A paver patio is a four-layer system. The layer nobody sees is the one that decides how long it lasts. Paver base aggregate and bedding sand, delivered from the closest of our 42 sourced quarries for residential and commercial hardscape work across the Valley.
When a paver patio heaves or sinks a few years in, almost nobody blames the pavers. The pavers are fine. What failed is something underneath. Usually the sub-base got rushed on compaction, or the paver base was too thin, or somebody substituted stone dust for real bedding sand and everything above it paid for it.
Fixing that does not take more expensive material. It takes the right material at the right depth, compacted correctly. This page walks through getting that stack right, whether you are a contractor doing it twice a month or a homeowner doing it once.
Miss a layer or substitute the wrong material at any level and the whole stack moves. Here is what each layer does.
Carries the patio load down to stable ground. This is where shortcuts show up in 2 years as uneven pavers.
Drains water, distributes load, and gives the bedding sand a solid surface to screed against. This is the layer most DIY patios cheap out on.
The leveling layer the pavers rest on. Screeded flat, never compacted before the pavers go down.
The finish surface. Set tight, tapped level, joints filled with polymeric sand or fine dry sand.
Paver base has to hit density before you put bedding sand on top of it. Skip the compactor and you leave voids under the base. Water gets in, seasonal temperature changes push the voids open, and a year later you are looking at uneven pavers.
Compact in 2-inch lifts. Run the plate compactor in overlapping passes until the surface stops flexing. If the material is bone dry, mist it lightly between passes; moisture helps the fines lock into the coarse stone.
Skip a step or run them out of order and the install fails in slow motion. This is the sequence that works.
Dig down far enough to fit all four layers plus the paver thickness. For a standard residential patio: 7 to 9 inches total. Remove all organics.
1/4 inch of fall per foot of run, away from any structure. Build the slope into the compacted sub-base. Do not try to fix slope at the paver layer.
Spread 4 to 6 inches of pit run or compacted native. Run a plate compactor in 2-inch lifts until the surface stops flexing under the plate.
4 to 6 inches of paver base aggregate, compacted in 2-inch lifts. A vibratory plate compactor is the minimum. Add water in passes if the material is dry.
Lay two conduit or pipe screed rails on the compacted base. Spread 1 inch of clean bedding sand. Pull a straight 2x4 across the rails to screed the sand flat. Remove rails, fill the voids.
Lay pavers tight to each other, starting from a square corner. Tap each paver with a rubber mallet to seat it. Do not drop pavers from height; it disturbs the sand.
Install rigid edge restraint along the perimeter. Sweep polymeric or fine joint sand into the gaps. Run the plate compactor over the pavers (with a rubber pad). Mist to activate polymeric sand.
The bedding sand is the only layer in the stack that does not get compacted before the finish material goes down. It is the leveling layer, and the pavers need to settle into it as they are set.
Two conduit or pipe rails, 1 inch thick, set parallel and shimmed to the slope. Clean bedding sand dumped between them. A straight 2x4 pulled across the rails to screed the surface truly flat. Remove the rails, fill the voids with sand, smooth with a trowel. Do not walk on it before the pavers go down.
Efflorescence, ice heave, paver movement. Almost always a drainage problem before it becomes a material problem.
| Factor | Spec | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Slope | 1/4" per foot of run, away from structure | Water has to leave the patio. Set the slope in the compacted base, not by tilting pavers. |
| Base material | 3/4" minus crushed paver base aggregate | Drains water, compacts to 95 percent, bridges imperfections in the sub-base. |
| Bedding sand | Concrete sand (ASTM C33) or equivalent fine washed bedding sand | Uniform gradation lets water pass; too-fine sand packs and holds water. |
| Do not substitute | Stone dust or crushed fines as bedding | Packs too tight, holds water under the pavers, causes efflorescence and ice heave. |
| Low-spot site | Add a french drain under the base before building up | If the patio sits in a drainage catchment, water will find it. Solve it once, upstream. |
Rough tonnage at standard depths. Add 10 percent to the base numbers for compaction loss. Call us for tighter quantities.
| Project Size | Paver Base | Bedding Sand | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 100 sq ft patio | ~1.7 tons paver base | ~0.4 tons bedding sand | 4" base + 1" bedding; +10% for compaction loss |
| 300 sq ft patio | ~5.2 tons paver base | ~1.3 tons bedding sand | Standard residential backyard patio |
| 500 sq ft patio | ~8.6 tons paver base | ~2.1 tons bedding sand | Large backyard or small commercial |
| 1,000 sq ft | ~17.3 tons paver base | ~4.2 tons bedding sand | Big residential install or retail entry |
| Driveway (100 sq ft at 6" base) | ~2.6 tons paver base | ~0.4 tons bedding sand | Deeper base for driveway loads |
Pro tip: Order 10 percent extra on both layers. The base loses volume to compaction, and the bedding sand always seems to disappear into screed voids faster than you expect. Running short mid-install and waiting on a second delivery is the fastest way to ruin a patio schedule.
The flagship hardscape application. 200 to 1,000 square feet of paver surface over a properly graded base. We deliver paver base and bedding sand to homeowners doing it themselves and to hardscape contractors who do it every week.
Paver driveways need more base than patios. Plan for 6 to 8 inches of compacted paver base plus 1 inch bedding sand under driveway-rated pavers. The load is bigger, so the base has to be deeper and denser.
Pool decks live with constant water, so drainage is non-negotiable. Standard paver base with clean bedding sand lets water move through the stack. Avoid stone dust around pools; it holds moisture and stains.
Retail plazas, courtyards, and commercial walkways. The base stack is the same, scaled up, with engineered drainage and edge restraint. We supply loads to the phasing so the crew screeds and sets on the same day the base is compacted.
Paver patios and walkways replacing lawn qualify for SNWA rebates. Combined with a proper base, the conversion saves water and adds usable outdoor space that lasts decades. Pre-approval required before work starts.
Level courses under wall caps and stair treads. Smaller tonnage, same compaction discipline. Loose base under a step cracks the cap the first time someone walks on it wrong.
What each phase actually looks like on a real residential install.
Clean bedding sand for the leveling layer. ASTM C33 concrete sand or fine washed bedding sand per project spec.
ExploreSub-base fill for the layer below paver base. Cheap tonnage to get the excavation up to the base elevation.
ExploreUpgrade base for driveway and heavy-load paver installations where the plan calls for engineered spec.
Explore3/4" #67 and drainage aggregate when the install needs an engineered drainage layer below the base.
ExploreTell us the square footage, site access, and whether it is a patio, driveway, or pool deck. We'll call you with a quote covering tonnage, delivery windows, and the bedding sand that matches your paver manufacturer spec.