Paver Edging: Choosing and Installing Edge Restraint for Pavers
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- Опубликовано: 1 авг 2021
- Edge restraint is installed just before the jointing compound for your project is. It is meant to remain in a constant position, helping to prevent the lateral movement of the pavers caused by the traffic above or freeze-thaw cycles.
Learn more about edge restraint with this article:
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Edge restraint is installed wherever there is a soft material against the edge of a paving surface. Where the paving surface runs against a hard surface like a wall, building structure, curbing, it is not needed.
Edge restraint holds an important role in the interlocking pavement, but if the prior steps to installation are not followed, failure of the paver project is likely. This includes the extension of the base material past the final paver at the same measurement as the depth of the base. That means if you are installing a paver patio that has a base depth of 6 inches, then your base will need to extend past the final paver by 6 inches. This provides a solid platform to stabilize your pavers so that they do not slide off of the base.
For most residential projects, edge restraints will either be a plastic edge, concrete edge, or some sort of mortared or reinforced curbing stone.
Plastic edge restraint strips that can also be found as aluminum with various low to high profiles can be used with non-galvanized spikes. These strips are installed directly on top of the base material retaining the 1 inch bedding layer and the pavers. To do this, the bedding material needs to be scraped back or the edge restraint needs to be worked into the bedding material.
Plastic edge restraint cannot be used with a permeable or open graded base where the aggregate has no fines in it. This is because the non-galvanized spikes are designed to rust in the dense graded base of a traditional install, holding onto the fines of the material and preventing the heaving of the edge restraint. These spikes are hammered into the edge restraint every 12 inches or every 6 inchs on rounded projects. The heads of the spikes are meant to rest approximately ¼” above the hole. If your project has rounded areas, the back of the edge restraint can be cut to allow the strips to bend and curve as needed.
It is important when choosing your plastic edge restraint that you find a product with the plastic buttresses connecting the spike holes to the vertical retainer providing the lateral strength to the edge restraint strip.
Still it is easy to find projects where these plastic edge restraint strips are heaving above the pavers creating an unsightly project. For this reason, we have moved to concrete edge restraints in our business.
The only time we now use a plastic edge is when installing on a synthetic base where the plastic edge restraint is fastened directly to the paver base panels creating one system and preventing the chance for the edge restraint to heave above the pavers.
There are edge restraint strips that are designed for permeable or open graded bases with wedge-shaped anchors instead of these non-galvanized spikes. However, for this application we use a concrete edge restraint that is reinforced with fibers.
There are a few products available that come with their formulas of concrete mixture and fibers where you just need to add water, mix, and install. The fibers allow the edge to remain intact even if it cracks under pressure from freeze-thaw cycles or the movement of the pavers from the traffic. After mixing the material, you will use a trowel to scrape back the bedding layer. Doing this will cause some of the bedding layer to be undermined below the pavers on the edge. The concrete edge restraint is then installed to replace that bedding material under the paver while being installed directly on top of the base material and tapering up approximately half an inch up the paver, retaining the bedding layer and the pavers. This concrete adheres to the base material and the pavers, creating a strong edge restraint for residential applications. It is especially useful for a project like this where we are using it for a live edge or 1” thick material like square cut flagstone or porcelain.
After the installation of the plastic edge restraint or concrete edge restraint, you can then move on to the final step of the paver installation which is installing the jointing compound.
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This is helpful and explains why the pavers on my diy patio have shifted over time. Will do concrete around the edges next time!
Glad it helped!
Thank you.
👍👍
Hey I am A Hardscaper. I am doing an open grade patio and had a serious general question. I understand how/why the plastic edge works better with sand and dense bases, but couldn't a longer non galvanized spike like a 20 inch or something be utilized so it comes in contact with the sub base (soil)? Generally curious. Was thinking of using something like the 2 ft rebars that Home Depot sells. Love the page. Learned a lot from ya
Thank you!
