Mason Mark McCullough helps a homeowner solve a draining issue—literally. Every time there is heavy rain, the homeowner’s driveway washes away. Mark shows her how to replace the existing brick border with cobblestone driveway edging to act as a retaining wall to add function and style.
How To Install Cobblestone Driveway Edging
- If there is existing edging, remove it from the driveway. Use the mason’s hammer or pickaxe to dig any buried edging up and out of the ground.
- Use the spade shovel to dig a trench two to three times wider than the cobblestones and approximately 8 inches deep. Compact the soil with the tamp.
- Place a bed of gravel or crushed stone approximately 2 to 3 inches deep in the trench and tamp it down.
- Pour the concrete mix into a wheelbarrow and add water a little at a time. Combine the mix with the shovel, adding water until it reaches an oatmeal-like consistency.
- Lay a bed of concrete in the bottom of the trench about 2 or 3 inches deep. Place the cobblestones in the trench, so they’re standing up, tapping them into place with the sledgehammer or mallet for a tight fit in the concrete, leaving about half the stone above grade. Anywhere a walkway may be desirable, lay the cobblestones flat.
- Lay rebar behind the concrete, overlapping each bar by about one foot. Use tie wire and the wire twister to connect the rods. Pour concrete on top of the rebar and use the mason’s trowels to create a slope that drains away from the driveway.
- Place gravel along the front of the cobblestones and rake it into the cracks to fill the gaps and solidify the edging while the concrete dries.
Resources
Mark works alongside a homeowner to raise the sinking driveway edging. Ideally, the red brick edging acts as a barrier and helps to maintain the gravel driveway, but over time, grass or moss can grow over the edging, allowing water and gravity to pull the loose gravel over the edging.
Mark’s Pro Tip: Leave the space between cobblestones unfilled. By doing so, water can pass through the spaces without disturbing the material. If the spaces are filled with concrete, the moisture will work its way in and expand over time until it cracks.
Cobblestones were provided by Cavicchio Greenhouses, Inc.