DIY paving slabs

When landscaping the adjacent territory of a country estate, paths, paths and sidewalks must be laid. To make them functional, paving stones are often used.

This material meets all necessary quality requirements. In order to reduce the cost of implementing the task, many summer residents decide to make paving slabs with their own hands. This is not an easy and painstaking process that requires special attention. This article will be useful for those who are just planning to take up this work.

Which tiles are of better quality - homemade or industrial?

But, to begin with, I would first like to voice a question that worries a large number of residents of private houses: what is better to choose, do-it-yourself tiles or trust the professionals and purchase a ready-made, industrially manufactured product?

The question is really difficult, especially in the current realities, when the crisis is worsening, many are trying to save as much as possible during the construction and improvement of their sites. Therefore, on the one hand, tiles made by yourself will be much cheaper; more precisely, you do not need to pay for the work of a company or individual specialists. But, in the same case, it is worth thinking about the quality of such products; this issue is especially acute if a person has not previously dealt with a similar occupation as the manufacture of paving slabs.

With industrial stoves, on the contrary, we pay for quality, for a certain nonsense, so to speak, that is, we receive guarantees, on the one hand, that the product will last a certain period of time.

To summarize, we can make the following comparison: what is more important for the client is the saved 1,000 - 1,500 rubles. or quality? On the one hand, it is clear that quality is more important, but the problem of finance arises. Therefore, we can recommend the following: try to determine for yourself whether you can make at least a few samples yourself. Practice, play with shapes. By the way, the advantage of making it yourself is that you can make tiles of absolutely any shape you like. With industrial products it is a little different; now there are very few companies and factories that work according to the client’s order, producing tiles of one shape or another, deviating from their price list.

If you are not confident in your abilities, we recommend buying ready-made products, thus saving energy and nerves that could be spent on an unjustified task.

Advantages of paving slabs

Paving slabs are one of the most common materials for creating garden paths. This is not surprising. Using paving slabs has a number of advantages:

• Aesthetics. Thanks to the use of a variety of shapes and colors, you can create a beautiful individual design.
• Moisture permeability of the coating. Such a path does not interfere with the normal microflora of the soil, and this does not negatively affect the growth processes of the roots of trees and bushes that pass directly under the path.
• The paths are easily repaired, and there is also the possibility of moving them to another desired location.
• Long service life. If the technology for manufacturing and laying tiles is followed correctly, its service life can reach 50 years.
• A wide variety of tiles, allowing you to create paths of varying complexity.

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Tiles can be purchased at the store or made by yourself. The first option is simpler and faster, however, it will cost a little more, and there is no guarantee of the high quality of the purchased materials. By making tiles with your own hands, you can be sure of the quality. And also, making paving slabs with your own hands allows you to significantly save on materials. Let's take a closer look at the methods of making tiles and their components.

What you need to make paving slabs yourself

In order to make paving slabs with your own hands, you need to choose only high quality materials. The appearance and service life of the future path depend on this. In order to make tiles with your own hands, you will need some components, the importance of which we will consider below.

Cement

It is this component that is responsible for the quality of future paving slabs. To obtain a high-quality product, it is necessary to use high-grade cement. Thus, the grade characterizes the compressive strength of cement. Consequently, high grade concrete mortar will be more durable. By using high quality cement, the resulting tiles will have better performance.

When choosing, pay attention to the frost resistance of a particular brand, depending on the climate in your region.

Filler

The remaining materials can be called one group - fillers.

A coarse filler is added as a filler: small crushed stone, pebbles, slag or fine filler: sand that does not contain clay or impurities.

Water

The water used is clean and at room temperature.

Plasticizer

A plasticizer is necessary to give the mixture special properties, as well as to reduce cement consumption and increase the density of concrete. The addition of a plasticizer ensures the tile's moisture resistance.

Dye/pigment

Adding dye makes it possible to create tiles of various colors. Since the cost of the dye is quite high, the tile is made in two layers, i.e. dye is added to the top layer, and the main part of the tile remains gray.

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Fiber fiber

The use of fiberglass makes the tiles more durable.

What is fiber fiber? That's right, this is a reinforcing belt, special materials, which are available in abundance on the market. But why buy if they can be replaced with ordinary used wire or the same fittings, of which the business owner has plenty on his property. Therefore, a great chance to save money is to use a self-made armored belt. In terms of its properties, it is in no way inferior to, and sometimes even superior to, industrial designs. Now it has become fashionable to use special plastic wire belts even when building houses; they are cheaper than metal, so you can pay attention to them.

The principle of making wooden mosaic tiles

The easiest way to make wooden wall tiles is from boards, and not necessarily from new ones. Old wood is now in fashion, and old boards require less effort to artificially age them - the only thing you need to pay attention to when working with old wood is its condition. The tree should not be damaged by shashel or fungus - there should be no blackening or small holes left by wood-boring beetles on its surface. This type of wood will not last long.