You want the corrosion where the spikes then hold onto the fines of a dense graded base to be at the level of the edge restraint. That way when the spikes do try to heave they are heaving the entire edge restraint. That’s the idea behind plastic edge. If you use open graded and rely on that corrosion to be from the sub grade then you still have a lot of room for that spike to heave. Hope that makes sense
Thanks for all your guidance with my project! Question, with my open graded base I plan to do a concrete edge restraint as you showed here... Does the plate compactor vibration ever cause an issue with the concrete edge installed first? It makes sense you need the edge before sand, but didn't know if vibration can crack the concrete edge. Thanks!
Nope, you can even compact immediately after installing the edge. Just be careful when compacting at the edge and go slow do see how the pavers and edge restraint react.
Great video . Is there a different process with driveway applications in thickness of concrete rebar etc?
No difference 👍 though for a commercial parking lot or heavier load application, a concrete curb of some sort is recommended.
I appreciate your videos very informative! Just wondering, what type of fiber/mortar mix do you use and what is recommended? Obviously, there is a huge difference between Uniloc‘s fibre concrete mix products vs let’s say a Lowe’s or Home Depot with fibre in it. The difference is $28 a bag at the landscape store in Canadian dollars versus $11 a bag. What are your thoughts I’m doing 1200 ft.² at my house in a couple of days.
Any product for edge restraint would do. You can also buy concrete and add fibers to it if you are looking to save. Ultimately the difference is the additives that allows for more flexibility.
What a fantastic, useful video! I am still trying to convince my hubby that EVEN when using concrete as an edge restraint, we need to prepare the base 4 to 6 inches past our patio pavers🙄
Definitely need that extension, at least 6”
Thanks for the vid! Questions:
1. Using a traditional base material 1.5” minus compacted and sand bedding. In your vid, you use a small aggregate for your bedding, so presumably you do not need to compact the pavers into the bed with the aggregate bed and move directly to sweeping your joints? If using a sand bed as I have and a concrete/fiber edge restraint, is it safe to compact or “set” my pavers with this type of edge restraint? I’m concerned as they’re set into the sand bed 1/8-1/4” that it will either break up the edge restraint or things will shift when using a mechanical compactor as the fiber concrete bonds to the edge of the pavers? Thoughts?
Thanks for watching! We still do compact with this bedding material after sweeping in the sand. These concrete edge restraint manufacturers actually recommend compacting after installing the edge restraint. I haven’t had a problem with this.
Thank you for this video. You explained alot, especially that we now have to dig 6 more inches on each side to prevent the lateral movement of pavers. Wow this is going to be alot of base material. I originally dug 40" wide and now will 52" wide according to your video. Also fill this area with 6" base gravel compacted and 1" of sand compacted. Then have 2" for pavers, so 9" depth. Big project for us. Does this sound right to you? Our walkway is 20 ft long. Oh I forgot to mention we are putting 16x16 pavers side to side and then border bricks down each side.
Yup, that all checks out! It always is a lot more than it looks especially when it’s all out. Remember to compact your subsoil and use a geotextile to separate the subsoil from your base.
We have a new raised paver patio which was installed with the concrete edging.. The patio was raised up about 12 inches to accomodate mobility access into our home thus the concrete edging is very exposed and unsightly (not a neat job when it was done). Looking for ways to conceal the rough looking edges, the yard/ sparse grass since the project is what is 12" lower so there is a disparity of options. thank you
I would install a small retaining wall.
This is a great video and great explanation. I have a walkway that’s “open concept.” I’m not sure how to edge to contain base and sand. My slope drops from 2” to 4”. I’m trying to keep the base and sand contained and prevent any movement (obviously). I’m thinking about going with a 4” paver edging (retaining wall block). Thoughts?
Yeah without seeing the project that would be my suggestion.
Wouldn't this prevent grass from properly growing alongside the pavers? In other words, grass that runs alongside the edge of those pavers will turn yellow and be nearly impossible to keep because it has no soil underneath?
Nope, we have never had a problem growing grass along our patios. It is only meant to run up the paver 1". That still leaves about 1.5" for topsoil and seed / sod.
