for the lesson.
What exactly is concrete bedding?
Did as per the video. It rained quite heavily an hour after I had finished the job and the next morning some of the hatching looks to have not set properly. I’m now a little worried that the integrity of the concrete was affected. Is this something you’ve run into before?
Give it 48 hrs then see if you can push a screwdriver into the haunching with ease or does it offer resistance? If it's not too easy, then the haunching will be fine, but if the screwdriver slides in with ease, it will probably needs replacing. My best guess is that it's probably just the outermost 10mm or so of the haunching concrete that got over-wetted by the rain and remains a little softer than desirable.
Will do. Thanks for the guidance.
Hi Tony, what mix were you using here? Thanks.
What concrete mix do you use?
What is the sand cement mix 3 to 1 ?
Hi Tony, love your videos. I’ve got a load of granite setts rescued from a skip and would like to use them in this same way in the garden for a path edging. Given their weight etc is it the same mixes for concrete? Many Thanks
Yes, for a garden or patio edging, the 100mm bed depth and haunching width is fine. I might increase the bed depth to 150mm for really large granite setts (anything more than 150mm thick or 300mm long) on a driveway or a commercial project, but for garden jobs, 100mm is fine.
Tony McCormack cheers Tony
How do I brick an edge for my driveway if I want it curved? How do I use a string line for curves? So confused haha
This is explained on my website - www.pavingexpert.com/edging3#laying-to-curves-and-arcs