Ideas for moving and stuff between pavers - Have big bluestone...please help

[Andrew in Melb]

Hi,

This is a two-part plea for help:

1. I have massive bluestone pavers; about 2000*550*45mm...huge. About 220kg by my reckoning. How do I move these (without huge expense)? They are on pallettes at the moment (about 90 of them). My only idea is to lower them (one by one) on a scissor table, and then load the paver onto two hand-trolleys for shifting. Number one concern with this - lowering onto the bedding without stuffing it up...??

2. These pavers are diamond cut on the sides, but have very rough / irregular edges. I could chip them to fit each other (like crazy paving) or cut them straigt (expensive I assume). But, I'm wondering if there is a third choice - forget the mortar altogether and stick something in between the pavers, like pebbles or grass? Any ideas or alternate suggestions much appreciated.

Thanks,
Andrew

[Tony McC]

A vacuum lift would be the best tool to handle the flagstones. I don't have much info on vacuum tools on the site just at the moment, although the latest News item features a new(ish) bit of kit from Al-Vac. I'm sure there'd be summat similar in Oz, somewhere.

I'm not sure what you mean about the edges being sawn, but irregular. However, the idea to use gravel, pebbles or some other decorative material to create an infill sounds good. There's a bit about 'alternative' jointing materials on the main website, in the Pointing and Jointing section.

[Andrew in Melb2]

Thanks Tony.

I didn't explain the shape very well; the long edges are cut very sharply, like normal flags. The short edges however are broken / very rough. So the sides will fit together perfectly (as they're sharp / straight), while the ends will kind of fit together, but not very well.

However, I love the look of the slate mulch, and I'm hoping I can find the same type of thing in sandstone. That would contrast very well with the dark grey / blue of the bluestone. Could I just stick it in the gaps, or should I mortar lower down first? The pavers are big enough that they're not going anywhere too quickly, so I'm not sure if mortar is needed. Also, should I 'set' the stone mulch into mortar or something so that it doesn't go everywhere? We get pretty extreme winds here.

I've also been to the nursery and have seen some great mosses and mondo grasses that could be put between the pavers. What do you think of doing this?

Thanks again.
Andrew

[Tony McC]

If you're using a mulch or crushed stone of some description to fill the transverse joints, then it depnds on the nature of the maulch as to whether it will need to be mortared in place or will be fit to leave 'as is'. Slate mulch in joints doesn't need to be mortared, and I'd hazard a guess that a sandstone mulch, would be much the same.

Adding a few mosses and grasses would help bind together any loose material, as well as giving a more naturalistic look to the finished pavement. You must send me a few photos when you get it finished!

[Andrew in Melb]

Thanks Tony. I'll post a link to the pics when done. I'm going to go with Pearlwort - it's a rich green and should contrast really well with the Bluestone. No mortar - just going to plant it in the gaps.