@@iamahardscaper Do you wrap the geotextile back over the base at all or cut it the final grade of the base extension? I am guessing the grass roots in the topsoil will keep the dirt from migrating into the base from the paver edge if you don't wrap it back.
Mike, all you videos are so informative, awesome stuff. I’m including many of the learnings as requirements for my contractor who will do my patio.
Questions:
1 - For a 25x20 paver patio with easy drainage to 3 sides, what’s is the min slop I can use? This is in Denver, CO, (precipitation less than 15in/year).
2 - Should I use woven or non-woven membrane?
3 - I’ll use concrete restrain & geotextile membrane; should I somehow roll back or tuck the membrane under the edge of the concrete restrain?
4 - I’ll use large paver slabs for a contemporary look (so not as many joints compared to small pavers), is polymeric sand a good choice to lock in the pavers, or freeze/thaw will crumble it. Maybe sand is best to fill the joints and it will also help with drainage?
I appreciate your help!!
1: 1/8” to 1/4” per foot slope. No more no less.
2: depends on the subsoil. Woven does not drain as well but provides stabilization. Nonwoven does not provide as much stabilization but drains well. Best of both worlds is to put nonwoven down then biaxial geogrid immediately on top.
3: no, the concrete edge needs to adhere to the base. Bedding material gets scraped back and then edge is applied. Geotextile needs to wrap up the sides of the excavation and then can fold over to meet where the edge restraint ends
4: poly works, just needs to be installed properly. Loose sand will work but will be more prone to weeds and insects. If you use a jointing sand, use a joint stabilizing sealer. I’d also look at a resin based compound like EasyJoint or Nitro by Alliance. We have a video if you search our channel for jointing compounds.
Hope that helps!
Thank you very much for your prompt and detailed reply. I’ll look up the video on EasyJoint and Nitro.
How to I reinforce pavers on the edge of a concrete foundation? Do I just smooth out concrete fiber product around its edge?
Also what about the edges metro a wooden fence with quarter to half inch gaps from the bottom? Will some of my base wash out from underneath through those gaps?
Yes that is the best way and then fix the grade with soil to the paver.
If there is space for base to spill out, it will. There should be an edging stone or retaining wall built to retain that base along the fence. We build 4” off the fence to still get our edge restraint in and fill that with decorative stone.
Thanks Mike again for the helpful explanation. Would you recommend using concrete edge restraint with paver base panel or only traditional base material?
I prefer the plastic edge with paver base panels as long as you use the screws that are designed for them
Thanks Mike for your reply. Is there a way to tie in paver patio and side walk area with paver base panel as base to a paver drive way with open grade paver base?
Hey sorry for the late response. Yeah you just but up the paver base panels below the driveway pavers so that when you lay the walkway pavers it matches the height of the driveway pavers.
@@iamahardscaper Awsome thanks Mike
Awesome video! im using 6 inches of 3/4 inch gravel and 1 inch of sand. I want to do concrete edge.. but your video focuses on concrete edge on what seems to be not sand but 1/4 inch crushed Chipped rock…can you confirm that concrete will work if I use the sand?
It doesn’t actually bond to the sand or 1/4”. That needs to be scraped away and the concrete edge installed in place of that and it will bond to your 3/4”.
Just to clarify something else you wrote, if you are using sand as your bedding layer then your base material should be 3/4 down to fines and not 3/4 open gravel.
@@iamahardscaper thanks, it makes sense! can you recommend a brand of cement with fiber?
@@chumager1382 Alliance Xtreme Edge or PermaEdge
I have a question about using the concrete. Once I go to install the poly and then compact the pavers before applying the second round of polysand, won’t that affect my concrete edge when compacting? if the concrete is already cured to the paver, and now I am compacting that paver won’t it simply break up the concrete? Great video, thank you.
As long as you adhere the concrete edge to your base material and to the pavers as opposed to the bedding layer, you will not notice significant movement when you compact. We do not compact all the way to the edge as well. Concrete edge manufacturers recommend to also compact before the concrete cures, but you can still do it afterward. The fibers will hold the concrete together.