Wood tiles

But in general, if we talk about making wooden tiles on our own, this process can be imagined as the following sequence of work.

1. Calculation of sizes . A little standardization will make the process of making tiles easier - here you will need to form a repeating pattern from several separate fragments. Based on the principle of how a mosaic is created on a grid. That is, first the size of the full fragment is set, and then the resulting size is divided into small fragments that will need to be manufactured. After this operation, you will receive five, six, maybe more or less repeating parts, which are traced directly on the wood or, alternatively, if you have a circular saw, the tool itself is adjusted for them.

2. Cutting fragments . If you know how to use a circular saw, then cutting workpieces of the required size will not be difficult for you. There’s not even anything to talk about here, except to remind you of safety precautions, which almost every master is familiar with.

3. When the workpiece is cut, the penultimate stage of tile production remains - edge formation , which is done using a manual router. The type of edge can be any - it's a matter of taste. Today they produce a lot of cutters of various styles, among which you will surely find what you like.

Wooden wall tiles

After the tiles are ready, they must be treated with an antiseptic - this is primarily protection from the effects of large and small pests of various types, which can extend the service life of the product several times. After processing, the wood is thoroughly dried and subjected to a grinding process, the end result of which is a perfectly smooth front surface. Grinding is carried out using a vibrating sanding machine using sandpapers of various grain sizes - first a coarser abrasive is used, and then a finer one. In general, the process is standard and is not much different from the finishing of any wooden product.

How to lubricate molds for paving slabs at home?

Mold release agent

The use of special mold lubricants greatly simplifies the procedure for removing finished tiles from the mold. At home, soap solution, motor oil or sunflower oil act as lubricants.

If you don’t want to buy special lubricants, and on the financial side of the issue, there are doubts about the feasibility, then you can get by with improvised means. Do you agree that every home has soap, vegetable oil or regular “waste” machine oil? They will do an excellent job of removing finished tiles from the mold. But, one caveat, when using oil, an unpleasant odor will most likely remain, which will be difficult to get rid of even over time. Therefore, it is more rational to use a soap solution. You can look up the proportions and what to add to what on the Internet. There are actually a lot of “recipes”, and you can build on the volume of your work so as not to waste too much materials.

Types of tile molds

The most popular forms of paving slabs on the market today differ depending on the final product. There are forms for:

• Bulyzhnikov.
• Shagreen paving stones.
• Paving stones Old stone.
• Classic tiles of different shapes and sizes.

According to the type of material used to make the mold:

• Plastic (most popular).
• Polyurethane.
• Rubber.
• Wooden.
• Silicone.
• Metal.
• Formoplast.
• Polystyrene.
• ABS plastics.

What is the best way to make paving slabs from?

When deciding what is best to make paving slabs from, first of all you need to pay attention to the quality of the main component - that is, cement, try to take a better mixture. By and large, there shouldn’t be any difficulties, the only thing I’ll add on my own is that it’s better to take fine river sand and be sure to sift it before starting work.

Most often, the dry components, I mean sand and cement, are mixed in a ratio of three to one, respectively. For example, 30 kilograms of sand consumes 10 kilograms of dry cement.

So, what do we need to prepare the mixture for casting paving slabs:

• Dry cement mixture
• Fine sand
• Plain water

The rules and exact proportions by which our “mix” must be prepared are indicated directly on the cement packaging - this is a recommendation from its manufacturer. If you want to get paving slabs with a good service life, then you should purchase the highest grade cement - use the M500 mixture.

As for the sand and water for the solution, there are no special restrictions on quality, of course you should avoid unnecessary impurities, but don’t be afraid if small pebbles remain in the sand, they will add some originality to the texture of your products. Sometimes plasticizers are added to the solution; this will especially help those who live or garden in a climate with large temperature changes.

How to make paving slabs yourself

Likewise, you can use any of the listed materials. Of course, working with various plastics and rubber is quite difficult at home, but working with wood or metal is easy.

For example, let’s take a tree, you need to cut several bars of the required length, come up with a design, and then cut the edges of the bars at the desired angle and with the necessary rotation. Be careful so that in the end, from the resulting workpiece, you can stack the tiles one on top of the other, without large gaps.

Making paving slabs with your own hands will require some time, but the process itself and the end result are worth it: you will become the owner of original tiles, from which you will create an exclusive path, while significantly reducing financial costs.

So, let's proceed to the actual production of tiles.

Mortar for paving slabs - proportions, composition, preparation

Preparing concrete

Mixing the solution

The mixing technology depends on the selected cement; the best option would be M500 cement as the most durable material. Water and sand must be clean and free of various impurities.

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As molds for tiles, you can use special forms purchased in a store, or you can limit yourself to improvised materials, for example, food containers, thanks to which you can get tiles in the form of bricks.

You can mix the solution manually or using a screwdriver with a special mixer attachment. If you plan to make a large number of tiles, then it is better to mix the solution using a concrete mixer.

