The masonry features you install in your landscape can transform the entire feel of your home. Choosing which paving stones to use in a project make a significant impact on a project and have great influence over future design decisions. Masonry features are meant to last for generations, providing a beautiful and functional “canvas” for all activities around your home. As you plan out your masonry project, you can make choosing paving stones a breeze by getting advice from a landscape supply store near Sussex County, NJ.
Types of Paved Surfaces: Not All Surfaces Have the Same Needs
The paved surfaces of your landscape are crucially important for both the safety of access to and from the home itself as well as for providing enjoyable experiences in outdoor living spaces. The paved surfaces of your home will be the driveway, walkways, patio, pool deck, and any other surface made from stone.
Driveways have the most heavy-duty requirements, and not all paving stones are suitable for vehicular use. A good landscape supply store will help you avoid costly mistakes by pointing you in the direction of the right materials for the job.
Pools can present another challenge: safety. Pool surrounds must be non-slip even when wet. Not all masonry products can fit the bill. Be sure to ask about non-slip textures (which, in the case of pavers and sandstone, can be very smooth yet grippy).
Quality Masonry Materials
The supplies available at your local landscape supply include a range of paving materials based on pricing tiers. These include harvested gorgeous uncut natural stone, expertly cut natural stone slabs, traditional style pavers such as bricks, and modern aggregate pavers. Making a choice between these pavings stones all depends on the application, and the design and features of your landscape and home.
Uncut Natural Stone can be the main element in a naturalistic landscape. Using random flagstone or bluestone slabs arranged in a puzzle style in a casual patio will add unparalleled character. Since each stone is completely random, your paved surfaces will be entirely unique.
Cut Natural Stone has been trimmed down from much larger specimens of stone and cut into geometric shapes that are easier to install than random pieces. While these stones provide the shape and texture of a modern paved surface, they have completely natural origins; you still get the natural texture and color as well as each stone’s unique characteristics, but in predictable shapes that simplify installation.
Traditional Pavers are the materials that have made up paved surfaces around the world for millennia. Bricks and cobblestones fall into this category, adorning the design and feel of a traditional style home and landscape. These pavers may be made using modern technology, but they still have the same old style that we’ve all grown to love.
Modern concrete pavers are a hot trend because they can be more cost-effective than natural stone, and more versatile (for example, some pavers are rated for driveway use). Pavers are made from concrete, and strength tested to ensure long-lasting durability. Modern pavers can come in a huge range of styles that will look great in any type of home or landscape design.
Expert Advice
Without a doubt, the experts at your local landscape supply will be able to offer advice, insight, guidance, and tips for creating the best paved surfaces possible. Make sure to come with specific questions so they can point you in the right direction.
Related: SUGGESTIONS FROM A STONE AND LANDSCAPE SUPPLY: HOW TO FIND THE RIGHT MATERIALS IN ULSTER COUNTY, NY
