Create a Brick Patio

• Six 12-foot 2x4s
• Two 8-foot 2x4s
• One 18-foot 2x4 (for striker)

• About twenty 2x2-inch wood stakes
• 125 feet of heavy string
• 400 sq. ft. of polyethylene 3-mil plastic
• About 2 tons of sand (for sand laid 2 inches deep)
• About 2 tons of standard 4x8-inch bricks

• Mallet
• Circular saw
• Shovel
• Broom
• Square
• Level
• Brick set to cut bricks

Step 1: Level the surface.

1. To level the sand bed, make a striker by notching each end of an 18-foot-long 2x4 to brick depth. Rest it on the edging and draw it across the surface. If the striker won't reach across the sand bed, stake 2x4s lengthwise down the patio middle to use as a guide. Smooth one half of the patio and then the other.

Step 2: Set border bricks.

2. Lay the brick border around the patio perimeter, spacing bricks about 1/8 to 1/4 inch apart. Then, start on one side of the patio and begin laying the pattern across. Stand on bricks as you progress to keep from disturbing the sand. To keep tops of bricks even, remove or add sand beneath bricks as needed.

Step 3: Lay out the pattern.

3. As you place the bricks, use a level to ensure the patio slopes slightly away from any adjoining structure for good drainage. Use a string stretched taut and square to the edging to help you lay courses as straight as possible.

To cut a brick, mark the cutoff line, then score along the line using a brick set and hammer. Make the cut by holding the brick set at a perpendicular angle and giving it a sharp rap. The brick should break along the line.