Announcement

Winter Company Announcement

• Saturday hours will end for the season on 12/17/2016.
• We will be closed from 12/24/2016 - 01/01/2017.
• Website is going to be updated over the winter featuring all of our special product lines.
• New pricing will be available March of 2017.

Products that you may have missed in 2016, don't miss them in 2017.  Special order product lines could make your home or project stand out from the rest! 

• Patio Packs
• Natural Stone Circle Kits
• Natural Stone Wall Caps
• Ledger Panel Veneers
• Fireplaces and Fire Pits to be Customized
• Outdoor Kitchens to be Customized
• Boulders

Prepare Your Beds for Winter

Winter is Coming....

We are now entering the final month of the year and the beginning of three months of cold weather.  There are ways to protect your plants and give back to your soil for the upcoming spring season, that right now seems so far away.

1) Rake your leaves - the leaves that have fallen can cause your healthy plants to grow disease.
2) Dig up any dead plants & weeds.
3) After your perennials have gone dormant for the winter cut them down to about 6" above the ground.
4)  Great time to plant your bulbs, plant 3" below ground.
5)  Place leaf mold/compost/mulch or regular compost over the beds.  This will protect your plants and give needed nutrients to your soil.  **Note** Do not do this until it has gotten cold and stayed cold for a period of time.  Rodents will build a home in your garden bed and dine on your plants.
6)  New trees need their bark wrapped.  You can use tree wrap, burlap or left over weed barrier.
7)  Screen your evergreens with burlap or weed barrier.

Premium Compost Supplied by DHS

Leaf Mulch/Compost

Prepare Your Patio for Winter

If you live here on the north east coast of the US you know that winter is knocking at our door.  Before the snow comes and actually before the leaves started falling you should of prepared your paver patio.

1.  Take your patio furniture off of the patio as well as your grill.  Now depending on if you have a fireplace or fire pit you may want to put your furniture back out to enjoy your out door living a little longer.  If you are not going to be using your patio any longer either put your furniture away or get out your covers.

2.  Blow all the leaves off of your patio and purchase some paver general cleaner.  At DHS we carry SEK-Surebond line. Click on the You Tube video to learn more.

Paver Restoration How To

Tips:  When the snow finally comes avoid using salt on your paver patio.  The salts will erode the concrete.  Instead use an eco-friendly ice melt product.

If you have already missed the temperature window for sealing your pavers you may want to consider sealing your pavers in the spring.  When purchasing a penetrating sealer it helps protect your pavers from stains, water and other outdoor elements.  Doing this will help your pavers look new for longer.

Note:  If you are planning on sealing your paver patio the ground temperature must be 45 degrees or warmer for a 24 hour period.  Do not use sealer if your pavers are wet or damp either.

Learn More About Sealers

Help with Dry Laid Flagstone Patio

Pa Pattern Flagstone can be installed by wet lay or dry lay.  Dry lay is easier for a DIYer to do themselves as long as the base is properly done.  

1)  Start out by drawing and measuring your planned area.

2)  Purchase your flagstone, make sure to purchase extra for areas that may need to be cut or for ones that you may not like.

3)  Dig out your area about 9" deep and about 12" beyond your ending area.

4)  Make sure your slope going away from your home is 1/4" per foot.  Example a 12' patio there would be a 3" difference from top to bottom.

5)  Place stabilization fabric directly on the dirt and 4" - 6" of 2a Modified (crusher run) above that.  You will need to run a compactor over the gravel.

6)  Install 1" of stone dust to be used as a leveling agent for the flagstone.  Screened the fines with a pipe.  If it is going to rain make sure to cover the fines with a tarp.  

7)  Hammer spikes across from each other and attach a string line this will help keep your lines straight as your installing the stone.

8)  Start against the house laying the flagstone using the stone dust to help level out each one.  Make sure you have your rubber mallet in hand.  You will use it to bang on the stone to help place it.

9)  Once you have your flagstone installed you will want to install paver edge restraints and polysand.

Adding Stone Veneer Inside Your Home

This project is set for an intermediate DIYer.

One of the big new things in interior home designs are accent walls.  Accent walls can be made out of recycle wood pallets, veneer thin stone, tile and or just paint.  The wall gives your home depth and character and it is generally a trend that will last.

USING STONE VENEER

MSI Stone Ledger

Tools:  
             Tile Saw
             Cement Board Score Tool
             Diamond Wheel Tool
             Notch Trowel
             Drill
             Mixing Paddle
             Chalk Line
             Level

Materials:
             1/2" Thick Cement Board
             2-1/4" Cement Board Screws
             Thin Set
             Mesh Cement Board Tape

How To:

             Place cement board directly on dry wall.  If you have outlets along the wall you will need to purchase outlet extenders so that once you have a finished product the outlets are not effected.  After the cement board has been screwed into the studs apply mesh tape.  Apply thin set and then apply the stone veneer.  You will use a tile saw to cut the ends of the veneer to fit into your wall.  The diamond blade is used to cut your veneer around your outlets.  Note one box of screws will do about 40 square foot of wall and one 50lbs bag of thin set will cover 70 square foot of wall.  The are some great You Tube Video's you can find online for more precise guidance.

