There are a lot of off-the-shelf pavers available, but in some cases it can be better to make your own paving. Because, for a similar amount of effort and cost, you can customise it to fit the exact area you need.

This guide will show you how to make some Exposed Aggregate Pavers yourself.

Measure the area you want to pave, and draw yourself up a plan.

Before digging, run string lines to define the area you’ll be digging out. Take into account the width of any boxing timber you may need to create.

Your pavers should be at least 75mm thick, sitting on a 25mm base, so you’ll need to dig down 100mm if you want them to be in line with your lawn.

Start boxing in the area you’ve dug out.

Place in one side of the boxing the full length of your area.

Peg either end of boxing and screw through the back of the peg.

Place in pegs every 1.2m and follow string line to ensure the boxing is straight and parallel.

Lay in the other length of boxing, at this stage only peg in place the ends. Ensure to level across from your 1st side.

Next, create widths of timber to box in the shape of your pavers, and screw them in place. Make sure the boxing is square, and level between both sides. When both side are level, screw the second side of your boxing into pegs.

After boxing in the shape of your pavers, pour in a base of Gap7 and compact it to a height of 25mm.

Before pouring the concrete, now’s a good time to cut your reinforcing mesh to size – this will help strengthen your pavers, and help prevent the concrete from cracking. Cut your mesh so it is approx. 50mm shy of all sides of your boxing e.g. if your pavers are 700 x 400mm the mesh would be 600 x 300mm. Make sure it fits inside each paver, then remove them and sit it aside.

Adding Black Oxide will give your pavers a stunning darker look. If you decide to add this to your mix there are a couple of different ways to do this. You can add oxide to every mix you do, or you can do two separate mixes.

1st method – simply add your desired amount of Black Oxide to each mix of concrete you do. Fill each boxing half way, place the mesh, then continue pouring.

2nd method - Since we need to pour a base of concrete before placing our steel mesh, there’s no need to add any Black Oxide to this pour, as you won’t actually see it. Once you’ve laid the mesh, start adding the Black Oxide to each mix then. Not only will this mean you’ll use less Black Oxide, saving you money, you’ll also get a more consistent colour across the pavers.

Mix Drimix concrete premix concrete, adding your desired amount of Black Oxide as per instructions.

Fill the boxing halfway with concrete.

Place steel mesh.

Continue pouring concrete until it's level with the boxing.

Use a wooden screed to level off the concrete and bang sides of the boxing a few times to relieve the concrete of any air bubbles. You could also hire a concrete vibrator for the job – which may be worth it if you’ve covering a large area.

Use an edging trowel to smooth your edges about 20 minutes after the concrete has been laid.

There is no need to try and get the concrete to a perfectly smooth fi nish as we will be using Rugasol to expose the aggregate in the concrete.

Spraying Rugasol onto the surface of the concrete will prevent the first 3-6mm of the concrete from setting, so we can expose the layer of aggregate later.

When using Rugasol, you do not want to leave it too late to apply. The best time to apply it is when the slurry on the surface will just stick to your fingers.

When the concrete is ready, use a garden sprayer to spray a fi ne mist of Rugasol onto the surface at the end of the day, and leave it to soak in overnight.

The next morning, simply wash it off with a hose or with a water blaster on a low fan setting – take it easy.

If you’re working anywhere near a storm water drain, it’s a good idea to use a hay bale, silt trap or similar, to stop the top slurry from going down the drain.

Unscrew boxing and gently tap the sides of it with a hammer to help release the concrete from the boxing.

It’s important to take your time when removing the boxing, and if you think that the concrete is still too green then wait another day to remove.

Sealing pavers

After approx. 7 days seal the concrete with a concrete sealer.