Ferndale, MI · 48220
Brick Pavers & Small Yard Design in Ferndale, MI
Paver patios, walkways, seat walls, fire pits and planting for homes in Ferndale, Michigan. Family owned and operated, second generation, licensed and insured, 26+ years in Oakland County.
Call 248-250-1330
Small Lots
A small yard is a layout problem, not a budget problem
Ferndale lots are compact, and the usual mistake is treating the back yard as one leftover rectangle. Break it into defined areas and the same square footage starts behaving like more space: a surface for the table, a step down or a change of material where the seating starts, planting to close the edges.
Built-in beats furniture when space is tight. A seat wall around the edge of a patio seats four or five people on the footprint a couple of chairs would take, and it never has to go into the garage for the winter.
The other thing worth getting right early is where the grill and the door are in relation to the table, because on a small patio that is the difference between usable and crowded.
Front Yard
The front walk does more work than people give it credit for
On a narrow lot the front walk and the entrance are most of what anyone sees of the house. A straight concrete ribbon from the drive to the door is the default, and widening it, giving it a border course and rebuilding the landing in paver changes the front of the house more than the cost suggests.
It is also the part of the property that gets salted all winter, which is why the concrete version tends to be the first thing to fail. More on porches, steps and walkways.
Lighting finishes it. Low voltage fixtures along a walk and at the steps are a small addition at the end of a job and they are what people notice at night. See landscape lighting.
Everything We Install in Ferndale
Common Questions
What is the smallest patio worth building?
There is no minimum we turn away, but a table with four chairs needs enough room behind the seats to push back and stand up, and that is what usually sets the size. Below that you end up with a surface people walk across rather than sit on.
Can a patio be built on more than one level in a small yard?
Yes, and on a tight lot it often helps. A single step between two levels separates dining from seating without a wall or a railing in the middle of the space, and it gives you somewhere to work the grade in rather than fighting to make everything flat.
How close to the property line can we build?
That is set by the city, not by us, and Ferndale has its own setback and coverage rules. We work to what the city allows for your lot and we will tell you during the estimate if what you are picturing is going to run into it.
Does a small project get the same base work as a big one?
Yes. The depth of excavation and the compacted aggregate underneath do not scale down because the patio is small. Michigan freeze and thaw does the same thing to two hundred square feet as it does to a thousand, and a shortcut on a small job fails just as fast.
Can you work on a property with no side access for equipment?
Often, yes. Access is one of the first things we look at during the estimate, because it affects how the material gets in and out and therefore the price. We would rather raise it then than discover it on day one.
Free Estimates in Ferndale
Tell us what you have in mind and we will come out, take a look and give you a price. We also work in Royal Oak, Pleasant Ridge, Oak Park and Berkley. See all service areas.
248-250-1330
Licensed and insured · Family owned · 26+ years