Category: Pool Decks
The Blemish Free Pool Deck
ByLostintheflowers
If you think such a thing is impossible, you are mistaken! Even in southern California where we cope regularly with small tremors and quakes that threaten the expensive stonework we all install, you can still have a stunning pool deck. It will remain as vibrant and perfect as the day you installed it for years to come. After all, your pool is only as nice as the surroundings you give it. For the best investment, savvy homeowners will stick to pavers.

Paving stones provide the most durable surface and are considered to be the longest lasting material for any landscaping project that involves stonework. Naturally, they're the perfect choice for creating a truly beautiful space around your pool. Poolside pavers are every bit as natural as cut stone and the maintenance? Paving stones need almost no maintenance at all. You’ve never experienced pool deck paving like this!
When installing a pool, many homeowners go for the cost-effective decision and end up with poured concrete. While it's certainly cheaper and can look pleasing when done properly, it is guaranteed to crack in almost every wet season and will certainly split and crack under any major tremor or quake. You can't prevent damage in either of these situations, and repairs that bring back the original look of your poolside space will be costly. It's better to make the smart choice and have your pool deck installed using pavers.
If properly installed by a professional that is experienced in handling paving stone poolside decks, then you can rest assured you won't have to deal with issues of sinking, cracking or heaving. These types of guarantees can't be made with poured concrete.
It's a fantastic choice poolside because of the resistant nature of paving stones. Pavers won't stain, so standing water that dries in the sun won't leave you with massive water spots. Even with the magnification of the sun in water that might remain on the pavers, there's no chance of color fade or deterioration to the surface of the pavers. The color isn’t painted on with paving stones, the beautiful shades go completely through each piece.
Pavers are ideal for poolside because of the porous nature of the fill. In the last paragraph, I emphasized "might" in regards to standing water. It's more likely that the water would be quickly wicked into the seams of the pavers and shed into the soil beneath. This not only makes for an environment with fewer insects, but your poolside area will be a lot safer without the water hanging around on pavers.
The best feature is that you'll never have to reseal or resurface the pavers around your pool. Paving stones are engineered to last no matter what you do to them. With these master-crafted landscaping additions, you can add the look of cut stone around the pool and all other paved surfaces around your home coupled with stability and performance that can't be matched by any other material. Paving stones surfaces are king.
The Outdoor Living Pool Deck
ByLostintheflowers
Have you ever noticed that the last mode of creating outdoor spaces was a segregated point of view? The pool and surrounding pavement was not part of patio designs but a separate entity. Backyard landscape design used to put every little function and use into its own little space. Like we don’t get enough of the cubicle treatment at work! Maybe it is the innovation and creativity that paving stones have brought to our landscape as a design tool. Perhaps it is more about tossing out black and white separation and a melding of the wonders of nature into our daily lives.
Whatever brought about the alteration, pavers for pool decks open the doors to fabulous outdoor living designed spaces. More versatile and easier to maintain than any other form of pavement material, paving stones are also a lot classier in appearance. That inherent beauty is an inspiration in itself and seems to draw out the creative and imaginative use of space in relation to plants and our lifestyles. Today’s pool deck can be any destination your heart desires and take shape right outside your backdoor.

The close resemblance to natural stone that paving stones impart make them the perfect partner to natural stone retaining walls and other backyard living room attributes such as waterfalls and boulders. Working closely with an artistically talented pool deck designer is the best way to create the most stunning outdoor living patio and pool deck combination built around the foundation of pavers. A sumptuous scene that could be found at a favorite resort that you can immerse yourself in every day is a wonderful way to enhance your life and the value of your home.
Because pavers lend themselves so easily to the creation of curvilinear design, the pool deck can follow the outline of the pool with such an exciting effect. No other form of pavement created with small pieces allows such imaginative pattern to be easily designed and installed. Destination getaway has never before been so easy to create on residential properties. Nor has outdoor living had so much to offer as it does with the latest technology in water features and paving stones.

Now pool decks can be made in so many colors and styles, you will find it hard to decide which paving stones design you want around your pool. This is where your paving stones designer can be a huge source of help. Pavers for pool deck are going to be permanent, so picking a pattern and colors it is important to get a look that is timeless yet beautiful. You’ll have a harder time when it comes to selecting the pool deck furniture and patio set.
Here you will have hundreds more options than with pavers for your outdoor living area. These pieces are far easier to change and give a fresh look to with new cushions and accessories. The same can be said of your container gardens and annual flowers or perennials planted in the gardens throughout your new backyard resort. Without the paving stones though, none of this would turn out anywhere near as fabulous and visually rewarding.
Stepping Down Your Carbon Footprint with Pavers
ByLostintheflowers
Using permeable material to landscape is always a benefit over other options. Puddles are unsightly, and are difficult to manage when they get too large. Permeable pavers have grown in popularity because of their ability to shed water. With cities expanding exponentially, and urban developments sprawling away from cities, huge areas of land that could once distribute rainwater have been stripped and packed to support housing and development. We require sewers and storm drains to handle the task of taking water away.

In the world of the Concrete Jungle, it is natural for water runoff to be discharged into storm drains and run off into lakes and oceans. It carries with it all manner of waste and pollution from the surfaces we live on daily; oil, chemicals, nitrogen, boogers… well that's not so bad but the point is, those pollutants aren't able to penetrate the waterproof materials we use to build, unlike permeable pavers that shed their water.
Imagine a world where you can no longer swim or fish in fresh water, with oceans that wouldn't support life like they do now. The Gulf already has a dead zone, an area that will not support life for any period due to pollution. Is that what you want for your local waters?
We can't hold a candle to the filtration systems that our earth has in place. When we divert it, we are interrupting a very natural process. Therefore, you are probably asking at this point "What does this all have to do with the paving stones?" Well, it's really simple. Regular pavers are laid on a base of compacted material known as class 2-road base, a dense mix of small and fine particles that do not shed water very well.
Concrete and asphalt are also extremely dense, making the passage of water on their surface difficult. Standard paving stones are a move in the right direction but the best way to Go Green is to step it up and jump toward permeable pavers.
Permeable pavers systems let the surface water drain into the space between the paver stones. There, it filters down to a base of sand and other fill that is easily penetrated and is engineered to store water as it filters it down into the natural earth.
Permeable pavers are designed to help every residential homeowner reduce their carbon footprint and help restore the homeostasis of the world, one interlocking paver at a time. If you're interested in going green, this is a great first step toward building the value of your home, improve its aesthetic value, and do just a little more to save Bambi.




02/26/10 12:41:56 pm, 


