How to re-lay brick pavers?

DIYH

Hi

I had some retic installed and a small area of

brick Pavers had to lifted for pipes.

Can I get some advice on the best way to relay them as level as possible? They were just on brickies sand.

Thank you.

JacobZ

Start by digging out the sand down to the bottom of the existing pavers, and put the sand you've removed in a pile to the side.

I'd then suggest compacting the sand at the bottom of your excavated area with a tamper.

You'd then lay your pavers back in place on top of the sand, checking they are in line with the neighbouring paver with a straight edge, such as a spirit level. Don't focus on getting them level; focus on getting them in line. If they need to move down a little bit, you can use a rubber mallet to tap the pavers down; if they need to move down a fair bit, lift the paver and remove some more sand. If they are too low, lift them, add some of the reserved sand, give it a tamp, then set the paver in place.

You'll notice there are two main shapes of pavers that follow a consistent pattern.

I'd sort the pavers into those two shapes, and then the ones that are cut to fit against the border

Start working off that pattern, then fill in the border, then try to find the spot for the cut pieces. It will be a bit of a jigsaw puzzle, but when you find the right spot, they should fit pretty easily.

Once everything is back in place, you can sweep some polymeric paver sand between the pavers and wet it down to lock everything in place.

Let me know what you think and if you have further questions, please don't hesitate to ask.

Jacob

DIYH

Thank you Jacob.

With regard to the tamper, I don't think it will be small enough to fit dome of the spaces. Any other tool recommendations to use?

Thank you

JacobZ

Hi @DIYH,

You could just use your feet, but you won't get quite as good compaction.

You could also use a club hammer, but it could be a bit difficult to aim.

Perhaps the best option is to simply lift a few of the adjacent pavers so you have space to use the tamper, then put them back in place.

Let me know what you think.

Jacob