Tag: indian stone

Indian Stone Paving: Installation Guide

Here at eDecks we have a wide range of Indian Stone Paving and so we have put together an installation guide to help you with your project.

Step 1: Digging the Foundation

You will need to allow 150mm for foundation mix and paving, and if you are laying the stone directly next to a house then the finished patio should be at least 150mm below the damp proof course. This means that you will need to dig out the area to a minimum depth of 300mm below the damp proof course.

To ensure that water does not collect on the stone, the foundation needs to have a fall of 1 in 60, which means a one centimetre of fall for every 60cm of width. For example, a 3m wide patio will need 5cm or 50mm of fall.

indian stone

Step 2: Preparing the Foundation Base

To create the firm foundation, use a concrete mix of 6 parts all in one ballast with 1 part cement. Mix and add enough water to dampen the mixture just enough so that it binds together. Cover the entire area with the mix to a depth of 75mm, level it out with a shovel and then tamp down using a length of timber or trample down with your shoes.

Step 3: Mortar Preparation

Lay the Indian Stone Paving slabs on a full mortar bed, which should support the whole slab, and not just the corners. You must ensure that there is contact with the whole of the back of the slab and the mortar. To create the mortar mix, use 6 parts sharp sand to 1 part cement and mix together with just enough water to make it damp and workable, but not overly wet and runny. It is important that ALL granite paving must have a cement and SBR liquid slurry mix painted on the entire back on the slab before fixing. If you do not do this, it may result in the slabs drying out at different rates and causing patchiness or effect the surface of the slabs.

Step 4: Laying the Paving

Begin by setting up 2 taut string lines to guide both the line and the level of the paving. One line should run down the length of the patio and the second line side to side, with one including the fall for drainage. Start from the corner and work your way outwards from there. All paving must be mixed and blended together and laid dry before any installation. If you have several sets of Indian Stone, we recommend you using slabs from all sets to ensure you have an even blend.

string line

Spread out mortar to cover an area slightly larger than the paving slab you want to lay and high enough to allow you to tap down the flag to the correct level. The bed should be approximately 30-40mm which will squash down. Lift and lower the slab into place and be careful not to catch the corners. Use a rubber mallet to start tapping it down and hit the paver, firmly but not too hard, at a point which is roughly midway between the centre of the paving slab and each corner along imaginary diagonals. Move around the paving, tapping in succession until the flag settles down to the correct level.

rubber mallet

Ensure you check that the paving is level by using a spirit level and that you have included a fall, and then start to lay the rest of the paving, leaving joints as required. Once laid, the area should then be left for at least 24 hours to allow for the bedding mortar to harden and should not be walked on.

spirit level

Step 5: Jointing the Paving

To joint the paving, use a mortar mix of three parts soft building sand to one part cement and mix it slowly adding a little water at a time until you reach a smooth, damp consistency – not wet or sloppy. A plasticiser can be added to make the mortar easier to work with. Use a trowel or pointing gun to put the mortar into the joints, pressing it down and smoothing over using a pointing bar if necessary. Be careful to avoid any mortar going onto the surface of the paving slab as this could end up staining the slab. If this does happen it should be wiped off immediately.

plasticisertrowel

Once the mortar has hardened, all you need to do is then give the area a good sweep and that’s the job done!

indian stone umbra

eDecks offers some of the best deals on Indian Stone Paving around, including all of the installation supplies and tools you may need. Not only do we provide plenty of unbeatable deals but also:

Super-fast FREE delivery on orders over £100*

48 Hour Delivery on many products

Handy FREE installation guides and instructional videos

*Free delivery applies to most of the UK, but some areas may incur a charge. Please check the eDecks website for more details.

Pointing and Sealing Indian Stone

When it comes to Indian Stone, pointing is one of the last and most important stages of getting your patio looking spic and span, and finished professionally. There are quite a few options with pointing and each one has their advantages in certain applications, and today we will take a look at the traditional method of sand and cement, along with air-cured pointing products and kiln dried sand.

