patio advice

[neiljr]

Hi everyone

I have recently moved to France and our old stone house has a concrete area at the side which is a bit of an eyesore. I have bought some Pierr dall exteria tiles and was wondering what was best to stick them down with. Do I need a special bag of something or can I use cement which I have loads in an outbuilding

Thanks

James

 

 

 

[Alcazar]

I can see no reason why you shouldn't use cement to stick them down. I'd be inclined to use proper outdoor grout though, or be very careful when grouting and sticking down, not to get cement onto the faces of the tiles.

Alcazar

[Gluestick]

The normal way to lay paving is to use Dry Mix (about 4 to 1). They only use wet mix for any edging bricks etc.

The problem of wet mix is that unless you can lay paving like a rocket, you cannot set the whole thing before the mix has started setting.

If you mix bits at the time, then the places where the new bits join can crack. It is also quite difficult to make the whole slab level. When it's off it's too late to change it! Paviours normally lay he whole thing out and then use a big wooden mallet on a pole, to tamp the slabs down to level.

The muck goes off over time as it becomes damp. Some paviours will only use a Lime:Sand mix: I have successfully used sand:cement a number of times. If you already have it, use it!

Others might have completely different advice, I'm sure. End of the day, it's what works for you I suppose.