How are travertine pavers laid?
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Most travertine pavers are dry-laid. Dry-laid means that they are laid without the use of wet concrete. Instead, they are laid on a bed of sand which is placed on some type of crushed stone. You can lay your pavers or have it done professionally. It is possible to lay the pavers yourself and still circle around trees or make your way around landscaping. The biggest challenge in laying the pavers is not the complexity of the task, but of the weight of the pavers. It takes a great deal of energy to lift the pavers because the pavers are so heavy. In general, travertine pavers are the best option if your terrain is even in your yard. If the terrain is uneven in extremes and has hills and drop holes, you might need to build a raised deck first. So start off your project by measuring off your landscape and plan in advance what obstacles you will need to work around such as trees and other landscapes. Trees should not stop your travertine pavers from being installed. You will just want to consider the trees in the planning process so you will lay out your pavers in the right way.
Should my patio have a slope?
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Travertine pavers should be laid with a slight slope. The rule of thumb is to have 1 inch slope for every 4 feet. This will allow for drainage that moves rain and water away from the house. You need to provide enough slope to avoid having rain or water building up in low spots. The bigger concern is that the water would potentially end up in your basement. If you make the slope too extreme, you will be able see see that there is a slope. The equal balance is for the rain water to slide off without being able to see you planned it that way.
How large should I make my patio?
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You will want to plan out your patio by the size of your backyard. Some people want to see their patio take up their whole backyard. This is generally the case if the backyard is relatively small. Others want to be careful to not allow the patio to overwhelm their backyard. You will want to take a pool into consideration if you are building a pool also. Travertine paver patios can be anywhere from 300 to 3000 square feet and more. For some people, the patio with a backyard kitchen is their landscape. Keep in mind that you will want to leave enough space for chairs, patio furniture and grills.