Thanks to the info on this site, my first paving project seems to be going OK. I've laid 40mm cement pavers over 50mm sand over 100mm roadbase. Now I need to add haunching (pavers on end bedded into concrete) and mortar pavers onto the steps.
I used a 60kg whacker on the roadbase and also after the pavers had been laid and gap sand brushed in.
My question is: do you think the pavers will settle any more? ie should I position the haunches and step pavers a tad lower in anticipation that the final level will be lower? I could leave the job for while (eg until we get a decent bit of rain) if that would be an advantage...
id of thought passing a whacker plate over 450 x 450 flags would smash them to bits, but maybe the paving shown in your pic isnt what im thinking it is. whoops, ignore me, ive just re read your post! sorry
I must admit it was a bit scary using a whacker on the finished surface, especially as I found the cement pavers I'd chosen were relatively soft (I imagine clay pavers would have been better in this regard). I used a piece of carpet under the whacker, but even so I did have 4 pavers crack while I was doing this. They were easy enough to replace - I had left a 3 mm gap and the surrounding gap sand was removed using a vaccuum cleaner.
At least I know that the remaining pavers can survive a 60kg whacker!
It's considered standard practice to lay pavers 6mm higher than any adjacent kerbline or other rigid structure on the assumption that all flexibly laid paving will settle to a greater or lesser degree over time, whereas a rigid structure such as a kerbline laid on concrete, is much less likely to settle and the last thing you want is the paving lower than the kerb.
Obviously, this is more relevant to highway construction, particularly public footpaths, but it's a good guide to follow on other projects, too.
Looking at the web site again, I see I got confused between block paving and the cement pavers I chose. Still they are 300 x 300 so they are reasonably small so I guess no harm has been done? I guess the point is that a whacker cannot do a decent job on large pavers, but mine seemed to be OK.
The web site says this size of paver can can be laid on sand, as long as they of a uniform thickness and are chamfered, which these are.
SEP flags, which are those specifically manufactured for vehicle overrun and 450x450, 400x400 or 300x30, are intended to be compacted by a plate. These are *NOT* standard patio flags or other decorative items, before you rush out to inflict untold damage to your Heritage or StoneFlair paving. They are used mostly in urban streetscapes...
