Paving Procedure

OUR PAVING PROCEDURES

At Ideal Drives and Patios, we undertake every paving job we do with meticulous attention to detail and installation procedures. This is to ensure that every one of our customers get a quality finished paving surface that will last for many years to come.

Our aim is with every driveway paving or patio job we do, is to deliver a perfect long lasting job that will guarantee 100% customer satisfaction.

We aim to provide fast, free and accurate on-site design consultations and price estimates. We will guide you through the process every step of the way as we work to transform your existing surface into an amazing outdoor living space. From initial site measurements and contract quotes through the finished surface, Ideal Drives and Patios provide simple, easy-to-understand breakdowns for all services and products so you can make smart, cost effective decisions quickly and accurately.

As a standard practice, on all new surface installations, Ideal Drives excavate approximately 8 inches from the final surface in vehicular traffic areas and 6 inches from final surface in areas trafficked by foot. This is to make sure that whatever happens, your driveway or patio will be locked solid in place.

Grading is built into most surface projects to create a natural slope for water run-off. All grading is performed with the final design in mind and provides an organic solution to water management. If that option is not available, we will insert overflow drains and Aco-drains to ensure that water is carried away safely and efficiently from your driveway and piped into a new soakpit that will we install.
While often overlooked by other contractors, Ideal Drives and Patios use professional quality compactors to compact the sub-base to ensure that there are no soft spots in the base that may lead to unstable foundations or shifting after installation. We have 25 tonne roller vibrating machines for larger areas and 10 tonne compaction machines for smaller areas.
Ideal Drives adds one inch of screeding sand — increasing water drainage and designed for optimal bedding—on top of the compacted Type 1 Hardcore base to assist with securing the paving stones. Once this has been compacted, it is set to an accurate screeding level for the paving to be laid upon.
The block paving stones are laid in the pattern chosen for your particular design according to the type of block paving and preference. This choice along with the aesthetic look is done for maximum length, lines and sizes to ensure a beautiful finish that will last for many years.
On standard paving which has a gap of less than 10mm, we recommend kiln dried sand. This will be brushed into the joint. This causes the paving to interlock once compacted and lock them into place. It will harden over time and form a natural barrier to any weeds that might try to grow in the joints. On larger gap areas including on slabbing, we recommend a Polymeric joint. This has to be brushed in the same way as kiln dried sand but then needs to be sprinkled lightly with water to activate it.

Here are some of the examples of the types of paving patterns that are available to choose from. We can help you choosing the right option when it comes to your Cork driveways. Give Ideal Drives a call today for a free no obligation quotation and we can go through options that are available to you and your driveway or patio area.

Once the driveway is finished, all open edges cut into place and the driveway backed up with concrete on any open edges, it will be compacted. Once the compaction plate runs over the driveway, it is ready for all styles of foot and vehicular traffic. Our job is done. We will remove all the excess materials and rubbish.