Indian sandstone - Bedding problem

[andrewlefkas]

Hi
my first post on this excellent site -a joy to read .
I have purchased -(read her indoors) some indian sandstone paving .I read the main website and decided to use the dry bedding 10-1 mix cement and grit sand ,I laid a few flags and they look okay although i did find it hard due to uneven surfaces ect.I used a pavers maul for the larger flags and rubber mallet for small stuff and.My question- the flags are 25mm max and some only around 15mm -am i doing the right thing laying these on a ful dry bed or because they are so thin would a wet bed be better? I havnt any rockers yet but i have broken a couple using the maul too heavily,any advice welcomed- thanks . andrew

[lutonlagerlout]

I nearly always lay injun stone on a wet bed,really they are no more than glorified tiles
dry bedding is more suited to thicker flags and slabs IMHO
LLL

[andrewlefkas]

Hey thanks for that ,i have read the main website but couldnt see any references to laying thin indian paving stuff so went the dry mix route for cleanliness of working .All day Iv been thinking these are just like thicker floor tiles !!!! and wanted to try a wetter mix but this part of my paving is down a narrow passage with difficult access so needed to walk on the newly laid flags,I have now reached a wider area that I can avoid walking on laid flags so Im going to use your method as although Iv no movement in the ones I have done (10 m) I think the wetter bed will be easier in the long run. I take it I can still use same 10 to 1 mix but wet enough to make a ball or does it need to be really wet ?
thanks again for your time
andrew

[lutonlagerlout]

sorry i should of said i use about a 5\1 mix
no reason for you to walk on newly laid flags if you work from the back outwards
wet laid go off quicker than dry mix
LLL

[andrewlefkas]

Many thanks for your help -let me get out there!

cheers

andrew

[Tony McC]

I'd go for a moist mix because I see too many problems with porous sandstone laid onto wet mix. In some cases, the problems are more due to the incompetence or inexperience of the flag layer, and in some cases it's mainly due to the flags themselves being highly porous, and then there are cases where it's a combination of the two.

For those regular flag-layers who work with a wet bed and suffer no problems, I work on the principle of "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" - they obviously have developed a methodology and technique that works for them, but for many DIYers and contractors who only lay flags occasionally, the moist bed seems to offer the best of both worlds: workability without messiness, and a reliable bedding method.

[lutonlagerlout]

i think the main problem is the definition of moist/dry/wet
what most lads use on here really is a *moist* mix
the only flags that get laid on a *dry* mix are council greys
if you are not experienced it is very difficult to get right
most important is a full bed with full contact
I have never had any problems with my wet mix injun stone technique,but as a bricklayer that suits me
I think if someone used a wet mix with voids/dot-dabs/ or too much it could turn into a right mess
i find that within 1 hour of laying on a wet mix the water has migrated into the type 1 and you can walk carefully on the flags to point them
as the old saying goes
"horses sweat,men perspire,and ladies glisten"
LLL

[andrewlefkas]

Thanks for the input fellas
I tried the wet mix which was really a moist mix and it was a lot easier to get levels right so Im going to lay the rest like that if it ever stops raining .
thanks

andrew