First, sand is poured into the concrete mixer, then cement, thus achieving a homogeneous mixture. Recommended proportions: one part cement and three parts sand. Water is added gradually, stirring the solution all the time. Water should be added carefully, as too much water will reduce the quality of the concrete. The finished solution should have the consistency of dough - quite liquid, but at the same time drain from the trowel.

The mixture is colored using special coloring pigments that are resistant to changes in weather conditions. Initially add a small amount of dye to the concrete mixer, gradually increasing the amount depending on the desired shade.

Filling the forms

Try to form the tiles of the same size, that is, so that there is no difference in heights, this will make it easier to lay them after. Before pouring concrete into molds, treat it in advance with oil or soap solution, whichever is preferable for you.

Important. The finished solution must be homogeneous and free of lumps.

The finished solution can be poured into prepared forms. To properly prepare the mold, it must first be treated with an oil composition in order to facilitate the removal of the tiles from the mold.

If you want to significantly increase the service life of the tiles, you can add a metal mesh to it. To do this, a small amount of solution is poured into the mold, then a mesh or wire is placed and the solution is added on top until the mold is filled.

Compacting concrete

To get rid of air bubbles in the molds, it is necessary to use vibration; in this case, using a vibrating table is very effective. If this is not the case, then you can get by with an ordinary shelf: place the forms on it and knock on them several times. This will create a slight vibration.

Drying tiles

To remove the tile from the mold, you need to immerse the frozen mixture in warm water for about 5-10 minutes, during which time the mold will move away from the plate on its own. You can also try turning the mold over and shaking out the tiles. This should be done carefully and not use much force to avoid breaking the tiles or chipping the corners. If a chip does occur, it can be easily repaired.

It is important to dry the prepared tiles properly. To do this, the forms with the solution are covered with polyethylene and left for two to three days. It is necessary to ensure that the drying solution is not exposed to direct sunlight.

After making and removing the tiles, it is not recommended to use them immediately, since the material is not yet strong enough and can break easily. It takes a week for the concrete to become stronger and ready for the work being carried out. After all the stages, you can proceed directly to laying tiles and forming paths.

Manufacturing and installation of paving slabs

Let's look at how to produce the material yourself.

Materials for tile production

To obtain a high-quality mixture you will need:

1. Binder - cement grade 500 (GOST 31108-2016 “General construction cements”, GOST 10178-85 “Portland cement and Portland slag cement”).
2. Sand - fine aggregate (GOST 8736-2014 “Sand for construction work”)
3. Crushed stone is a coarse aggregate (GOST 8267-93 “Crushed stone and gravel from dense rocks for construction work”). For small tiles, stones of 5-10 mm in size or screenings should be used.
4. Plasticizers (added in an amount of 1% by weight of the binder) to impart plasticity to the concrete mass, prevent the appearance of cracks and delamination of concrete.

Plasticizer for concrete

1. Water (GOST 23732-2011 “Water for concrete and mortars”).
2. Fiber fiber for reinforcement: polypropylene (see photo), glass, cellulose or basalt.

Polypropylene fiber

1. Pigment for painting products.

Concrete dye

The grade of concrete directly depends on the proportions of the ingredients.

Concrete for paving slabs - mixture composition:

Concrete recipe

Some change in proportions is allowed. The exact composition of the concrete mixture depends on the moisture content of the feedstock and its fraction.

Material manufacturing and installation technology

Preparation of concrete. Materials are poured into the concrete mixer, the proportions of which depend on which mixture recipe was chosen.

Mixer mixing concrete

To obtain a high-quality product, the concrete mixture must be thoroughly mixed. If you are preparing a small amount of solution, you can use a hammer drill with an attachment.

Important! If fiber fiber is not used, the material can be reinforced with mesh. To do this, the mold is filled halfway, a mesh or reinforcing wire is placed on the solution, after which the mold is filled completely.

For more uniform mixing, dry materials are first poured into a running mixer, and after a while water is added. The dye is added gradually as the solution is stirred so that the mixture obtains a uniform color.

Production:

1. The solution is poured into molds (their inner surface is pre-lubricated with oil). The best quality of the products will be ensured by a vibrating table, however, if you don’t have one, you can get by by periodically tapping the entire structure with a mallet. This will remove any unnecessary air bubbles.
2. After filling the forms, they are covered with polyethylene. In hot weather, products must be wetted.
3. After three days, the formwork can be dismantled. The tiles must remain in place for at least 25 days before they fully gain strength.
4. After drying, it is recommended to dip the tiles in a water repellent solution to protect them from moisture and dry them.
5. To create a pattern on the front surface, you can lay some relief surface, for example, a sheet, on the bottom of the matrix. After drying, it will leave a beautiful imprint.

Leaf imprint tile

You can embed mosaic pieces, tile fragments or flat stones into the uncured surface.

Mosaic tiles