Thanks for the many responses. Sorry about the vagueness of the terminology. I was talking about mortar vs. sand when dry laying bricks. We're still in the middle of the project. It's been interesting. Bahia, I'm glad you agree and would not be "inclined to fault someone for not being able to fully explain the process in english." These were not workers we obtained ourselves at a "shape-up" outside Home Depot. The contractor was hired at full-dollar, and these are workers he obtained. And I do fault the contractor for switching crews mid-project and substituting a crew who had an entirely different conception of what the project is. Fortunately, I have many bilingual neighbors who can help with translating. Today we've made it clear we want a 2-inch bed of sand, as promised, and that they will have to dig deeper to accommodate that. Half inch of sand won't cut it. We've hired a lowboy Dumpster to put all the soil and broken concrete in, something the contractor promised to do but reneged on. We do not want them disposing of four 3x3 foot slabs of concrete from an old jacuzzi pad we inherited by BURYING them underneath where the patio is supposed to go, as they were doing yesterday. Just intuitively, that would seem to invite uneven settling of the patio. This was all hashed out before work started with the first crew. The second crew was not properly informed by the contractor and was improvising with disposal of debris, since nobody wanted to cut into their profits by renting a lowboy. So these guys have to dig up the concrete, break it up, and they're piling it up on trees, wherever they can. Do twice the work, in other words. In record 97-degree heat. And they thought 1/2 inch of sand would be OK because where in hell is all that excavated dirt going to go with no lowboy to put it in? Seemed like such a simple job, one we've done many times ourselves, except our backs aren't what they were 20 years ago. We think we're all on the same page. We'll see what happens.

I recently started laying irregular flagstones on a walkway over a solid base of stone dust. I have joints that are about 1" wide. I followed the directions on the Techi-Seal HP (for wider joints) merely blowing the sand off with a blower. This left a very fine haze of powder on the stones which promptly bound to them once misting was applied. My method was to go back and painstakingly pressure-wash it off. This actually works well, the problem being once the stones get wet, you can't see the haze! Also, the sand will tolerate some pressure-washing, but I did have to do some repairs to the ripped up areas. PITA! Well, I think I will try the white vinegar option on the areas that are still less than optimal. I hope to finish the project by using a new 1" paint brush to try to wisk away that fine dust. That should obviate any need to fiddle after the misting is done and sand sets up. Just on the steep part of the learning curve! As far as a sealer, I have used "Enhance and Seal" from Lowe's. I plan on spraying it on. It does a great job of darkening and sealing the stones (and sand). The problem is I did a test rock with some haze left on it... it will NOT hide the haze... so you'll need to get it off ahead of time!

If anyone is still reading this thread, I'll give you an update. I cannot do any decking as I do not have enough clearance on the patio door. It is only 7". They need 11 -1/2". So that eliminated that possibility. I called a few people - and of course, haven't received callbacks yet. I did call one person that I had heard of through a friend. He has quite a large company, does landscaping, patios, etc. The way he works is that he comes out, looks the property over, then does a design. We paid $300 to have the design done, which I do not think is unreasonable. He, of course, hopes that we will work with him because he is certainly not making any money just doing designs! We talked about concrete and pavers. He suggested pavers for a number of reasons, the main one besides asthetics being that if they move or crack, they can be fixed. I need to read my paperwork, but I believe he said he guarantees them for two years and if during that time anything moves around, he will fix it. He also said that most, if any at all, movement will occur in the first two years. He suggested that the tree I want to get rid of might infringe on anything we do - the roots. With that, DH said to take it out. Yeah!!! Victory!! As I said, he asks for so little that I was not going to argue that point. So, I am awaiting his design which he said would be about 2 -3 weeks. JAN IN WISCONSIN -- if you see this ---- he showed me a book with pavers. He asked if I liked the sqaured off corners or the more rounded ones. I said the rounded ones. I picked out the Brussels pavers. I haven't seen them yet, but from the catalog, that would be my first choice. Then I reread this thread and see that is what you are using!!!!! What color did you choose??? I am excited. I know his plan is going to come in at way more than I am willing to pay. But he is also willing to work in stages or have us do part. He even said things like - the step coming from the sliding door. Right now, there are two steps. I really only need one, so that is a cost savings. I really think he knows what he is talking about, so we'll see what happens. Again, thanks to all for your help. I am so very excited!! As I thought about it, we haven't even used the back and the patio in the last few years. I didn't even like going out there. Now I look forward to being out there, drinking tea (Salada or Long Island depending on the time of day) and enjoying summer - at least part of it. I am sure this will all take awhile to get done.

Hello I’m having a coping installation problem as well. Just wondering how this turned out for you with your contractor.