Natural Stone Paving

Natural stone paving is highly sought after material for exterior patios and driveways. Real stone paving offers more character and authenticity than its man made counterparts and if purchased from the right source, should not be any more expensive. The main three materials used to produce stone paving are sandstone, limestone and slate.

When purchasing paving, as well as considering different colours and materials it is also important to consider which sizes you would like. There are normally between four and seven different sizes for each type of paving and some people prefer to use one size throughout the area whilst others may go for a mixed, random pattern made up of three, four, five, six or even seven different sizes. Also some paving is cut to metric measurement (e.g. 300 x 300) where as some quarries still cut to imperial measurements (e.g. 275 x 275).

The depth of most exterior paving normally varies by 10mm. The most suitable depth is between 25mm and 35mm. In recent times a large quantity of paving has come into the UK with a depth a 0f 15mm to 25mm; this is due to the fact that at this smaller depth more square metres can fit into each crate and container. This paving may be cheaper to purchase but is much less durable and hard wearing than material at the standard depth and when used on driveways will eventually start to crack.

If you are considering using natural stone or any type of paving product on your driveway you should be aware that recently passed legislation dictates that planning permission is required in areas where flooding is a possibility.

Sandstone – As one of the most popular materials for stone paving, sandstone paving comes predominantly in dark brown and beige tones and light yellow and sandy coloured tones. Sandstone paving can be supplied with both a riven surface (rough, textured, natural finish) and honed surface (sawn and perfectly flat finish). Sandstone paving is produced in the UK but due to labour costs it is much more cost effective to import from India, when using sandstone paving in residential areas. The two most common Indian types are raj green and fossil mint, although they are commonly renamed when arriving in the UK.

Limestone – Another material which is predominantly imported from India when required in exterior paving form. Limestone is available in different tones of grey, blue, black and brown. Limestone paving can be supplied with both a riven surface (rough, textured, natural finish) the most popular types of Limestone paving are the kotah limestones.

Slate – Slate is a common material in the UK and although welsh slate is commonly used for roofing and landscaping most slate paving originates from India, China and Brazil. The most common paving colours for slate are black and dark grey but it is also available in green and some metallic-esque finishes such as ocean, copper and salmon pink. Slate is usually supplied with a riven texture and is somewhat more costly when a honed finish is required.

It is also worth considering crazy paving if you want to achieve a random edged pattern, it is also possible to use circle patterns for features and match natural stone steps to your paving.