Patio pavers in Encino

About $6,000 to $8,800 installed on flat ground in Encino, which works out to $15 to $22 a square foot. That covers the digging, the gravel base, the sand bed, the pavers and the edge restraint. A slope, an old slab to break out or a drain line each add their own line. Four hundred square feet fits a dining table, a lounge area and a small fire pit, which is why it is such a common size here.

The simple math says $1,500 to $2,200, but expect a higher rate per foot on a patio this small. Delivery, setup, the compactor and the edge work cost about the same whether the patio is 100 square feet or 300, and some contractors have a minimum job size. If you are close to the line, going a bit bigger often adds less to the price than you would expect.

Usually, yes, on the day it goes in. The case for pavers on a patio is about what happens later. A slab on shifting ground tends to crack, and a crack across the middle of a terrace cannot be hidden, while a paver patio moves slightly as one surface and a bad spot is lifted and reset. Pavers also let you change your mind later, cutting in a fire pit or pushing an edge out, without breaking anything.

Not if you want it to stay flat. Pavers need a compacted gravel base, several inches deep for a patio, topped with a thin bed of sand. Bare soil holds water, and clay swells when it is wet and shrinks when it dries, so pavers set straight on dirt heave, dip and rock within a season or two. Stepping stones set in gravel or lawn are the exception, because they were never meant to be level.

Light colors stay cooler than dark ones, and travertine is the usual pick around Encino pools because it tends to stay comfortable underfoot in summer sun. Pale porcelain works too and shrugs off sunscreen and pool chemicals. Dark concrete pavers get hot. Whatever the stone, choose a textured or tumbled finish near the water so it keeps its grip when wet.

Sometimes. If the slab is sound, with no large cracks and no heaving, thin pavers can be set over it, which saves the cost of breaking it out. It does raise the surface, which can cause trouble at a door threshold, and water needs a way off the old slab. If the slab is cracked or moving, the pavers will follow the cracks, and it is better to take it out.

The code does not use the word patio. It exempts "platforms, walks and driveways" not more than 30 inches above grade and not over a basement (Los Angeles Building Code, Sec. 91.106.2), and a paver patio at ground level usually falls under that. A raised terrace held up by a retaining wall is another matter, and so is cutting and filling a slope to make level ground, which can need a grading permit once the dig passes two feet or 50 cubic yards. A patio cover, or an outdoor kitchen with gas or power, is a separate permit question.

You can walk on a new paver patio as soon as it is finished and the joints are compacted, since there is nothing to cure. If polymeric sand went in, keep the surface dry and give it a day or so to set before hosing it down or dragging heavy furniture back. Most patio installs take three to five working days from start to finish.