How to Build an Indian Stone Patio

Clean the area you have selected for the patio by removing any type of vegetation and any stones or unwanted materials. Level the soil.

Choose the type of Indian sandstone you will use. Purchase smoother, lighter flags. Choose the flags with the most even edges.

Make a cement-bound bed all over the area where you will lay the flags. Make a 10:1 ratio of grit sand and cement with water. To make 1 ton of mixture, use 950 kg grit stone with 100 kg of cement and .5 kg of water, as semi-dry works best. The bedding layer should be ideally 35 to 50 mm thick. At 35 mm depth, 1 ton of mixture covers 14 square meters, while at 50 mm depth, it covers 10 square meter of area.

Lay the sandstones on the bedding. If the flags are relatively small and light, you can lay them with your hands. For units larger than 450 X 450 mm, use specialist paving tools and lifting aids. While laying, you can align either the bottom edge or the leading edge. However, make sure it remains tight to the preceding flag.

Join the flags with each other by using mortar on the receiving edges of each sandstone flag while laying them. This process is called buttering. Make mortar by mixing 4 units of building salt with one unit of ordinary Portland cement. Mix it until you can not differentiate the color of sand and cement anymore. Add water and plasticizer. Water and plasticizer must be added a bit at a time and then thoroughly blended until you have achieved the desired consistency.

Start the pointing process within 4 hours after laying the pavement, while the joints still have fairly fresh mortar within them from the buttering process. The pointing will 'top-up' the buttered mortar to form a solid mass in between. Use small pointing trowels to fill the gaps and trim. Polish the mortar after filling all the gaps by running the edge of the pointing trowel at a slight angle along the top of the filled joint. You can also use a V-shaped pointing trowel.

Place a cautionary sign or use some form of caution tape around the parameter of the patio. This will prevent anyone from either walking or driving on the patio for at least 48 hours after laying the flags. After that, wash the patio. Lay red brick on both sides and decorate with plants.