Each year, thousands of Arizona residents email or call Rosie Romero’s radio show with questions about everything from preventing fires in their chimneys to getting rid of tree roots invading their sewer system. His goal is to provide answers that suit the specific lifestyle wherever someone lives in Arizona.
Q: I have a small paving project that I want to do myself in my backyard. I have about 300 to 400 square feet of space where I want to install pavers. About 150 square feet of that is concrete and I want to keep the concrete and lay pavers on top of it. Paver experts tell me that for the concrete part of the job, I have to put a layer of geo-textile cloth down and then put sand on top of it. Why can’t I just fasten the pavers to the concrete?
A: Their advice is right; the best way to go with the concrete area is to lay the cloth down, then the sand layer, and finally the pavers.
But on the edges of the concrete area, you can put down a layer of thinset and then lay pavers on top of that. Instead of thinset, you could use concrete adhesive.
On the bare soil areas where you’re laying pavers, you probably need to dig out the area of the patio and also lay down the geo-textile cloth, then a base layer followed by sand. The pavers need to be compacted into the sand.
Laying pavers can be a complicated process. To do it yourself correctly, you may need to study up on the necessary techniques before starting the job.
For more do-it-yourself tips, go to rosieonthehouse.com. An Arizona home building and remodeling industry expert for 25 years, Rosie Romero is the host of the syndicated Saturday morning Rosie on the House radio program, heard locally from 8-11 a.m. on KNST-AM (790) in Tucson and KGVY-AM (1080) and -FM (100.7) in Green Valley. Call 888-767-4348.
