Introduction
There are numerous options for landscaping your garden, driveway, patio, and other such places of your home. However, paving stones are one of the best options for various reasons. They aren’t as bothersome as asphalt and don’t have hassles of poured concrete. To get them installed, you can search for “paving companies near me” on the internet. Let’s check out some benefits and use of interlocking paving stones:
The Benefits
- Versatility – Unlike asphalt or concrete, interlocking paving stones provide you a lot of versatility and flexibility. Concrete and asphalt are stressed due to temperature changes throughout the year. The ground freezes and stiffens up during the winter and softens for the rest of the year. Along with that asphalt and concrete also go through their contractions and expansions. This can result in extensive cracks or entire slabs breaking apart and moving up which results in very expensive repairs and worst cases reinstallation.
On the other hand, paving stones are a part of an interlocking system that isn’t affected much by the ups and downs of ambient temperature. Moreover, they have enough wiggle room along their length and breadth to expand or contract without affecting each other. They move with the ground and adjust accordingly. Even if there is damage, it is localized to one or a couple of stones. If your stones crack, get damaged, or stained you can simply replace them. Your family members would have a hard time telling the difference on your driveway, pathway, or patio after repairs.
- Durability and longevity – Apart from flexibility, interlocking paving stones also boast high durability. When it comes to sheer strength, paving stones can tolerate as much as four times the weight of concrete or asphalt on every square inch. Since they are less susceptible to damage, they can last you for years with an insignificant amount of maintenance. Driveways made from cement will inevitably crack irrespective of the time and money you pour into maintenance and potholes on asphalt roads are a testament to low durability from a cheap product.
Interlocking paving stones have no such problems. They provide you an incredible return on your investment and also stand the test of time. You don’t need to worry about your driveway developing cracks or getting damaged from zooming cars. Yes, the upfront cost is a bit more than concrete or asphalt, but you pay almost nothing in the following years and don’t have to waste precious weekends on repairs or maintenance. Spend that to earn more money or spend time with your loved ones.
- Cost-effectiveness – As mentioned above, interlocking paving stones are easy to maintain and incur negligible maintenance costs over the years. To clean it you’ll need to use the same power washer you use for your cars, tile surfaces, or perhaps an existing asphalt driveway. You can easily keep debris away with the occasional pressure wash. Even repairs are easier than you may think. You can pry up a damaged stone with a screwdriver and replace it with a new one. No need to call the contractor and get involved in a verbal tug of war over warranty.
Compared to this asphalt gives you some real trouble. You need to reseal the surface every couple of years and resealing isn’t cheap by any measure when it counts as maintenance cost. You don’t have any way around it unless you’re happy with a dull and ugly driveway or pathway. Moreover, you need to replace the asphalt every decade. Contrary to that, paving stones have a reputation of lasting for several decades, high-quality stones can even last you half a century. So, even if the cost of interlocking paving stones is twice or thrice the price of asphalt, they are more cost-effective in the long run.
While concrete has a longer lifespan than asphalt, it comes with the same hassles of maintenance and needs to be replaced a couple of times every 30 years. Paving stones can look as brilliant as ever without any resealing and don’t come with such problems.
- Aesthetics – When it comes to aesthetics you don’t get a lot of options with asphalt or concrete. Asphalt is black and painting is useless since it is going to get washed away after a few heavy showers. While modern technology allows for colorful asphalt, they can cost you twice or thrice the cost of regular asphalt. Poured concrete offers a bit more options. Apart from the color, you can get designs of your choice pressed on the concrete surface. However, repairs will ruin that beautiful surface. You would never be able to accurately match the color of the concrete after repairs. Moreover, pressed concrete isn’t cheap like regular poured concrete.
Paving stones provide you unlimited and vastly superior options compared to asphalt or concrete. You can choose all sorts of textures, colors, styles, and sizes. You also have the freedom of combining paving stones of different designs and textures to create an interesting and unique look. You can also get it to match perfectly with the architectural style and the overall theme of your home.
- No wait time – Once asphalt is laid or concrete is poured, it needs to settle down and stay that way for a long while before you can use it. Curing time can range from weeks to months before you can walk on them. That means you can’t have barbeque parties and are forced to park on the street till that time. Paving stones provide no such inconvenience. You can use them right after installation. Drive your car on the paving stone driveway right after the contractor leaves your property. You can cut down on wait-time significantly with paving stones.
Conclusion
By now you know the numerous benefits of paving stones and how they can benefit your walkways, patio, driveway, and more such places in your home. You don’t have to go through the hassle of installing them yourself either. A quick search for “paving companies near me” gives you plenty of options.
