[springfever]

I am doing a small courtyard at the front entry of a house. The courtyard will be two levels have a step all the way across the front of the porch as there is a 12" rise to that level. My question is about the porch itself. The homeowner wants pavers on top of the slab to make everything match. Should I put these pavers in thinset mortar? Will there be water issues with just sand? The porch is totally covered with a roof. I need your expert advise on this one. I have layed a lot of pavers in my life, but never in this situation. Thanks in advance.

[Lanelle]

I've used glue such as SRW. Make certain that any water that may go down to the slab level can drain away.

[albert]

use a good grade paver adhesive .don't scimp on the glue,also we use the poly sand in joints , it will assit in most of the water to run off .

[davemac]

I usually glue the outside row with a good adhesive and lay the rest of the brick inside and fill the joints with sand

[pgraves]

I believe the "best practice" solution is to glue the outside course (as mentioned already) and lay the beads of adhesive in the direction of water drainage. Then lay a strip of geotextile inside the glued course and lay a light brooming of sand on top of the slab. The geotextile strip is somewhat debateable but inexpensive anyway. The brooming of sand is not to provide a setting bed but rather to keep the pavers from coming in direct contact with the concrete slab so that any water that does get through the joints has less impedence to drain and so that any efflorescence remaining in the slab has a more difficult time making the jump to the pavers and eventually the surface.

Then just finish out the install like any other. The choice to use poly sand in the joints is fine as long as water that percolates through the joints has a place to go. With a covered porch, that volume of water should obviously be mitigated already.

[davemac]

Any porch is going to have a slope to it to start with. By filling the gaps with a poly sand very little water will permeate to the bottom and if it does the existing slope will let that water run away. With it being a covered porch water will not be an issue anyway.