How to Build Sidewalks With Concrete or Pavers

The toughest part of building a sidewalk is choosing the base material and the path for the walkway. Constructing the path is a simple matter of digging out the area, laying down a sublayer of gravel or sand, and pouring the cement or laying out the pavers. The only deviation between a paver walkway and a cement walkway is that the cement walkway requires the use of concrete forms, which are 2-inch-by-4-inch boards stretched along the edges to hold the cement in place while it sets.

Marking paint
Shovel
Tamper
Crushed gravel
Concrete sand
2-inch-by-4-inch boards
Ground stakes
3-inch nails
Hammer
Rubber mallet
Level
Concrete
Pavers
Rebar
Float
Trowel
Push broom
Plastic border
Metal ground anchors

Instructions

- 1
  Mark the area for the walkway with marking paint.
- 2
  Dig out the area to a depth equal to the pavers plus 3 inches, or 6 inches for concrete. Compact the ground with a hand tamper, a long metal pole with a heavy, flat base and two handles on the side, or a mechanical tamper, which is available for rent from most hardware stores.
- 3
  Pour a 1-inch layer of crushed gravel for paver installation or a 2-inch layer for concrete installation. Compact the gravel with the tamper. Check the level of the gravel to make sure it is leveled side to side and front to back. Repeat with a 2-inch layer of concrete sand if you're installing pavers.
- 4
  If you're pouring concrete, erect a concrete form by laying the 2-by-4-inch boards against the inside edges of the area with the 4-inch side vertical. Connect the ends of the wood by hammering 3-inch nails through the top of one beam at an angle into the second beam. Hammer wooden ground stakes every 2 feet along the outer edges of the boards. Nail the ground stakes to the boards for stability.
- 5
  Mix and pour cement into the wood forms until the forms are half full. Lay steel rebar on top of the cement in a grid pattern for added stability of the cement. Fill the remainder of the form with cement. Smooth the top of the cement over with a float. Allow the surface water to evaporate and finish the surface with a trowel for a smooth finish, or drag a push broom lightly across for a skid-resistant finish.
- 6
  Lay out the pavers directly on top of the cement sand you spread in Step 3. Drop each paver into place and tap it flat with a rubber mallet. Check the level of the pavers as you install each one. Stretch a plastic border along the edges of the paver walkway and hammer metal stakes into the ground through the holes in the plastic border to hold the pavers in place.
- 7
  Sweep concrete sand over the paver walkway with a push broom, completely filling all the spaces between them, to finish the paver walkway. Drag the point of the trowel across the width of the cement walkway while it is still wet to create a grooved channel every 36 inches.

How to Build Pavers

How to Build a Concrete Foundation With Pavers for a Shed

Paving