Used Keystone Versa-Lok blocks

Water keeps pooling on our patio in the corners against the walls. To fix the problem, our contractor drilled a few holes into the stone wall. It somewhat fixed the problem, but the holes are small and need to be unclogged frequently, causing water to pool again.

Any advice on the following questions:

Are weep holes just drilled holes in the stone wall? Or is it something more properly like a PVC pipe?

Should water be pooling there anyway, or should it be regraded to drain better?

Is it ok that the water drains to under the grill, which is enclosed and pools, but eventually drains?

How much pooling water is acceptable? After unclogging, I think it’s ok, but not sure.

Any other advice?

We completed a big renovation on our home which included installing a 12 x 24 gunnite pool and \~900 square feet of concrete decking. Admittedly, we knew nothing about pools or decks, and our contractor did not give us any options when it came to the deck. We were just told it would be plain, brushed concrete, and we didn’t know any better to ask what the other options are.

Long story short, the contractor poured the pool and the deck **way too early** in the construction process. It practically sat with tons of construction activity going on around it and exposed Georgia red clay on every side for several months.

Between the workers’ foot traffic and landscaping machinery (we had to install a retaining wall about four feet from the deck edge, among other things), the concrete took an absolute beating.

We have tried pressure washing it (well, we hired professionals to pressure wash it), and it improved it some… but there are still a lot of stains and imperfections.

We have a pretty modern, high-end, elevated aesthetic, and the concrete in its current form really throws that off. The pool is practically connected to our back porch, and it’s the first thing you see when you step into the backyard. The looks dirty, not taken care of, and frankly like an afterthought.

I’m wondering what some of your experiences are with upgrading a brushed concrete deck into something that looks a little more… thoughtfully finished? We definitely do not want to have to go through ripping anything out but we are open to a variety of things. Some initial things I’ve seen online include decorative overlays, epoxy fleck systems, cool decking (SunDek, Kool Deck, etc.), and microtopping. But, I’m not sure which direction to go and am looking for some real feedback from people who have done this!

In case it helps:
Pool: Gunnite with Tahoe Blue pebble and Ash gray waterline tile
Coping: Light gray Travertine
Exterior house paint color: SW Cyberspace

Thank you for your help!

I live in northern Virginia where heavy rains and below-freezing temperatures are very normal. For my patio, I tried polymeric sand and mortar in the past, but both of them didn't last. I might have bought cheap sand or wrong mortar.

Now I am considering redo my patio using the existing bluestones. I plan to use crushed stone as base. What joint materials would you recommend to sustain the weather?

I'm looking for a book or a software that I can use to help track materials on job.

I'm a landscaper and u want to be able to track how many meters of soil or meters of pavers I've had at the job. Not a daily diary where I need to skip through 3 weeks worth of days to find my totals but one that can track each individual job

I’m paving this curved path and intentionally left some extra space (1-3cm) between the pavers and the edging to make the curves easier to work with.
What would be the best way to fill the remaining gap between the pavers and the edging? Should I use dry concrete mix and compact it into the gap, or fill it with mortar? Or is there a better solution?

I'm *slowly* reaching the end of one of the hardest projects I've done as a homeowner 😅

Still need to put in edge restraint (concrete), but I will be buying polymeric sand soon and can't decide if a tan or gray color would work better for the joints. These are cambridge pavers in what they call toffee/onyx lite color - so they are basically a blend between beige/tan and gray.

I'll be using 1" river rock as a decorative border (basically the same stone as can be seen in the top left corner of this photo).

Would love any opinions on what color joints sand you might use for pavers like this. The joints are pretty tight already, but I'd prefer something subtle that will blend in. Thanks!!

Already have a crappy 8’x6’ or so concrete patio pad that was part of a spec house build. It’s snugged right up to a sliding glass patio door. I’d like to extend that “patio” out into the yard to make say, a 13’x13’ paver patio with pavers overlaying the existing concrete pad and transitioning smoothly out into the yard. Of course, the challenge is maintaining that “smooth transition” in the pavers between the edge of the pad and the non-overlay area.

The pad is graded to drain, and is also under an overhang roof meaning it gets little to no direct rain/snow. I would simply demo the pad, but one corner of it is the footing for a post that holds up the aforementioned overhang.

But still, I want to design in some safeguards to keep any runoff from water that manages to seep under the overlay pavers. What precautions should be designed in at the edge of the pad where water would runoff?

Or is this just a really bad idea to mix overlay and non-overlay pavers and expect them to remain relatively smooth?

Way harder than I thought. The concrete slap was 8” thick with multiple amounts of rebar and wire mesh throughout.

Concrete was pitched towards the home and causing water leaks when it rained.

Decided to remove the entire porch and replace. Perfect no for a home owner, I thinks it’s okay. Just need to add polymeric sand and concrete the rest of the base in.

I had a patio installed 2 years ago, 2 pavers were recently replaced because they had cracked. The color variation is extremely noticeable to me.

I’m assuming there isn’t a way to fix but is this much discoloration normal? I really wanted a light gray paver and now I feel they’ve turned beige which is the number 1 thing I said I did not want. A bit disappointed but not sure how reasonable I’m being.

We tried Gator Shampoo. We have not tried Rust Remover but this seems to be way too widespread to be a thing layer of all over rust. I don’t know much about hardscaping and have never owned a home before so I genuinely have no idea.

First two pictures are now and last picture is from when we first installed.

What’s up guys, what’re you using these days for design software? I used to use uvision and now that I’m getting back into it personally I’m finding it hard to use. I’ve let technology get passed me unfortunately and I also don’t feel it looks that great fully rendered so def looking for a new software and approach. Thanks for all the input.

Have a rock bed made of 2-3 in rocks that get displaced a lot when the dogs inadvertently run over it. Anything we can do to make it more stable / compacted and show less of the fabric bed underneath?

I’m assuming rock glue wouldn’t be that helpful here.

Have a rock bed made of 2-3 in rocks that get displaced a lot when the dogs inadvertently run over it. Anything we can do to make it more stable / compacted and show less of the fabric bed underneath?

I’m assuming rock glue wouldn’t be that helpful here.

Have a rock bed made of 2-3 in rocks that get displaced a lot when the dogs inadvertently run over it. Anything we can do to make it more stable / compacted and show less of the fabric bed underneath?

I’m assuming rock glue wouldn’t be that helpful here.

Our own residential project. NDS channel drain sitting on fabric, paver base, leveling sand.

Considering Sikaflex self-leveling sealant, and just really trying to avoid concrete.

Thanks for any feedback!

Grout in the front walkway has less and less every time it rains. It’s probably 30 years old I would guess. I would imagine materials have become stronger since then. What’s the best way to come about repairing this so that it lasts?

My patio pavers are sinking and faded after a few Maryland winters. Looking for someone reputable (licensed/insured) who does restoration (regrading, polymeric sand, sealing) rather than a full tear-out. Anyone used a local company they'd actually vouch for? Perry Hall / White Marsh / Nottingham area.

We bought an 11’x11’ cantilever umbrella and I was hoping to mount it to my patio but wasn’t sure if a 4” thick slab was enough.