Design Articles

Top 10 Patio Materials

Spend more time enjoying the outdoors – just outside your door. Let the garden experts from Better Homes and Gardens^® help you to get the look you want for your outdoor patio and inspire you to try new styles and combinations you may never have considered. Paving creates a firm, dry footing for outdoor living. Choose the type that best suits your style and budget.

1. Stained concrete. Add color to new concrete either with dye spread on the slab surface or with pigment mixed into the concrete before pouring. Choose a hue slightly darker than you want because it will fade in the sun. For existing concrete patios, apply a chemical stain to achieve the desired color. Stained concrete is a durable surface that adapts to almost any design.

• Cost: Moderate to inexpensive; small batches and uncommon colors are more expensive.
• Installation: Professional for ready-mix concrete; do-it-yourself for premixed or bulk dry ingredients.
• Maintenance: Wash occasionally with soap and water; seal to prevent unwanted stains; repair chips or cracks.

2. Brick. Whether mortared in place or dry-laid over a bed of gravel, bricks offer a traditional look in a range of warm, earthy colors. Because of its uniform size and shape, brick is relatively easy to install in a variety of patterns. Bricks manufactured specifically for paving, whether old or new, are the most durable in cold climates.

• Cost: Expensive for mortared; moderately expensive for dry-laid.
• Installation: Professional for mortared; skilled do-it-yourself for dry-laid.
• Maintenance: Power-wash occasionally to remove moss or grime; repair loose or chipped mortar.

3. Dry-laid flagstone. Durable and easy to maintain, flagstone is available in a broad range of stone types and color choices that complement a variety of architectural styles. It is especially well-suited to a rustic, hand-hewn look. Handpick stones from the supplier to ensure a good color match.

• Cost: Moderately expensive to expensive depending on the type of stone.
• Installation: Skilled do-it-yourself for most types; mason’s saw may be required to cut dense stones.
• Maintenance: Replace sand between joints as needed; remove weeds from cracks; reset shifting stones.

4. Pea gravel. Pea gravel is among the easiest patio surfaces to install. Because it is loose, it shifts underfoot, enhancing walking comfort and providing better drainage than any other surface. It helps prevent erosion by allowing water to soak into the ground rather than run off. Snow removal can be difficult without gouging the pebble surface.

• Cost: Among the least expensive patio paving options.
• Installation: Easy to moderate do-it-yourself.
• Maintenance: Occasionally rake surface to smooth displaced stones; blow off debris.

5. Stamped Concrete. Freshly poured concrete, plain or colored, can be stamped with a pattern after troweling. Stamps are available to create patterns that resemble cobblestone, cut stone, irregular stone, brick, or precast pavers. Open-mold stamps simply outline shapes; closed-mold stamps add texture to the concrete surface.

• Cost: Moderately expensive
• Installation: Best left to the professionals.
• Maintenance: Power-wash occasionally to remove moss or grime; apply a concrete sealer to prevent moisture damage.

6. Mulch. Wood mulch is available as bark, chips, nuggets, or shreds. Shredded mulch makes the most stable and comfortable surface to walk on and forms an interlocking mat that remains in place better during heavy rain or strong winds. Add an edging such as railroad ties, brick, pavers, or stone to keep mulch confined to the patio area.

• Cost: Among the least expensive patio surfacing options.
• Installation: Easy to moderate do-it-yourself.
• Maintenance: Replace mulch blown away by wind; replenish mulch as it decays; remove weeds that sprout in the mulch.

7. Exterior Tile. The regular geometric shapes and distinct edges of ceramic and stone tile make them excellent patio paving materials. Choose from fired terra-cotta, machine-made quarry, molded paver, or synthetic-stone tiles. Make certain that the tile is designed for outdoor use. Unglazed tile is less slippery than glazed tile when wet.

• Cost: Moderately expensive to very expensive.
• Installation: Professional or skilled do-it-yourself.
• Maintenance: Seal tiles to protect them from scratches and keep them from absorbing water; repair chipped grout.

8. Mortared cut stone. Providing all benefits of dry-laid flagstone, but with a more formal appearance, mortared cut stone is an excellent choice for high-use areas. It is relatively expensive and requires skill to install properly. Lay a 4-inch-deep gravel base, 4-inch-deep concrete pad, and 1-inch-deep mortar bed before setting the cut stone.

• Cost: Moderately expensive to very expensive.
• Installation: Professional or highly skilled do-it-yourself.
• Maintenance: Power-wash occasionally to remove moss or grime; seal to prevent stains; repair chipped mortar.

9. Concrete pavers. Resembling brick in versatility and installation, concrete pavers adapt to formal and informal styles. Pavers are as durable as brick but are lighter-weight, less costly, and available in a broader range of shapes. Select pavers that have color impregnated throughout their thickness.

• Cost: Inexpensive to moderately expensive.
• Installation: Professional for mortared; skilled do-it-yourself for dry-laid.
• Maintenance: Power-wash occasionally to remove moss or grime; weed between cracks; repair chipped mortar.

10. Precast steppers. Round, rectangular, or square precast steppers are, in essence, large concrete pavers spaced at regular intervals. Forms are available to cast your own designs. Wider spacing is a budget-saving technique, but instability and shifting from soil heaving can be problems.

• Cost: Inexpensive to moderately expensive.
• Installation: Skilled do-it-yourself.
• Maintenance: Reset shifting steppers; mow grass or trim plants growing between steppers.

Copyright 2009 Meredith Corporation