@@iamahardscaper great, thank you for your response. Huge help!
Great videos! Learning a lot from you. Question though:
After all the pavers are laid do you compact them before the concrete edge is put down or after? And if after don’t you run the risk of cracking the new concrete edge? Thanks
The concrete we use has fiber in it or we add it so that if it does crack it is still held together.
@@iamahardscaperI've seen sakrete 6000psi at HD which has some sort of fibers in it. What do you recommend for concrete edging? You mentioned you sometimes add fibers. Where do you get fibers?
@@DaveC-sx3gl if you search on Amazon for fibreglass fibers or concrete fiber you’ll find bags of it for cheap
Hello, do you think aome form of rebar would be overkill in the concrete? Like those mesh one you can cut ? Nice channel btw
I think it is overkill if you are using concrete with fiber. But I do know guys that do that for sure.
@@iamahardscaper I might be one of thoses guys since it will be in my backyard 😅🤙
Not a bad idea 👍
My apologies if this has been asked before, but what keeps the polymeric sand in the joints along the edges of the project, given the concrete edge or plastic edge does not come up to the top of the pavers? Would it help to add topsoil (or decorative stones) over the edge restraint before applying the polymeric sand? Thanks!
It is a good question. If you topsoil to your pavers that keeps it held in until it is activated and it can support itself. But if not, you can either tape the sides of the pavers while you are installing it or you can go through and add in some sand by placing it in wet
I had this question, it was recommended to me to simply run duct tape, right down the side of the sidewalk or patio before adding Poly. after adding the poly Let it sit for a day and simply pull the tape off. Makes sense? sounds like it would work.
Will the concrete edge restraint work on a crush run type gravel or pea gravel?
It will work on angular crushed gravel. You wouldn’t want to put it on pea gravel
The Ferrari or the Dragon you choose! I’m having a debate with someone regarding timing and I thought who better asked but a pro which I happen to follow and enjoy his super informative videos. Here’s the question:: In your opinion how long would a homeowner with some experience to do roughly 1300 ft.² of 70 mm Pavers with three sizes and pattern? Also if importance hand digging the base 4 inches clear three-quarter stone with HPB for the final bed coat and concrete/fiber edge restraint and polymeric sand. I’m asking because there seems to be some people that think this should be happening in days 🤣 Yes I’m the homeowner in question, and I’ve had nine hours of help so far.
Oh wow. Hand digging? That’s a lot. Try renting out a machine and having bins dropped to haul. Hand digging that would take me probably 15 days, base prep 5 days, laying 5 days, final clean up and fudge factor 5 days. Total 30 days or 300 hours assuming material is dumped right where I want it.
@@iamahardscaper wow! That’s a lot of labour and time that’s for sure no wonder I’m taking so long lol. I appreciate your comments and sincerity regarding the time required to get this done.
My question has always been when using concrete for edge restraint when do you run the plate tamper to set the pavers into the setting bed? Before or after concrete edge restraint?
Always after the edge has been installed in any edge restraint install
Yeah....we paid somebody to do our walkways. They just worked base where pavers were. Less than a year n I'm gonna have to tear up, pack, edge, repave....super great! We paid a lot... for labor... we had all the material.... contacting landscaper.... we'll see.
That is unfortunate to hear about
Hi, I just subscribed.
I'm thinking about earthworks I need before I build my home including a tiered retaining wall supporting a parking strip (pavers) in front of my porch deck and about another 2,000 ft^2 of pavers including pavers bridging a large culvert.
I'm in a desert so no grass but I want my edges flush with the surrounding sand. I also want to make curved edges and patterns in the pavers since I'm doing the work and want to make it as fancy as possible on a tight materials budget.
