As a ICPI certified installer we have the education and experience to build an outdoor living space that will last a lifetime.
 

specializing in:

• Natural / reclaimed stone patios and retaining walls

• Paver patio and walkways

• Outdoor kitchen, bars, and grills

• Fireplaces and smokeless fire pits

• Retaining walls

• Steps, pillars and bench seats

CONSTRUCTION

You've heard the "standard" interlock paver construction process:

• Dig 12"

• Fill it full of gravel, and pack it really hard

• Do a final grade with stone dust

• Put down the pavers and sand

• Pack up the truck and on to the next one

THE SCARIEST PHRASE IN LANDSCAPE CONSTRUCTION IS, "THE WAY WE'VE ALWAYS DONE IT"

WE'RE CONSTANTLY LEARNING NEW, INNOVATIVE CONSTRUCTION TECHNIQUES AND BUILD EACH PROJECT TO LAST A LIFETIME

OUR CONSTRUCTION PROCESS IS WHAT SETS US APART FROM OTHER LANDSCAPE CONTRACTORS IN Cleveland Ohio

EXCAVATION

• We don't just dig an arbitrary 12" depth, we dig based off soil conditions.  During traditional aggregate base construction we excavate to remove "loam" soil, as it is unpredictable in both bearing ability and compaction.  As well, loam soil contains organic material which can decompose over time, leaving voids beneath the base.  As a rule of thumb, in Cleveland, loam soil is approximately 12" deep.  This is where the standard "12 inch base" comes from, but is not ALWAYS the case when excavating for interlocking pavements.

• The base is excavated using a laser level to reflect the finished grade of the interlock pavers.  This ensures your landscape will react uniformly during freeze/thaw cycles.

• Usually, if you're landscaping in Cleveland, once the loam soil is removed, clay is exposed.  

• At this stage we perform a soil test to better understand the subgrade conditions.

• From there, we use that data to reinforce the subgrade.  Employing hydrated lime or incorporating clear stone into the soil to increase bearing ability.  This also determines what type of aggregate we use in the base construction process:

BASE CONSTRUCTION

• The entire excavation (sides and bottom) is wrapped in woven geotextile fabric.  This is shingled away from the house, with overlap based on subgrade conditions.  Excess geotextile is left higher than the sides of the excavation, which will be trimmed later.  This ensures no soil is able to mix with the aggregate.  It's not "landscaping fabric" for weed control.

• If soil infiltration rates will allow, we prefer to use 3/4" Clear Gravel in our landscapes.  Its many advantages include not holding moisture, making it more predictable during freeze/thaw cycles.  It compacts more easily than traditional "Granular A" -3/4" Crushed Gravel, helping to speed along the interlocking paver construction process.  

• After backfilling and compacting the aggregate to within ~6" of the final grade, we install an exciting innovation in the landscape industry called "Biaxial Geogrid" - More on that later...

• We then fill the the remainder with the same aggregate until we reach the tolerated heights for the setting bed and pavers.

• Next up is the setting bed: if Clear Stone was used, a smaller 1/4" clear stone is used as the setting bed. This allows water to permeate and fine-tunes the grade for the paver installation.  If Crushed Stone is used, a Washed Concrete Sand setting bed is installed over a further layer of geotextile fabric; this allows water to permeate away from the pavers and travel over the heavily compacted Crushed Stone base.  Water allowed to sit on the bottom of the interlock pavers will degrade their integrity over time.  For this reason We Do NOT Use Stone Dust.

Stone Dust is the waste collected during manufacturing of structural aggregates.  It can be compacted to be hard like cement, but will trap water between itself and the paver.

PAVERS

Most of our paver manufacturers offer a LIFETIME WARRANTY on most of their products.  We've chosen the best landscaping products, to build the best landscapes.

• Each paver and slab is manufactured using compression-moulding technology, making it far denser and stronger than poured concrete.

• We use only products that have colour all the way through, with the tightest tolerances, and strongest aggregates on the market.

INNOVATIVE MATERIALS

INNOVATION DISTINGUISHES BETWEEN A LEADER AND A FOLLOWER.

There have been so many advancements in landscaping and geotechnical engineering technology, that "the way we've always done it," no longer cuts it.  Cleveland experiences some of the most frequent freeze/thaw cycles and most extreme temperature differences of all the cities in the world.  We're forced to be more innovative in our landscape construction than any other market.  Interlocking Concrete Pavement, built to ICPI standards has an average life expectancy of 30-100yrs

GEOTEXTILE FABRIC

• Commonly mistaken for "weed cloth" but actually has nothing to do with weed control at all!

• Used to separate and stabilize dissimilar soils and aggregates, its main use is to prevent subgrade soil from mixing with the gravel above.

• Most of the time when interlock installations fail, it happens from the underneath and the sides, as the gravel base migrates into the surrounding soil.

GEOTEXTILE IS THE ULTIMATE INSURANCE AGAINST BASE FAILURE IN INTERLOCK CONSTRUCTION

BIAXIAL GEOGRID

THIS IS OUR SECRET WEAPON AS A LANDSCAPING COMPANY.  

• Originally innovated for railroad construction, geogrid structurally stabilizes aggregate bases and retaining walls.

• It is becoming more and more commonly used within the landscaping industry, however, not all companies have gotten on board.. We've stayed ahead of the curve and have several years experience installing this crucial new product.

GATORBASE

• Synthetic Base replicates the insulating value and weight distribution of a traditional interlock paver aggregate base.

IF YOU HAVE A BACKYARD WITH VERY TIGHT ACCESS, THIS IS THE PRODUCT FOR YOU!

• Many backyards in the city of Shaker Heights and surrounding areas have tight access.  Gatorbase allows us to efficiently build a patio for a fraction of the cost when machine access is limited.  Less excavation, less backfill, same beautiful interlock patio!

POLYMERIC AND PERMEABLE JOINT FILL SOLUTIONS

• Alliance G2 Polymeric sand is simply the best on the market.  It becomes almost as rigid as the pavers themselves, and is rain safe within 15 minutes!  No worries about high heels falling in larger joints with some interlock paver types, no scrambling to install on a dry day.  

• The best part about a GOOD polymeric sand?  NO WEEDS!!  When properly installed, polymeric sand makes your interlock virtually maintenance free!

• EZ-JOINT permeable joint infill is a great alternative to traditional polymeric sand that can be installed even in wet conditions

SEGMENTAL RETAINING WALLS AND STEPS

• Like our pavers, all the wall block materials we use are top of the line.  We choose them based off their structural engineering, practicality and ultimately what stylebest matches your home.

ALL OF OUR WALLS AND STEPS ARE BUILT ABOVE AND BEYOND!

• When structures are being built beside your home's foundation, we don't use the foundation as retention.  Our step and raised structures are always built independently from the house, to avoid placing weight load on your home, and to make the structure even stronger.

• We tie the entire thing together with Biaxial Geogrid!  If any part of the raised landscape wants to move or settle in any direction, it has to pull the entire rest of the step with it!

• Retaining walls are always backfilled with drainage stone and reinforced with biaxial geogrid as well.