As the hardest wearing method, a sand and cement joint is often considered the best way of pointing in on patios, especially on Sandstone Paving, and quite often Slate. Pointing is undertaken when slabs have been laid and given time to dry (24-48 hours) and must be done in dry, frost-free conditions, to allow the mortar adequate time to dry and harden.

grey paving

First of all, you need to make sure that all gaps which are to be pointed, are dry and clean, and then the mortar can be mixed. An average ratio of sand to cement is 5 parts sand to 1 part cement – you can go stronger than this but not weaker. We recommend only mixing one wheelbarrow or bucket full at a time as it will harden if left for too long. Mix the sand and cement together adding water as you go to get a near-liquid consistency and then you can begin pointing the area.

It is advisable to have two trowels – one for removing mortar and the other for pushing it down into the joint and firming it down. Work along each joint feeding mortar in off one trowel with the other and pushing it down to fill the joint thoroughly, aiming to evenly fill each joint without overloading it, as getting any wet mortar on to the surface of the slab will prove difficult to get off later on.

trowel

Gradually fill all of the joints with the mortar, mixing more as and when needed, until all of them are filled and then you are ready to smooth down the joints for a nice, tidy finish. The best way to smooth down the joints is with a pointing iron, or the end of a trowel handle, or for an alternative finish, a pointing trowel can be used to groove the pointing the create a rain channel in each joint.

Once all the of the pointing is neatly finished, there will be some debris which should be swept off with a soft brush, sweeping across the joints so as not to disturb the wet mortar if you sweep along them. Once the area is completely clean, wait around 12-24 hours for the pointing to dry, which will depend on the weather conditions.

paving

Another method is to use an air curing pointing compound which can be very easy to install and can last just as long as traditional pointing. Just with original pointing, ensure the area is clean and dry, and then it is a simple task of opening the bags and sweeping the compound in using a soft brush, and once swept in press into the joint with a trowel or pointing iron, leaving to cure, and sweeping off any residue that has hardened after a few hours with a stiff brush. You will find this a very simple and effective way of pointing, but ensure you always follow manufacturers’ guidelines and it is also worth checking the suitability of the area to be pointed in this way before starting work.

The final method is only suitable for paving which is to be butt jointed (as you would with block paving, for example). This is simply brushing in a fine kiln-dried sand over the area to fill small gaps in between the paving slabs and is only suitable for patios laid on a full mortar or concrete base as there is then little chance of weed growth in between slabs. The sand simply acts as a filler, preventing the gaps filling with dirt and debris over time.

Natural stone is an extremely hard-wearing and low-maintenance paving, yet it may often contain minor imperfections and foreign materials as part of its inherent make up. This does not affect the performance of the paving and being a natural stone product means that no two stones are the same and can result in a wonderful and random burst of colour and pattern, giving your garden a unique look. After laying, you may find that some natural stone products may show a brown colouration, where oxidation of any iron content occurs, which is a natural occurrence in all stone and may bleed from the stone after installation. We recommend that once any oxidation has been removed that the area is left to settle and dry followed by being sealed using an appropriate sealant.

If you have more than one pack of paving to lay then you must fix them using slabs from each pack to ensure you get an even blend of paving. All natural stone products should be laid on a full mortar bed and granite paving must have a cement and liquid SBR (primer) slurry mix applied to the back of the slab before installation.

seal

We highly recommend that natural stone paving is sealed using the appropriate sealer, but we do also recommend that paving is left for a season before sealing and that it is completely dry, that any efflorescence has disappeared and the area be bone dry before applying a sealant. Sealing natural stone paving helps prevent the build-up of lichens, algaes, dirt etc and will also help make the paving easier to maintain. Regular maintenance is required to keep the overall appearance of the product in pristine condition and we recommend washing paving areas with warm soapy water and brushing off with a stiff broom three or four times a year.

eDecks offers some of the best deals on Indian Stone Paving and Pointing and Sealing Tools around, including all of the installation supplies and tools you may need. Not only do we provide plenty of unbeatable deals but also:

Super-fast FREE delivery on orders over £100*

48 Hour Delivery on many products

Handy FREE installation guides and instructional videos

*Free delivery applies to most of the UK, but some areas may incur a charge. Please check the eDecks website for more details.

Limestone v Sandstone: Which Indian Stone Paving Material is Best for You?

The types of stone paving available are exhaustive, however two of the most popular are sandstone and limestone paving. Today we are going to take a look at both in a comparable state to help you decide which is the most preferable stone for yourself.