Cost:
   
        If the wall you are trying to cover is 10' x 8' = 80 square feet

Cement board needed 6 pieces at $11.50 each = $69.00
Cement board screws 2 boxes at $8.50 each = $17.00
Thin Set Cement 2 bags at $15.00 each = $30.00
Thin Veneer Stone average $10 per square foot = $800.00
Electrical Outlet Extenders (if needed) $3.50 each

Your looking at an estimate of $920.00 for a 10' x 8' accent wall.

Start Enjoying Your Back Yard!

Delaware Hardscape Supply offers many products that will make your backyard the envy of the neighborhood.  Fireplaces, Fire Pits, Outdoor Tile, Natural Stone Panel Veneer, Boulders and a Little help with creativity.

 Fire Pits are an easy quick addition to any patio.  They are visually attractive as well as some where that your family and friends can gather on chilly nights.  Image provided by Belgard.

Fireplaces help take your inside living outside for longer into the year.  Belgard offers pre-built fireplaces that just need a footer and a machine, a few easy steps and you could be enjoying it that weekend.  You could also customize your fireplace.  The fireplace from Stone Farm Living gives you the options to place any type of veneer that you want to your custom size fire place.  The fireplace comes packaged in pieces and you mortar it together.  We are now offering panels of thin real stone veneer.  The veneer comes in sections in small manageable boxes.

Do you want an attractive island outside?  Stone Farm offers custom outdoor cabinets and grill options.  Enjoy yourself and your family outside, no more running into the house to cook.  This outside island is easy to design, ships easy, easy to customize and easy to install.

Overlays

Overlays

You may either have an existing Pad or Stoop, that needs an update or you just want to have a different look than you already have. You can do an overlay to get the look that you desire.

There are a few options that you have when considering the product and installation method:  Natural Stone, Concrete Pavers and Outdoor Tile. The product that you chose will define the installation method, such as a dry-lay or wet-lay mortar set, it comes down to the style that you are looking for.       

Some factors that you will need to consider when you are thinking about doing and over lay are

·         Condition of what you are going to cover 

·         Height concerns if you are in a transitional area

·         When working on steps looking at both the rise and run  

Condition

The surface that you plan to cover with the overlay needs to be smooth,  free of cracks  and structurally stable.  If there are any cracks, new or have they been there for 30 years they will continue to crack more over time. Cracks in a Concrete Pad are generally due to insufficient base material compaction at time of installation. If  the overlay is done on this base material the cracks will radiate through the newly installed overlay.  If your current structure is in a questionable condition your best bet would be to start new.

            Height Concerns

            Most of the time when you are looking to do an over lay it is on an existing concrete Patio, Walkway or Stoop near an entryway and in some cases a transitional area. In my experience it is the front door area that you see the most overlays.

            When considering the material the material for your overlay. You need to look at whether you have a step-out or a step-down in this area. A step out is always a little more difficult when choosing the material for the overlay, so you don’t interfere with the operation of the door. The Step Down, gives you a bit more flexibility in choosing the material. But when choosing the material for your overlay just remember the total height of the installed product. This is an area that you do not want a trip hazard when entering and exiting.

(Note: when entering and exiting through a door people either step on the door sill or step over it)

           

Steps

            When you are working with steps, you need to consider the rise of the step as well as the sides of these steps, so that when you are finished the look is seamless. In this area you can use that same material or use a different material altogether.

            Installation

            The installation of your overlay will differ depending on the product you choose. So when considering an overlay, ask your installer(s){When looking at multiple bids} What product they would be installing and how.  If you are considering to do the overlay as a DIY project. Take inconsideration the factors above and consult us with any other questions, regarding the project from picking out the initial material that would work best for you to proper installation. 

Don't Need a Whole Pallet of Stone

Natural Wall Stone, Boulders, Irregular Flagstone & Garden Path - these materials are all purchasable by the weight instead of a pallet quantity.

PA Fieldstone Garden Path - Sold by Lbs

River Jack Boulders Small Sold by Ton or Lbs

Loose Wall Stone Sold by the Lbs

Visit our website or come by the yard to view the entire selection of materials sold by the weight of the piece.  There maybe something that matches just what your looking for.

Why Install Versa-Lok Retaining Walls

Versa-lok Standard units (16" x 6" x 12") are a versatile unit which are ideal for retaining small grade changes or large grade changes at residential or commercial properties.

