Brick Pavers: Not Permanent Enough? Don't Believe It.

By Ted Corvey, director of paver business, Pine Hall Brick.

 

Tumbled pavers, like all brick pavers, require about four inches of compacted crushed stone as a base for pedestrian use. That can be increased to a base of between six and eight inches for more harsh climates where the frost line runs deeper. For vehicular uses, a base of between eight and 12 inches is recommended.

Walk down the street in an old, urban neighborhood, a Charleston or a Richmond or a Philadelphia. Above you, the brick buildings are places where people have worked and lived for centuries. Underfoot, the old sidewalks and streets are made of rough-edged brick pavers. The whole streetscape takes you back in time.

The best example may well be Joy Street in Boston?EUR??,,????'???s Beacon Hill. There, some brick pavers have indeed been in place for centuries. Paul Revere strode across these same bricks in 1802 as he inspected the copper cladding on the new State House dome. Those bricks were there then, they are now today and they will be there tomorrow.

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Some pavers are relative newcomers to the streetscape, tying together classic early 20th century buildings with new brick sidewalks and streets that don?EUR??,,????'???t look new. This is thanks to the practice of taking new pavers and tumbling them after firing to make them look worn.

The benefits to using a new ?EUR??,,????'??old paver?EUR??,,????'??

There are several benefits to using tumbled pavers. One is the demand. Downtowns that were the centers of commerce in the 1920s and 1930s are coming back, particularly in terms of reclaiming downtown buildings. Loft condominiums and apartments become new neighborhoods to provide close-in housing for young professionals and empty nesters alike.

Tumbled pavers are more uniform in size, thickness and permanence. Reclaimed brick may come in a variety of sizes, which makes a uniform installation difficult if not impossible. In addition, there may be veneer or face bricks within the bricks being sold as pavers, which are not intended for contact with the ground and may not last as long under the pounding of vehicular and pedestrian traffic. Particularly in the Northeast, where freezing, thawing and road salts are a given each year, such recycled pavers may well deteriorate more quickly.

In situations where the roadway will be frequently used by heavier vehicles such as 18-wheelers, an engineering study will have to be done to correlate the kind of traffic with how thick the base will need to be. For residential and light commercial usage, installers should research what the generally accepted practices are in that particular area of the country and use them.

The installation

As a general rule, tumbled pavers, like all brick pavers, require about four inches of compacted crushed stone as a base for pedestrian use. That can be increased to a base of between six and eight inches for more harsh climates where the frost line runs deeper. For vehicular uses, a base of between eight and 12 inches is recommended. In situations where the roadway will be frequently used by heavier vehicles such as 18-wheelers, an engineering study will have to be done to correlate the kind of traffic with how thick the base will need to be. For residential and light commercial usage, installers should research what the generally accepted practices are in that particular area of the country and use them.

One difference in the rumbled pavers is that because they have more rounded corners and edges, the gaps may be somewhat larger. In those situations, a joint sand stabilizer additive may be useful to help keep the sand in the joints.

Once the compacted subgrade has been prepared and the compacted base material put into place, use one inch of coarse, concrete sand, screeded smooth. The brick is then laid in place according to the pattern that will be used, with gaps of 1/8-inch (+/- 1/16-inch) between each brick. Proper joint width ensures that each paver will effectively interlock with pavers next to it.

Standing the test of time ?EUR??,,????'??? and building your business

The beauty of tumbled pavers is in the fire itself. By firing them at 2000 degrees Fahrenheit, the clay particles are fused together into a vitrified bond to produce both permanent color and long life. The natural red color of the clay can be altered by mixing other clays like kaolin and fire clay in, or by using different firing techniques called flashing. Adding in the clays ?EUR??,,????'??? or firing them by themselves ?EUR??,,????'??? can produce lighter colors like pink and buff. Whatever the color, the vitrification process means that clay pavers don?EUR??,,????'???t change color over time.

Properly installed and maintained, brick pavers will last for hundreds of years, just as those in Paul Revere?EUR??,,????'???s day.

Building Blocks

30,000: Square feet, size of Milford, Michigan?EUR??,,????'???s main street that received tumbled pavers as a result of a road improvement project.