Finally had Paver Bricks Installed!
Installing paver bricks took longer then expected. But feels great to finally have one of the lingering house projects checked off the list. Although once one item is checked off the to do list it seems it somehow duplicates into 2 or 3 more projects. Even so we made progress here and it turned out great!
Normally I try to do the project myself. However in this case with installing paver bricks the cost of doing it myself when compared to the cost of having a company come in and do it was close enough for me to spare my back and time. I would of had to rent a truck or trailer. Then deal with getting a lot of the filler material and rent tools such as the concrete saw and ground vibrator. So in the end we contracted someone to do it.
First a look at the Before Pictures
Before we get to far ahead to installing the paver bricks, here are pictures below on what we were dealing with. Before pictures of what the front patio, planter, side of the house, and backyard section we wanted done looked liked to start.
The side yard has been a royal pain to try and get the grass to grow. As soon as the grass looks great summer hits. Then the grass gets full sun multiplied by the heat and reflected light off the house. This causes the grass to die again.
Then fall and winter until late spring the grass would grow back and look great until summer once again would destroy it. No matter how much we watered it. In the summer the grass just couldn’t cope with the amount of sunlight and the reflected heat and sun off the house.
Having an idea of what we are starting with now time to find out how much all of this will cost.
Getting Quotes for Paver Brick work
Fortunatly there are a slew of companies that specialize in paver brick installations throughout South Florida. So we checked online and found ones that had the best reviews and started contacting them. Its pretty simple just google companies installing paver bricks, or paver brick installers into the search along with your city or area. Then just check the reviews left by previous clients.
Luckily for me I am used to dealing with getting quotes for work. Being a yacht captain it is something that I constantly do for all kinds of projects on my clients high priced assets (fancy word for expensive toys). So in searching for a paver brick company I already had an idea what to expect when getting multiple quotes.
Having several companies give you quotes is benificial
Even though it is a pain to contact several companies, meet with them, explain what you want over and over. Then handle all the emails and phone calls you will get from each one. But in the end it is worth it. Most companies will negotiate a little more once they know you are exploring your options.
Also when you meet with the people giving you a quote you can find out how the company operates. You can tell if they know what they are talking about or not. Many large companies have a sales rep that comes out to give quotes. This is the worst type to get quotes from because the rep won’t necessarily know what to mark down in notes. Which may lead to not getting exactly what you want. They also may often will just tell you what you want to hear to get the job.
These larger paver brick companies will also generally charge more because they are employing more people. Have more office space, and often more company vehicles. This is not always a bad thing though as with many things you often get what you pay for. So these larger companies will stand by their product more. Are more willing to do what is needed to make you happy. Along with once you give a down payment you know the company won’t suddenly disappear on you. This is a major issue with contractors, especially in South Florida.
Our Paver Brick Company in South Florida
Once I compiled several quotes for paver brick installation one company in particular stood out as the best for our application. There were a few things I liked about the company from the start. One was the owner of the company met with me directly. Two they were the only company to give me a huge book with all of the available products possible to use. The owner spent the time to go over some sample materials he had in his truck. Then to cap it off they were also the lowest quote.
Granted the quote wasn’t that much lower than competitors but still it was certainly icing on the cake.
If you are wondering this company was Carmac Pavers Inc. based out of South Florida.
Price of getting paver bricks installed
Quote we received was for 721 square feet of pavers installed. Along with 80 linear feet of pavers used to line the garden beds and walk way by the planters.
Quote total was $5,630 which included the 721 square feet. Of which 420 sqare feet was for the front entrance area and side of the house. 81 square feet of pavers for in the garden area. 220 square feet for the back patio. And the 80 linear feet of pavers lining the garden beds and walk ways by the planters.
In the price I negotiated in the cost of sealing the pavers. From the start all materials and old paver removal was included.
Picking out what type of paver bricks to use
After agreeing to go with one quote I paid the 50% deposit then went to where the company we selected buys their paver bricks in bulk to see samples of what is offered.
The company is called Tremron in Pompano Beach. They had a simple showing area outside of their main paver bricks layed out.
After seeing their selection we chose the Mega Olde Towne style paver bricks to use in Sand Dune Color. THe Mega Olde Towne style has 3 or 4 sized bricks that allow the pattern to look great. The color we chose matched our house and yard perfectly.
Getting Approval from the HOA
Next was filling out an application to send to the dreaded home owners association. We often have mixed feelings about the HOA. Luckily in our case the HOA fee is a very cheap costing only 140 per year.
Although it is a hassle to get things approved it really does add value to the neighborhood. Every house has to adhere to a certain standard so the neighborhood remains beautiful looking.
So we sent in the application, with a drawing on the land survey of where the pavers were going. The land survey was just the outline survey we got when we bought the house. This was done as part of the survey of the property when buying. Also sent in the business details and insurance for the contractor company.
In two weeks we got everything approved. So we gave the deposit check. Then the paver company ordered the paver bricks.
Paver bricks were delivered to our house
Next the paver bricks we chose were delivered in the quantity determined by the paver brick company. They called ahead of time to tell us when they were going to be delivered. Then showed up with a flat bed trailer and a fork lift.
The fork lift made the rounds back and forth and lined up the paver bricks neatly on our driveway.
Very next day paver work began at our house
7 am the paver company had four guys come. They brought a truck with a trailer containing materials tools and supplies. Along with the owner of the company stopping at the house to get everyone started. They got to work in record time.
Quickly the areas being worked on were leveled removing all grass, then a special leveling sand was put down. Once that was down they used a large vibrating compactor to compact the leveling sand and dirt under it.
Over the compacted sand Pavers were then laid
Paver bricks where then laid in what they call a random pattern. The pattern is actually well thought out but is just called a random pattern. In this way the pavers create sight lines the down the pavers. Which create a beautiful look and draw your eye throughout it. This also makes the area look larger than it actually is as well.
Same technique is also used in laying tile in homes. In homes it is even more important to create sight lines than in pavers outside but doing it in paver bricks as well creates a wonderful finished product.
How long the work took
Was impressive how fast they worked to complete the project. Carmac Pavers Inc finished the work in less than 2 full days. They worked from 7 am to 6 pm the first day. Then 7 am to 11 am the second day and they were 95% finished. Just amazing how fast they worked.
Only things that were still left to do were come back and do a small section of the garden border, then put sealer on the paver bricks. These items were completed two days later in just a few hours.
Now for what we all love, Before and After pictures!
Before and after pictures side by side of before the paver brick work and after the paver bricks were installed. This is where the scope of the project can really be seen better.
This is the front patio by the walk way leading towards the front door. The before picture you can see the previous owner of the house failed miserably at installing the paver bricks herself. The bricks were never even cut properly to fit in the space.
The after picture sure makes my wife happy! Mommy BS was thrilled! (Her initials are BS fyi which makes our website name even more hilarious)
Backyard section of the paver bricks looking from the shed towards the canal behind the house. You can see it makes a huge difference in our usable patio area. More on how we plan on using this space in future posts!
Before and After the paver bricks were installed on the side of the house. This area as mentioned before was difficult to get grass to grow consistently during the summer. As it would get full sun and the reflected heat and sun off the house combined would kill the grass.
We plan to utilize this space as well and put a few storage bins here to help clear out the garage.
Next few posts I will cover how I reinstalled the fence where the paver bricks now are. Along with how we will utilize the new space the paver bricks have created.
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