Paver Patios in Minneapolis, MN

Paver patios are a popular backyard project in Minneapolis, and one where shortcuts show up fast. After a winter or two, a patio laid on a thin layer of sand over topsoil develops low spots by the downspout, a rolled edge along the lawn and joints full of weeds. A patio built on a full aggregate base, compacted in lifts and pitched away from the house stays flat because the ground under it moves evenly when it freezes and thaws.

Sizing the patio to how you use it

Start with the furniture. A table for six with chairs pulled out needs roughly a 12 by 12 foot area; a conversation set around a fire pit needs more, because the 25 foot clearance Minneapolis requires around a recreational fire from structures and combustibles pushes the fire away from the house. Add space for a grill and a walking path past it. On a narrow city lot, the size is also limited by the impervious surface cap for your zoning district and by setbacks from the garage and property lines, which we check before drawing anything.

Choosing the paver

• Concrete pavers: a widely used choice, made in many sizes, colors and textures; Lawn Love lists the material at about $4 to $6 per square foot
• Clay brick: traditional color that suits older brick homes; about $4 to $8 per square foot for the material
• Natural stone: limestone, granite or bluestone in cut or irregular shapes; about $7 to $16 per square foot, and flagstone $13 to $30
• Large-format slabs: a cleaner, modern look, with tighter tolerances for the base below

Whatever you choose, ask about freeze-thaw rating and how the product handles de-icing salt near doors and steps.

What goes under it

We excavate below the finished height by the depth of base plus bedding plus paver, and extend the excavation past the edge of the patio by about the depth of the base, as Unilock's installation guidance recommends. The soil is compacted, geotextile goes down where the soil is soft or clay-heavy, and crushed aggregate goes back in a few inches at a time with a plate compactor on each lift. A bedding layer is screeded on top to a slope of 1 to 2 percent, roughly an eighth to a quarter inch per foot, toward the yard rather than the foundation.

Drainage near the house

Many patios in the city sit against a foundation that already takes water in spring. A patio must never pitch toward the house, and downspouts that empty onto it need somewhere to go. We look at where your roof water lands and plan extensions, a channel drain or a different patio grade before setting the slope.

Timing

We build patios once the ground has thawed and dried, usually from late spring into fall. A typical backyard patio takes a few working days once materials are on site, longer when an old concrete slab has to be broken out first.