The units are a solid core and do not have to be filled with stone.  They use a pin system to mechanically connect each unit into place with one another.  The units can be easily manipulated on site to create unique dimensions within the wall.  The tapered back side allows for radius turns to match the natural landscape lines.

The Standard Unit can also be used in conjunction with smaller units (Cobble Units & Accent Unit) to create an attractive mosaic pattern.  Smaller units could also be used individually to create a smaller retaining wall or garden wall.  There are many color choices, two style finishes and numerous design features that the Versa-lok retaining wall offers.  At an affordable price you can't go wrong with choosing this system for your next job or project.

provided by CST Pavers

provided by CST Pavers

Any retaining wall over 4' needs to be engineered approved and use grid for extra stability.

Natural Gravel Pathways and Patios

Natural Gravel Pathways and Patios

Delaware Hardscape Supply carries several Crushed Gravels and River Rock that would be perfect.

     Whether you are trying to create a Naturalistic garden pathway or patio or just trying to convert an area where you need a little more space (i.e. spare parking, area for you trash cans or hose bib) The use of gravels can add color and texture to your space.

The addition of Gravels or River Rock is a low cost alternative for creating a visual pleasing place to relax or increasing unusable space.

Compost & Topsoil for Your Home

Delaware Hardscape stocks only premium soils. 

Topsoil

The topsoil is kept covered at our supplier location as well as our location.  It is screened at a 1/2" size to make sure it is free of stone.  The soil is deep dug native soil mixed with the premium compost.

Coverage

1" Covers 324 Sqft
3" Covers 108 Sqft

Premium Compost

Rich in micro & macronutrients, humus and has a neutral pH.  The compost prevents soil compaction which allows the flow of air and water through the soil.  If you are mixing in a garden bed it is recommended to mix 1-3" of the premium compost with 6-8" of soil. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Its Time to Mulch

When purchasing your mulch we have many options to choose from.  There are 5 different types available all have a different purposes depending on what you are trying to achieve.

Why Mulch?
- To retain moisture in the soil
- Inhibits weed growth
- Controls Soil Temperature

Time of the Year to Mulch.
- Early Spring 1 - 3 inches of mulch should be installed
- Fall to refresh the beds and to protect the plants from frost

Available Options
- Dyed Mulch, is generally purchased for visual impact.  Dyed Mulch sometimes has to be removed from season to season because the dye slows the decomposing process.  To much Mulch will suffocate your plants.
- Non-Dyed Mulch will break down faster adding nutrients into the soil as they decompose at a faster rate than the dyed mulches.  They are a better option if you are trying to increase your soils PH balance.

** You should always take in account the types of plants you have and what they need to flourish.**

Leaf Mulch

Mulch Bins at Delaware Hardscape

Meet the Contractor

We wanted to take the time to thank Louis from Wright Interlocking Patterns, Inc. for choosing DHS as his paver provider.

Louis has been in business for 10 years with 20 years experience.  Wright Interlocking will design and build your outdoor living space, they do pavers, stone & lighting in PA & DE.  If you are interested in what Wright Interlocking could do for you, contact Louis at 302.286.1265.

Why Seal Your Hardscapes?

Sealing your hardscape surfaces helps resist stains like oil, dirt and grease.  Sealing also protects materials from UV rays caused by the sun.  Make sure to purchase a penetrating sealer to get down in the voids. You can purchase sealers that will enhance the color of the product or ones that will just keep it muted.  Do you have a fungus problem?  You can purchase sealers that have an anti-fungal formula to cut down on that mossy growth as well.

Before Sealer Added

After Sealer Added

When sealing your product make sure you clean the surface first.  If you do not clean the surface you could potentially lock in dirt.  You can wait to seal if you wish, maybe need to bring your patio or walk back to life.

Check out the manufacture we carry and the line of products available for sealing.  Always be sure to follow the instructions provided.

www.sek.us.com

photos provided by SEK Surebond

Hardscape Sale

At our Wilmington, DE yard we always have a clearance section available.  You can find random pavers, stone and wall products at an inexpensive rate.  New for 2016 Delaware Hardscape will also be offering a consistent sale area.  Currently we have CST & Belgard pavers and wall products 25% off.  We also have pattern full color 1-1/2" flagstone $1.00 off per square foot.  The discount does only apply to what is available in the yard.  If you get creative you can have a wonderful project at just a fraction of the price. 

Hardscape materials can run you from $2.50 a square foot to $8.00 a square foot.  On a 400 square foot patio you would be looking at $1,000 - $3,200 just for the materials you see on the surface.  Our sale rates get you paver materials any where from $800 to $2,400 for 400 square feet.