Outdoor Fix-Ups: Tidying Up Paving and Pathways

Posted: May 20, 2016 Download PDF

Beautifully maintained paving & pathways give your home a sense of elegance and care. They define the outdoor area with neat, clean lines and even surfaces. If your pathways are looking a little untidy and unloved, there are a few quick tricks to make them look like new again.

Of course the easiest tip is to just contact Fox Mowing & Gardening and they will be able to expertly do all this for you!

Remove weeds
WHAT YOU’LL NEED: Weed killer, protective gloves and glasses

HOW TO: Weeds are tenacious plants that will take root at the slightest opportunity, particularly in cracks between paving stones. They make an area look uncared for and untidy so need to be removed permanently.

There are two options:
1. Get down on your knees and pull them out by hand, ensuring the entire root system is removed.

2. Use a weed killer (containing glyphosate) and spray liberally on all weeds. Make sure to wear protective gloves and glasses. Apply when there’s no rain forecast and no animals or children scheduled to play outside. The weed killer will destroy the entire plant – roots and all.

AVERAGE TIME: 30 mins for an average-sized area

Quick clean-up
WHAT YOU’LL NEED: Broom, hose, liquid pool chlorine, water pressure gun

HOW TO: Sweep pavers and paths with a stiff-bristled broom to get all the loose debris off the surface. Use a hose to moisten the entire area. Fill a bucket with five parts water to one part liquid pool chlorine. Use the broom to scrub down the entire area, ensuring the chlorinated water does NOT run into the garden. Use a hose to rinse with fresh water.

If pavers are still looking a little dirty or mouldy, use a low-pressure water jet to clean the pavers. Start at the highest part of the slope so the water runs away from the cleaned area.

AVERAGE TIME: A couple of hours for the full cleaning process

Get the level right
WHAT YOU’LL NEED: Coarse sand, fine sand, pry bar, tamper tool, rubber mallet, hose

HOW TO: When one or more pavers have settled below the line of the others, it’s a fairly easy job to even things up. Use a pry bar to gently lift the paver and remove it completely. Sprinkle coarse sand into the hole until it’s level with the bottom of the surrounding bricks. Tamp (pack) down the sand and add more if necessary. Drop the paver into position. If it’s a little high, use a rubber mallet to tamp it down. Sprinkle fine sand around the paver and use a broom to brush it into the surrounding spaces. Water lightly with a hose.

AVERAGE TIME: 30 minutes per paver

Replace pavers
WHAT YOU’LL NEED: Pry bar, tamper tool, rubber mallet, trowel, coarse sand, replacement paver

HOW TO: When a paver is broken, chipped or permanently stained it should be replaced. Hopefully, you have a few extra pavers put aside from when the path or area was first laid. If not, contact the supplier about matching a replacement piece. Remove the broken paver with a pry bar and sprinkle coarse sand into the hole. Tamp it down until level and slide in the replacement paver. Use a rubber mallet to firmly bed the paver.

If the paver has a random shape (usually positioned in a pathway), a trowel can be used to make the hole a perfect fit.

AVERAGE TIME: 30 minutes

Freshen up the zone
WHAT YOU’LL NEED: Leaf blower, water pressure gun, rake, a few bags of replacement material

HOW TO: If your pathway consists of crushed gravel or pebbles, it can start looking a little discoloured and thin in places over time. A leaf blower will remove leaves and debris and a pressure-jet washer will eliminate mildew and most stains.

To really make your pathway look good, refresh the area with a few bags of matching pebbles or gravel. Simply pour them onto the pathways and spread around with an old rake.

AVERAGE TIME: 1 hour

Define the edges
WHAT YOU’LL NEED: Edging stones, shovel

HOW TO: A great way to update the look of a pebble or gravel pathway is to define the edges. The placement of large rocks, bricks or paving stones along the path creates an attractive edge and stops the pathway material from being spread around the garden.Use a small shovel to dig a shallow trench along the edge of the pathway. Position the edging stones in the trench and build up the area on the garden side of the edging material with the excavated soil.

AVERAGE TIME: Half a day to a full weekend

Don’t forget the mulch
WHAT YOU’LL NEED: Mulch, wheelbarrow, buckets, rake

HOW TO: Mulching along a pathway allows the shapes of the stones to come to the fore. If there are plants beside the pathway, mulching assists them in retaining water while suppressing weeds. Ensure the area about to be mulched is weed free and use a wheelbarrow or buckets to position the mulch along the sides of the pathway. Evenly spread the mulch using a rake so that it is at least three centimetres thick.

AVERAGE TIME: A couple of hours

This article is thanks to Houzz