A paver patio is judged on whether it is still flat in ten years, and almost nothing about that is decided by the pavers. It is decided underneath: what the old slab was hiding, how well the subgrade was compacted, and whether the base was the right material at the right depth.
Florida sand makes that harder, not easier. Ground that feels solid under a boot is not ground that has been compacted, and a patio built on the difference settles in exactly the places water runs. So the sequence here is slow at the start and quick at the end — the part that takes the longest is the part nobody ever sees.
- Interlocking concrete paver patios
- Walkways, perimeter borders and transitions to existing hardscape
- Failed or cracked slab saw-cut, removed and hauled off
- Excavation, subgrade compaction and crushed aggregate base
- ASTM C33 bedding sand, laid to ICPI installation standards
- Association architectural review and building permit coordinated
- We do not lay pavers over a failing slab to save the demolition. If it is cracked it comes out — that is what the saw cut is for
- We do not skip compaction because the ground looks firm. Sand that was never proven is sand that settles later
- We do not order material before the association has approved it. A patio in a color the board then rejects is a patio built twice
The old slab comes out first
Saw-cut at the line, broken out and hauled off. What is under it decides the rest of the job, and that is not something to find out after the base is in.
Excavate to depth, then compact
Dug to the depth the finished height and the base thickness call for, and the subgrade compacted before anything goes on top. This is the step that decides whether the patio is flat in ten years.
Crushed aggregate base, compacted in lifts
A graded crushed base to the depth the use calls for, compacted as it goes rather than all at once at the end. Depth is not a detail: it is most of the structure.
Bedding sand screeded, not shovelled
ASTM C33 bedding sand screeded to a consistent depth. Sand used to level individual pavers instead of a screeded bed is the single most common reason a patio goes wavy.
Pavers laid, cut, edged and locked in
Field laid to the pattern, borders cut at the perimeter and at every transition, edge restraint set, then compacted and swept so the joints fill and the field locks together. A patio is only interlocking once the joints are full.
The slab is cracked, sunken or holding water
Once a slab has moved, resurfacing follows it. The pavers go on a new base, not on the old problem.
The yard is not usable as it is
Grade, drainage and where the water goes get decided at the same time as the layout, because they are the same decision.
Your association reviews exterior work
Material, color and layout go to the board before anything is ordered. We prepare the submittal.
- Roughly the area you want covered, and where it stops
- The association’s approved materials, or who to ask for them
- Whether the existing slab is cracked, sunken or draining badly
- Anything else planned for the same yard — a cover, a screen enclosure, turf
Which areas of Florida do you work in?
Home counties are Orange, Osceola, Seminole, Lake and Polk. We have delivered projects in Orlando, Jacksonville, Tampa, St. Petersburg and Gainesville, and we travel for commercial and occupied-facility work.
What happens between the estimate and the handover?
Five phases: preconstruction, mobilization, execution, quality control, closeout. Each phase has a defined start, a defined close and a document that closes it. The same five phases on a small repair and on a full commercial build-out.
What if something fails after you finish?
Our work carries a one-year limited workmanship warranty: if something we installed fails because of the way we installed it, we come back and fix it. Materials keep their manufacturers’ own warranties, which are usually longer. It has exclusions, and they are the usual ones — misuse, accidents, storms, settlement, missed maintenance, and work done by someone else after we hand over. On commercial and occupied-facility scopes the warranty is the one written into the contract.
