Instructions

2. Slope the Area and Remove Excess Dirt

Equal level of misery or just slightly less than the above step.

• Use your pick axe and shovel to break up the soil some.

• Use your steel rake to then slope your soil in the direction you want. My recommendation would be away from your house.

  • Here's where the level comes in handy. A 3' or greater level is better but a bullet level and a straight board will do the trick.

    • For long distances a string tied to a steak at the beginning and end of your path will give you the best idea as the the actual slope.

      • Within 5 to 10 feet of your house the ground should drop one inch per foot as you move away from your house. 

• Verify the final height of your path will be where you want it. 

  • You are going to add a 3-4 inches of gravel and 1 inch of sand as a base under your walkway. Account for the rock and sand base layer plus the height of your brick to make sure the top of your path will be where you want it.

    • In our case we needed to remove several inches of dirt to get the top of the path under the siding while maintaining the slope towards the street.

• If for some reason you run into an issue, adapt and overcome. Rather than remove lots of dirt we ensured the path had the proper slope and put stairs at the end. In addition, below the stairs there were lots of roots we couldn't remove with out killing the tree so we framed it with railroad ties and poured gravel over the roots. Problem solved.

3. Install Railroad Ties

• To maximize the soil stability we ran railroad ties next to the house and the neighbor's yard, putting braces between. We dry fit various brick designs between each brace to determine the space between bracing. 

• Use a saw, Sawzall, or chainsaw to cut your railroad ties to the desired length and fit them together.

4. Install 3-4" Gravel and 1" Sand Base

• Once you have your railroad tie forms / bracing in place, fill with 3-4 inch thick gravel layer.

  • Remember to keep your slope!

• Once your gravel is in place add sand on top to get a nice flat base for your bricks.

  • Again, remember to keep your slope!

• Use a flat board to smooth your layer of sand and verify your slope.

5. Lay Bricks

• Time to lay your bricks. If you dry fit them then it should be a relatively easy process. If not or even if you did it may take a few adjustments to fit them all together.

• Do your best to lay your bricks flat so as not to make indentions in the sand. If needs be pick up the brick and add or remove sand to make it level with the other bricks.

  • Take your time and make sure your all your bricks are level with each other.

6. Add Fine Sand or Stone Dust

This will take longer than you want but you're almost done so grab a beer or drink of your choosing and just push through.

• Now that your bricks are laid it's time to set them in place. Shovel piles of fine sand or stone dust on top of your bricks and use a broom to sweep it back and forth. 

  • As you sweep the sand will fall between the cracks and help keep the bricks from moving.

• Once it looks like there is sand between all the cracks get ready to realize it's not. Walk across the bricks or use a rubber mallet to gently agitate the bricks. You should start to see several gaps forming in what looked like a continuous layer of sand.

  • Put more sand on top and repeat until your bricks no longer wobble when you walk on them.