How to choose paving stones and what to pay attention to?
There are many different factors to consider when looking for the perfect paving stone to use in your garden, home driveway, in front of a business building, or on paved surfaces. They will decide whether in the future such a cube will be stable, will work well in unfavorable weather conditions and whether it will be visually attractive for a long time.
Paving stones for public or private space?
Before choosing paving materials, it is worth considering whether they will be used for public spaces, e.g. as a way to cover streets, promenades and parking lots, or for a less demanding private space. Paving stones for public places are usually a standard option, as simple as possible in construction and uniform in color. It has to fulfill a specific function and be resistant to high loads, so it does not have to be rich in colors or patterns. Paving stones for private places are completely different, e.g. for decorative lining of paths in the garden, driveways or pebbles around shrubs and trees. This type of paving stone is described as noble and is distinguished by greater diversity, interesting colors and an ingenious structure.
When choosing a noble paving stone, you can find several of its sub-types: structural, which resembles a natural stone, aged, split, brushed (with an interesting structure) and a cube with a washed decorative surface.
Types of materials from which paving stones are made
Paving stones are most often made of two basic materials: concrete and stone.
Stone cubes are most often made of granite and are visually very impressive. In addition, the granite itself is very durable and works well in adverse weather conditions. Stone cubes are most often used for an attractive garden arrangement, e.g. at terraces or plant flower beds. In addition to granite, you can also get a field stone cube from producers – it looks very natural, although it is less popular than granite.
Concrete cubes are made in a completely artificial way, i.e. from a special mixture of cement, sand and water. It is resistant to heavy loads, resistant to mechanical damage and also does not deteriorate in the face of rain or frost. Concrete paving stones are most often chosen for large implementations in public places, where sometimes, to make it more attractive, pigments are added to discolor it, e.g. orange (bicycle paths). Due to the simpler way of processing compared to stone, it is also much cheaper.
Original shapes of paving stones
The first paving stones were created as completely uniform road materials, often boring and colorless. Today, when choosing a paving stone, you can browse dozens of offers with interesting stone shapes and angular or oval finishes. All this to better suit the taste of customers and so that everyone can choose the material for their garden or driveway that best suits them visually. And so, for example, at manufacturers today we can find various shapes of cubes. On the market there are, among others, traditional paving stones in the form of a brick – very often chosen by customers, but also a corrugated cube associated with housing estates and blocks of flats, a cube shaped like a trapezoid, i.e. a hammer (rarely used today), and paving stones resembling the Roman number I or just a bone.Each of these types of cubes can be additionally colored at the customer’s request.
Thin or thick? When to use cubes of different strength?
A very important element when choosing a paving stone is its thickness. This parameter is often neglected by laymen who buy the cube themselves, and this is a very big mistake. The strength and durability of a paving stone may depend on the thickness of a paving stone. For example, thinner cubes with a thickness of less than 8 cm will be perfect for a garden, but they are completely unsuitable for a driveway, on which vehicles larger than small passenger cars would drive. Under the weight of the car along with its loading, such a thin paving stone will simply start to crack and crumble, and with time it will only remain unattractive. Only 14 cm thick cubes should be used for driveways, parking lots and streets. They are extremely durable and do not break even under the pressure of loaded trucks,vehicles delivering several tons of coal or trucks. The thicker the paving stone, the more certain you can be that it will serve for years and will not be damaged under the pressure of large vehicles.
Additionally, the last factor to ask about before buying an ankle is its abrasion resistance. To check such resistance, it is enough to find out whether the paving stones we have chosen were manufactured in accordance with the PN-EN 1338 standard. It is this standard that determines its compliance with EU requirements, quality and high abrasion resistance.