Maybe this is a crazy idea for my pavers but tell me what you think:
I want to do a 4" base with geogrid over that, then another 4" of base with some type of CMU or other hollow block set around the edge and flush with the top of the paver bed. After the pavers are laid, I want to create curved forms and put curved rebar around the edge so I can get a neat thin reinforced concrete curb poured around the edge, flush to the top of the pavers and filling concrete down in to the buried CMUs to anchor the perimeter curb with the base and geogrid.
As I said, part of the paver area will be going over a large culvert, do you have any advice for how to support that?
I think the total is around 15,000 pavers and if I can set 4 per minute, that's about 60 hours labor which I can probably do over 2-3 weeks without killing myself. Hopefully the grading and fill will be mechanized and less labor intensive than placing the pavers.
This sounds more like a project you would want to discuss with a local professional. I don’t know local installation practices based on a desert climate. It sounds like you’ve got some good ideas but may be overkill in some cases.
@@iamahardscaper I like overkill. What i don't like is my local permit process. I'm allowed 2' tall retaining walls without permit. I'm thinking about Mafia blocks to get the 2' in one course (that's almost impossible to tip over) and use two walls tiered and some shallow slopes to get the height I need. There is plenty of space, the only question is how far my house foundation will be from the low wall but i haven't measured everything out. I'll have a porch deck between the parking strip and the house but the house has a bunch of wiggle room and i can make the deck wider if i need to.
For the culvert, i think i just need a certain depth/height of fill over the top. I think i have resolved to geogrid everywhere i have pavers because a portion of my driveway will be sloped (not over the culvert) and I don't want it to slide down. I think my reinforced concrete curb idea is very overkill but as I said, I want to keep the pavers in place. I don't expect a tremendous amount of traffic but I want it to be maintenance free for a very long time.
As long as I can figure out the right amount of overkill for my culvert, I'll be happy.
What type of faster would you use for attaching the edge restraint to the paver pad?
I like the plastic edge with the screws, not the spikes
Where can you get the anchors you used for the synthetic base edge restraint?
You should be able to get them any landscape supplier that sells Alliance Gator products. But I believe you can also get them on Amazon if you search Alliance Gator screws
Mike - thanks you for the video.
I'm in the process of working on my patio with the synthetic base and will be laying porcelain pavers.
two questions for you based on your recommendations:
1) given that you recommend the concrete edging better, can't we make it work with the synthetic layer by cutting the synthetic layer close to the edge of the paver? the height of the bedding layer (.75inch) + synthetic layer (.75inch) + Porcelain paver (.75 inch) = 2.25 inches... would it work?
2) which cement products do you use for this edge layer? I know Alliance gator sells one, but what are other brands/options?
thank you again for your help!!
Thanks again for the comment!
Yes, Alliance actually has a spec for exactly that. You can do exactly as you stated.
Alliance has Xtreme Edge. There is Perma Paver Edging. And EdgeCrete by SEK.
@@iamahardscaper thank you, sir - very much appreciated
@@iamahardscaper any tips on where to source these edging concretes? I'm out in the Hamilton area.
Can you use a sand bed with the concrete edge restraint technique?
Yup, you’re still going to scrape that bedding layer away and install the concrete edge on the base material
@@iamahardscaper thanks I might actually do this
What brand is this fiber infused concrete? I bought some fiber infused, but it was fiberglass, not these long strand polymers.
I think this is EdgeCrete
They tricked me lol! Then again fiberglass is a fiber...
Haha I think most use Fiberglass as far as I know
Do you have any videos on sealing the pavers? Or specifically which sealer you like the most if you use any.
not yet, it is something I don't do anymore though I still get quite a few leads for it. Just difficult to squeeze into my schedule based on the weather and having to pull off a job to do a day of sealing.
I am curious, where are you located?
Toronto 🇨🇦
@@iamahardscaper nice! I’m from Winnipeg. I like getting content from someone who knows what Canadian climates are like. 🇨🇦🍁
Oh yeah! Winnipeg winters must be even more brutal
Thanks
👍
These plastic strips are a complete joke folks. Don't buy them. They never ever work
Concrete edge restraint is the way to go?