I want to make a start on extending my existing block paving drive. My
question relates to how I bed in the edging blocks. Do I do this on mortar
or a dry mix of sand and cement packed down hard?
The blocks will be hard up against the neighbour's drive so they will not
move but may be nudged when either he or I manoeuvre our cars. Clearly I
can't bed the edging blocks down with the vibrator but if I pack the bedding
down hard then lay the blocks down I assume that once the mix has set over
time it will not move if the blocks at driven over accidentally.
If that is ok what ratio of mix and can I still use sharp sand or am I
better off laying them on mortar?

Kevin

Zen83237 wrote:
I want to make a start on extending my existing block paving drive. My
question relates to how I bed in the edging blocks. Do I do this on mortar
or a dry mix of sand and cement packed down hard?
The blocks will be hard up against the neighbour's drive so they will not
move but may be nudged when either he or I manoeuvre our cars. Clearly I
can't bed the edging blocks down with the vibrator but if I pack the bedding
down hard then lay the blocks down I assume that once the mix has set over
time it will not move if the blocks at driven over accidentally.
If that is ok what ratio of mix and can I still use sharp sand or am I
better off laying them on mortar?

Kevin


Just sharp sand is the norm round here.

On Mar 8, 11:07*am, stuart noble wrote:
Zen83237 wrote:
I want to make a start on extending my existing block paving drive. My
question relates to how I bed in the edging blocks. Do I do this on mortar
or a dry mix of sand and cement packed down hard?
The blocks will be hard up against the neighbour's drive so they will not
move but may be nudged when either he or I manoeuvre our cars. Clearly I
can't bed the edging blocks down with the vibrator but if I pack the bedding
down hard then lay the blocks down I assume that once the mix has set over
time it will not move if the blocks at driven over accidentally.
If that is ok what ratio of mix and can I still use sharp sand or am I
better off laying them on mortar?

Kevin

Just sharp sand is the norm round here.

Not for the edging, unless they're all cowboy jobs.

MBQ

Man at B&Q wrote:
On Mar 8, 11:07 am, stuart noble wrote:
Zen83237 wrote:
I want to make a start on extending my existing block paving drive. My
question relates to how I bed in the edging blocks. Do I do this on mortar
or a dry mix of sand and cement packed down hard?
The blocks will be hard up against the neighbour's drive so they will not
move but may be nudged when either he or I manoeuvre our cars. Clearly I
can't bed the edging blocks down with the vibrator but if I pack the bedding
down hard then lay the blocks down I assume that once the mix has set over
time it will not move if the blocks at driven over accidentally.
If that is ok what ratio of mix and can I still use sharp sand or am I
better off laying them on mortar?
Kevin
Just sharp sand is the norm round here.

Not for the edging, unless they're all cowboy jobs.

MBQ

Sounds like the neighbour's drive would be the edging

"stuart noble" wrote in message
...
Man at B&Q wrote:
On Mar 8, 11:07 am, stuart noble wrote:
Zen83237 wrote:
I want to make a start on extending my existing block paving drive. My
question relates to how I bed in the edging blocks. Do I do this on
mortar
or a dry mix of sand and cement packed down hard?
The blocks will be hard up against the neighbour's drive so they will
not
move but may be nudged when either he or I manoeuvre our cars. Clearly
I
can't bed the edging blocks down with the vibrator but if I pack the
bedding
down hard then lay the blocks down I assume that once the mix has set
over
time it will not move if the blocks at driven over accidentally.
If that is ok what ratio of mix and can I still use sharp sand or am I
better off laying them on mortar?
Kevin
Just sharp sand is the norm round here.

Not for the edging, unless they're all cowboy jobs.

MBQ

Sounds like the neighbour's drive would be the edging

Well yes. His drive is concrete but a slightly different level, only a
couple if inches so I need a proper edging to set it off.
I am using the ones with 45 degree chamfer. I want to set them quite low so
they don't stick up too much so I am not too worried about driving over them
but clipping them on full lock if either I or the neighbour weren't too
careful when we reversed out.
Laterally they will be wedged in well between the neigbours drive and the
other blocks so I don't think that they should move. If they were the edging
of a flower bed then I can understand the need to mortar them in well to
stop them moving.

Kevin

On Mar 8, 1:51*pm, "Man at B&Q" wrote:
On Mar 8, 11:07*am, stuart noble wrote:

Zen83237 wrote:
I want to make a start on extending my existing block paving drive. My
question relates to how I bed in the edging blocks. Do I do this on mortar
or a dry mix of sand and cement packed down hard?
The blocks will be hard up against the neighbour's drive so they will not
move but may be nudged when either he or I manoeuvre our cars. Clearly I
can't bed the edging blocks down with the vibrator but if I pack the bedding
down hard then lay the blocks down I assume that once the mix has set over
time it will not move if the blocks at driven over accidentally.
If that is ok what ratio of mix and can I still use sharp sand or am I
better off laying them on mortar?

Kevin

Just sharp sand is the norm round here.

Not for the edging, unless they're all cowboy jobs.

Yes, in this case, but you referred to "the norm", or did you mean the
norm only for cases where there is a solid edge to butt up against?

MBQ

On Mar 8, 5:36*pm, "Zen83237" wrote:

Sounds like the neighbour's drive would be the edging

Well yes. His drive is concrete but a slightly different level, only a
couple if inches so I need a proper edging to set it off.
I am using the ones with 45 degree chamfer.

The way I read it is that the chamfer edge takes up the height
difference, rather than anything else protruding above your existing
block paving. Is that correct? That would look a neat job and be less
of a trip hazard for anyone walking between drives.

You might also want to think about setting in some tubes every 6ft
along the boundary. You don't want a fence now, but in a few years
time it will be trivial to slot fence posts into those holes....

dave.

Man at B&Q wrote:
On Mar 8, 1:51 pm, "Man at B&Q" wrote:
On Mar 8, 11:07 am, stuart noble wrote:

Zen83237 wrote:
I want to make a start on extending my existing block paving drive. My
question relates to how I bed in the edging blocks. Do I do this on mortar
or a dry mix of sand and cement packed down hard?
The blocks will be hard up against the neighbour's drive so they will not
move but may be nudged when either he or I manoeuvre our cars. Clearly I
can't bed the edging blocks down with the vibrator but if I pack the bedding
down hard then lay the blocks down I assume that once the mix has set over
time it will not move if the blocks at driven over accidentally.
If that is ok what ratio of mix and can I still use sharp sand or am I
better off laying them on mortar?
Kevin
Just sharp sand is the norm round here.
Not for the edging, unless they're all cowboy jobs.

Yes, in this case, but you referred to "the norm", or did you mean the
norm only for cases where there is a solid edge to butt up against?

MBQ



You've got to use your commonsense. You obviously need something solid
at the edges to stop the sand being washed away, or squeezed out under
pressure, but the stuff in between isn't going to go anywhere.

"Zen83237" wrote in message
...
I want to make a start on extending my existing block paving drive. My
question relates to how I bed in the edging blocks. Do I do this on mortar
or a dry mix of sand and cement packed down hard?
The blocks will be hard up against the neighbour's drive so they will not
move but may be nudged when either he or I manoeuvre our cars. Clearly I
can't bed the edging blocks down with the vibrator but if I pack the
bedding down hard then lay the blocks down I assume that once the mix has
set over time it will not move if the blocks at driven over accidentally.
If that is ok what ratio of mix and can I still use sharp sand or am I
better off laying them on mortar?

Kevin
On a 4:1 mortar mix, at least 50mm thick ... stiff mix, i.e. not as wet as
when laying bricks ... but wetter than semi-dry.