Digging Under a Patio

Check for signs of urban wildlife, such as skunks and chipmunks, around the patio before digging. If you see a hole that looks like it was made by an animal, put some sticks or a wad of newspaper in the hole. If it is not disturbed in three days, the burrow no longer is in use.

Call the “diggers hotline” before you start digging. In the suburbs surrounding most large cities, this number is 811. In smaller municipalities, the number for the hotline is listed with the emergency numbers in the phone book. Someone will come to your house to check if any pipes or cables run underneath your patio. This service usually is free of charge.

Study your patio carefully before you start digging. If the arrangement of the stones that make up the patio is complicated, make a drawing. This will come in handy when you try to reconstruct how the stones fit together.

Take the opportunity to upgrade your patio once it is dug up. For example, reduce insects and increase drainage by putting a layer of 2 to 3 inches of sand under the stones before you replace them. Also, upgrade the stones – for example, you can replace ordinary bricks with paving quality bricks. These are fired longer than ordinary bricks and stand up to the weather better, looking better for more years than ordinary bricks.