What we build

The parts of the job you will never see

We do not have a photo gallery, and we are not going to fill one with stock images of somebody else's patio. Here is what we actually build instead — drawn to spec.

Every contractor gallery in this county shows finished patios in good light. None of them show the six inches of compacted aggregate underneath, which is the part that determines whether the patio is still flat in ten years — and the part a cheaper quote quietly removes.

So this page shows the sections instead. If you are comparing quotes, these are the drawings to hold them against.

Paver patio, in section

Cross-section of a paver patio build over Macomb County clay From the bottom up: clay subgrade, geotextile separation fabric, six inches of compacted 21AA limestone placed in three lifts, one inch of ASTM C33 coarse bedding sand, then concrete pavers with polymeric sand joints and a spiked edge restraint at the perimeter. 6″ compacted Concrete pavers polymeric sand joints 1″ bedding sand ASTM C33 — never stone dust 6″ 21AA limestone three lifts, compacted between each Geotextile fabric stops clay migrating up into the base Clay subgrade holds water — the actual problem Edge restraint spiked at ~12″ centers. Without it the perimeter walks outward every freeze cycle.
Our standard pedestrian build over Macomb County clay. Ask any competing contractor for these five numbers in writing: base depth, aggregate type, bedding material, edge restraint spacing and joint sand.

Why a patio floats and a footing does not

Frost depth in southeast Michigan against patio and footing depth The frost line in southeast Michigan sits near 42 inches. Deck and porch footings must extend below it. A paver patio does not — it is a flexible system built about 11 inches deep that rides frost movement instead of resisting it. Frost line — 42″ ~11″ Paver patio floats above the frost line It lifts and settles as one mass instead of resisting the ground. That flexibility is the whole design. Deck footing must go BELOW frost GRADE You cannot dig a patio below frost, and you do not need to. The goal is drainage, not depth.
Frost reaches roughly 42 inches in southeast Michigan. A patio does not go below it and does not need to — it rides the movement as one mass. A deck footing or an outdoor fireplace does need to go below, which is why those cost more.

Retaining wall drainage

Cross-section of a segmental retaining wall with drainage A buried base course below grade, a compacted leveling pad, clean angular drainage stone behind the full wall height, a perforated drain tile daylighting to an outlet, geogrid reinforcement into the retained soil, and a battered wall face. FINISHED GRADE Base course buried min. 1 course below grade Perforated drain tile must daylight to a real outlet Geogrid ties wall to soil mass Clean angular stone full height, not just at the base Walls fail from water pressure far more often than from block strength.
Walls fail from water pressure far more often than from block strength. Clean angular stone the full height and a drain tile that daylights to a real outlet are the two components a cheap bid removes.

What de-icers actually do at temperature

Working temperature range of common de-icers Rock salt works from about 15 degrees Fahrenheit up to freezing. Magnesium chloride works from about 5 degrees. Calcium chloride stays active down to roughly minus 25 degrees. Below 15 degrees, rock salt does effectively nothing. rock salt does nothing here 15°F Rock salt sodium chloride 5°F Magnesium chloride MgCl₂ -25°F Calcium chloride CaCl₂ 32°F freezing -30° -20° -10° 0° 10° 20° 32° Pavement temperature (°F) Working ranges are practical field limits, not laboratory eutectic points.
Practical field limits, not laboratory eutectic points. Below about 15 °F rock salt is decoration, and spreading it anyway is the most common quiet dishonesty in snow work.

When we do have photos

They will be our own, of our own work, with the property owner's permission, and they will be labeled as such. Until then this page stays as it is. A gallery of stock photography presented as a company's portfolio is a small lie, and it is one you can usually spot — which makes it a stupid one as well as a dishonest one.

Compare our spec against your other quotes

Base depth, aggregate type, bedding material, edge restraint spacing, joint sand. In writing, on every quote we send.

Get a free quote Call (586) 310-7995
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