all those potholes, cracks, and heaves in the driveway need to be repaired.
The same problems will reappear in just a couple of years. There is a solution. Redo the drive, patio, or entryway - even weave an alluring path through the garden - in a durable product that could last a lifetime and harmonize with the color and architectural style of your home. Welcome to pavers and paving stones. While the terms are often used synonymously, "pavers" are manufactured of concrete or an aggregate of materials, while "paving stones" are quarried as pieces of natural rock that are either left as nature created them or cut into shapes. Pavers come in a variety of compositions and colors, and what you do with them is limited only by your imagination. Michael Weishan, host of public television's "The Victory Garden," plans an Aug. 23 segment on paving stones. "Choose a material that is sympathetic in style to your house so that they flow together," he advises. "An old Colonial house would use more traditional pavers that wouldn't necessarily work in a very modern-style garden." Landscape designer Carlos Montoya used finished bluestone pavers for the entryways to his house on Martha's Vineyard, connected by walkways of irregular pieces of weathered fieldstone, all purchased from The StoneYard in Littleton. "I like the creative contrast between the formal bluestone and the random character of the fieldstone," Montoya said. "The wildness of the fieldstone works perfectly with living in Aquinnah, because this area is like the last frontier." Mary Lovelace's gambrel in Western Massachusetts has an entryway that stone mason John Mead constructed from cobblestones collected from the old Harvard Square. "He laid them with a beautiful swirl of color in the middle, and pitched it so that water runs off," she said. "We didn't have one problem this winter. It was wonderful." Some homeowners have decided to replace their entire driveway with pavers, banking on their durability. "The rigid composition of asphalt and cement causes them to deteriorate with the extreme weather fluctuations in New England," said Ian Forman of Systems Paving in Southborough. "However, pavers that are correctly installed have joints that can expand and contract when the ground freezes, and also withstand the high heat of summer, all virtually maintenance free." George Bees had seen pavers in California and Florida, but when he saw them in Toronto he knew they would hold up to a New England winter. "It took several passes working with the contractor, Ian Forman, to get the customized color right," said his wife, Christine DeNorscia. Their resulting driveway and entryway now complement their contemporary, mauve-colored home. Neil and Susan Heffron thought they'd use pavers matching the red brick of their Colonial house near Boston. Systems Paving printed out several pictures of their home with various color and design options. "We ended up choosing gray tones that coordinated with the roof," said Susan. "It was really helpful to see the pictures." Bill Swartz said he chose pavers to correct the drainage problems with his brick walkways and asphalt driveway because of the look, the durability, and the expandability, as he is considering adding on to the garage. "I decided that hiring a company would be a safer bet as my toolbox is the yellow pages," he said. The basic steps in laying pavers are to dig out the entire area; grade it; build a framework of wood or another material to outline and stabilize the area; lay down stonedust; place the pavers; then tamp them down, lay sand over the entire site, and sweep it clean. The reality involves accounting for many variables, a steep learning curve, and much heavy, physical work. Maureen Follen, a manager at the West Roxbury Home Depot, advised, "First look for dips and puddles that could indicate drainage problems." She warned against paving close to shrubs or trees as that can damage their root systems. She said every homeowner should call 1-888-Dig-Safe, or register at digsafe.com, before digging, to determine whether electrical cables or gas lines are lying under your site. (Dig Safe System Inc. notifies utilities of pending excavation projects. The utilities then determine whether the project will interfere with underground pipes or wires.) Follen also suggested calling your municipal government to determine the location of water pipes. All of the contractors interviewed said they have had to redo or repair many paved jobs that weren't done properly. They all said "sitework," the preparation of the ground before installing pavers, is the most important factor. "The stones are like icing on a cake," said Weishan. "If the cake isn't good, everything will collapse." Deciding whether to do it yourself or hire a contractor involves several considerations. How will you excavate the existing materials? Will you need a backhoe, dumpster, and removal services? How far will you have to carry materials? An experienced contractor can complete a driveway and entryway in less than a week; how much time do you have to devote to the project? When looking for a contractor, visit his or her previous jobs and talk to the homeowners about their experience. Make sure the company has full liability insurance. Finally, before any money is paid or work starts, have a detailed plan and budget on paper, and inspect the actual materials to be used. For example, you should know where the contractor will put the excavated materials, then how and when it will be removed. The price to complete a job depends on several variables: whether it will be for vehicular or pedestrian usage; topography and drainage; delivery and removal costs; equipment and machinery required; degree of detail; location of the project; and type of pavers or paving stones chosen. Estimated costs for an average 600-square-foot project varies greatly, depending on those variables. To purchase Pavestone cement pavers and stonedust at Home Depot costs $3,700, not including delivery. At The Stone Yard, natural-cut paving stones and stonedust, including delivery, cost approximately $5,525. Stone mason John Mead in Littleton provides materials and labor for laying stones (but no site work), ranging from $7,200 for brick pavers to $20,000 for natural-stone flagging. Systems Paving, which makes its own pavers, provides on-site design consultation, sitework, and construction for approximately $8,700. Another benefit of using pavers is the convenience of repairs and additions. If your driveway should have to be dug up (say, to repair broken water pipes), seamless repairs can be made by simply replacing the affected area with matching pavers. Creative uses for paving stones are limitless. At one point, Forman shook his head and chuckled. "It's amazing," he said, "each of these drives we're doing now, they're going to outlive us all."
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