Backyard renovation- Phase I

Monday I started Phase I of the backyard renovation of our townhouse. The backyard was comprised of a deck, a garden, a loosely laid block storage area and spotty grass. I started with measuring and sketching the backyard to identify major features and begin to estimate materials. The design of the yard was composed of two L-shaped walk ways of different size pavers. The first L-shape path is composed of 12" red pavers and the next L-shape will be made of 16" gray stone.

Next I dug up the grass and started to level the backyard. I had originally thought this would take a single day, but it took several days to dig up the grass and loosen the soil.

Monday morning I bought some material from a chain Hardware Store and began a test of my productivity. I started by laying a geotextile fabric to keep weeds from growing up among the paver stones. Next I placed a layer of sand over the fabric. I leveled the sand by eye using a strip of pressure treated lumber. I was supposed to purchase two pipes and run them parallel in order to lay a uniform level of sand, but decided against it at the last moment. With the sand in place I laid the first six 12" pavers.

After several more trips to the hardware store and some work in the evening with my wife assisting we were able to wrap up phase in a single day. In addition to the pavers I purchased some plastic border strips and stakes to keep a clean separation between the pavers and the adjacent areas.
Phase II involves the installation of the larger - 16" - pavers along the shed and backyard gate. Phase III involves placing stone and installing ground cover to complete the yard.