Sandstone is available in multiple colours, from light buff through to beige, silver grey and shades of dark brown and black. Within each shade group you then have complementary tones and bands of colour which appear subtle when dry and then become much more vibrant when wet. Lighter shades of sandstone are ever so slightly more porous than the darker colours and tend to need additional cleaning or a sealant applying. Sandstone has a rippled and uneven surface and hand-cut edges and can either be a hand-cut thickness or calibrated to an even thickness which will help you when laying the paving. There are other effects and finishes when it comes to sandstone, for example antique/tumbled sandstone has been finished with a time-worn effect with a slightly flatter surface and rounded edges to give the appearance that these stones have been walked over for hundreds of years. Antique/tumbled sandstone is often available in more muted shades, making the property more suited to older style properties and period homes. Sandstone with a sawn finish has a very different appearance, making it a more contemporary option, with its sawn straight edges which enable close jointing which complements the contemporary theme. You will find that sawn sandstone usually has either a honed surface making it super smooth to touch or a sandblasted texture, giving it a gritty feel.

Buff Blend 3
Buff

Limestone paving is rather similar in appearance to sandstone, but tends to have a flatter surface with less riven edges and more of an orange-peel texture to it. The colours available in limestone also tend to be more limited than sandstone with three main colour choices of buff-grey, blue-grey and blue-black. With natural stone, there will always be some variation in colour, however limestone gives off a lot less colour banding and variation of shade than sandstone. One of the great advantages of limestone paving is that it may be placed in numerous areas, such as driveways, patios, walkways, pathways, courtyards, verandas and stepping stones. The versatility of limestone pavers means that they can be applied just about anywhere around your home, both externally and internally. Because limestone is relatively soft compared to other stones, it can therefore be cut much easily to fit in with your intended project.

Carbon 2
Carbon

When using natural stone paving, you will never get two natural stones with the same colouring, patterns and tones, making it completely unique to your property. It is also formed to be able to handle various weather conditions, ensuring it maintains its appearance for centuries, with minimal wear and tear. With regards to caring for your natural stone paving, you will find maintenance a doddle – it is extremely easy to clean and naturally has smaller joints than concrete paving, which even reduces the amount of weeds growing in-between any cracks. Due to natural stone’s durability, you will also find that you won’t have to constantly replace and repair sections of paving as no significant damage should ever occur. It doesn’t have to cost the earth to use natural stone paving, and you will find that in the long run it actually saves you money as you won’t be having to repair or replace the stone.

Indian Stone Mint Fossil
Mint

Colours and shades available in natural stone paving are Raj Green, Carbon, Kota Black, Umbra, Multi Buff, Shadow Grey, Tallow Fossil, Modak, Two Tone, Mint, Lalitpur Yellow, Kotach Blue and Yellow Limestone, giving you endless possibilities to create your dream paving area.

Raj Green Indian Stone 1
Raj Green

As it is a natural product, you may eventually find that algae may build up over the years, particularly on a north facing patio with little sunlight. However, this can be prevented by using a sealant such as the Thompson’s Satin or Wet Look Finish Patio & Block Paving Seal, an advanced acrylic formula protection for paving and driveways, which seals and protects from moss and algae growth, whilst leaving a lovely satin or wet look finish. Paving Seal enhances the appearance of your paving, protects against oil or fuel spills, moss and algae growth and damages from weather and wear and tear, so it is definitely worth considering this option with your paving, however it is not recommended for use with Carbon Indian Stone.

Shadow 3
Shadow

When laying your paving, we recommend using the Nexus ProJoint Fusion All Weather Paving Joint Compound in either Buff, Mid Gray, Basalt or Black, which is a quick and easy solution for filling joints between paving slabs and setts, suitable for natural stone and concrete paving. It provides you with a weed-free, frost-resistant joint without staining the paving, saving you both time and money.

eDecks offers some of the best deals on Indian Stone Paving around, including all of the installation supplies and tools you may need. Not only do we provide plenty of unbeatable deals but also:

Super-fast FREE delivery on orders over £100*

48 Hour Delivery on many products

Handy FREE installation guides and instructional videos

*Free delivery applies to most of the UK, but some areas may incur a charge. Please check the eDecks website for more details.

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