skip to main content

Porches & Decks Design Dilemma

pavers not lining up with skylight

last year

I put in new concrete pavers on my terrace, and unfortunately they didn’t line up well with the skylight on my terrace. As you can see in the photo, on the left hand side of the skylight, the paver extends slightly past the skylight, leaving a small but noticeable gap. Other that taking all the pavers up, any suggestions for how to minimize the appearance of the gap? It doesn’t seem like I could cut a paver to fit into the gap given it’s a narrow sliver of a gap.

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (9)

PRO
Patricia Colwell Consulting
last year
I need to see this from further back . What is the skylight for in a terrace ?
krystalmoon2009
last year
cut the bottom horizontal one so you can move the vertical ones over to fill gap
Related Discussions
Break up clay with Paver's sand versus Peat Moss
Q
Comments (12)
Both Kimmsr and Wayne have valid points. My best result in breaking up clay was when we rototille fresh grass into the soil early spring, with a bumper crop of tomatoe. My second best result was when we used A HUGE PILE OF COARSE SAND. Someone mentioned using fine pine mulch to break up clay. Great idea! Walmart sells them for $2.88 per bag. We rototilled them into the soil, it was nice and fluffy. For the same result would take 10 times the amount of sand. I looked at the ingredients on the professional potting soil made by Ball Corp. for their annual flowers: 40 to 50% composted FINE pine parks, peat moss, vermiculite, perlite, lime, and gypsum. This soil mixture yields better result for my roses than green-bag MiracleGro potting soil, and Organic MiracleGro potting soil (brown bag). The 40% Composted pine mulch potting soil is much lighter, fluffier, holds water longer, and I don't have to water pots everyday in hot summer.
...See More
How much do Shellock pavers (Artistic pavers) cost ?
Q
Comments (16)
Nobody has pricing per square foot other than the actual material cost. Every contractor is different in their costing and of course the site prep will up the cost as well if there is a lot of excavation to do. If you have experience with travertine pavers, I think the Artistic pavers are about the same material cost wise. I believe these are only 1 1/2" thick like travertine and cannot be compacted like regular pavers, so the installation has to be perfect. There are also no joints for sand. They do look pretty cool for a more commercial look especially if you want to go with the lighter colors. Make sure your contractor has experience laying these pavers as they are a bit different in installation technique. You might also check into a new line of porcelain pavers by Belgard called Monarch, very cool, but not cheap.
...See More
Skylight - Snowload Option or Not?
Q
Comments (9)
I am a little confused now. I had wanted to get away from the plexiglass dome. The old one I have now is that, and there is no UV protection or insulation. The Velux I am looking at is UV protected with 2 layers of glass with argon between them. Are you saying I should get a dome style instead, regardless that they only come in plexiglass?
...See More
Can you mix paver colors? Trying to design paver patio.
Q
Comments (14)
"... nothing more maddening than pavers with bad tolerances..." Though frustrating, as it was my first DIY experience with pavers, it ended up being OK once I was able to get beyond the mixed colors, which all came at the beginning of the install. The drive was probably 80% one color and 20% mixed. If by "... ripped all the pavers down..." you mean CUT ... on the saw ...?? As it was, I had two solid days of non-stop cutting. It was winter. My hands were numb from wet and cold. I either got tired of changing gloves or ran out of them, don't remember, but had on crappy, sopping wet cotton gloves with all the fingers worn through. I didn't discover until the end of the second day that I had flat worn off the pad of every finger down to the meat! OMG, it hurt soooo bad when they all dried out! I couldn't touch anything for a few days. That was enough cutting for my first paver project!
...See More
3onthetree
last year
last modified: last year
You mean the other left, not left? I see the protective skylight cover (the one with all the shoe prints) looks offset from the actual skylight, so can it be moved over to the right more and refastened? Also it looks as though it would be the exact width of a patio block. If no other option, and no other conflicts elsewhere, I'd be taking them all up and shifting left if I forgot to measure first and recheck while I installed them, so my OCD would be zen then.
marmiegard_z7b
last year
I’m confused too- is this a terrace over a carport or extending over walkout basement , like a deck but with pavers- sometime tile or a kind of terrazzo is used, I’ve seen around town in a few places, though wood decking is more common here.
toddknyc
Original Author
last year
thanks everyone.
@Patricia Cowell: i'll send another picture after i get home. but this is a rooftop terrace for a condo in NYC. so the skylight is above our living room.
@Krystalmoon2009: unfortunately if we cut the bottom horizontal and move over the paver on the left, that would cause a chain reaction that would require us to move over all of the other pavers to the left of the skylight (it's a 450 sq ft terrace, and this is just one part)
@3onthetree: the gap is on the left of the skylight actual. the cover/glass is not offset, it's on top of the actual skylight frame. the black you see on the left of the cover is not the skylight frame but just the roofing that's covering the side of the skylight. it looks like it's part of the skylight frame but it's not. if the paver on the left were actually shifted a little bit closer to the skylight, you wouldn't see the black roofing.
3onthetree
last year
Maybe I need to turn my computer upside down or stand on my head?
toddknyc
Original Author
last year
Sorry okay I was the one confused the picture uploaded differently than expected.
3onthetree
last year
See the offset of the cover? Worth removing/figuring out if it can be shifted with a little ingenuity?
PRO
Patricia Colwell Consulting
last year
MO you must have major waterproofing that would be disturbed if you started ripping out those slabs maybe more of an issue than living with the way it is as long as the waterproofing in intact this truly is a visual thing.

Related Stories

BEFORE AND AFTERS A Wall Comes Down and a Skylight Goes Up in a Sleek New Kitchen

By Bryan Anthony

Before-and-after pictures show the dramatic changes in this remodeled California kitchen

DECORATING GUIDES Line Up for Intriguing Horizontal Elements in Design

Underscore your design savvy with inventive expressions of this time-honored motif around the home

MODERN HOMES Houzz Tour: Desert Home Blurs Every Line Between Indoors and Out

By Becky Harris

Expansive windows, oversize doors, skylights, a covered patio, an atrium and a roof deck make the most of beautiful surroundings

LANDSCAPE DESIGN Greening Between the Lines

By Annie Thornton

These gardens use the joints between steps, pavers and fences for creative planting

DECKS A Family-Friendly California Yard Wises Up About Water

By Annie Thornton

Pavers and unthirsty plants replace Kentucky bluegrass in a Menlo Park landscape for a family of 4

HOUZZ TOURS Houzz Tour: An Ecofriendly Family Home Gets in Line

By Becky Harris

Without any curved lines but with a wealth of energy-efficient features, this remodeled home in Northern California has plenty of appeal

EXTERIORS Where Front Yards Collide: Property Lines in Pictures

By Mitchell Parker

Some could be twins; others channel the Odd Couple. You may never look at property boundaries the same way again

LANDSCAPE DESIGN Create a Landscape That Really Squares Up

See all the ways squares can be the building blocks of eye-catching garden design

HOUZZ TOURS My Houzz: Playful Retro Style Perks Up a Dutch Home

By Louise de Miranda

Jewel tones, vintage finds and quirky accessories give a 1930s home a colorful, energetic spirit

DECORATING GUIDES Stepping Up the Scale

Overgrown doesn't have to mean overblown when you take accessories, artwork and furniture up a notch or two

Sponsored

More Discussions

Any one used Panoramic Doors - please share your opinion

4

would like to move furniture

3

Advice on sliding pocket patio doors - La Cantina or other

5

Should entry doors match?

6

Moving Deck Stairs- help!

0