Making a concrete paver or buying them is one question that has received varying answers. That is because several factors are considered, from the available time to labor, the level of expertise to maintenance costs. To avoid the labor aspect and all other factors, most people opt to buy them. Therefore, stating that buying concrete pavers is cheaper than making them. But is it?
When you examine the costs critically, it’s cheaper to make concrete pavers than buy them. However, that’s just the cost. How about the cost of maintenance, time invested, and labor? Is your time worth sacrificing to make a concrete paver? You need to analyze these things more carefully before arriving at a complete answer.
Average Price of Cement Pavers
Let’s start with the price of a cement paver. The average price of a cement paver is $3 per square foot, but the price could go higher if you think of adding color or making the design look more elegant.
How Much Does it Cost to Make Your Own Concrete Pavers (On Average)?
The cost of making your concrete depends on several factors. First, you need to know that you’ll be needing more than just concrete. You’ll also need a release agent and some materials for the mold. Second, you may need color, but that’s by the way, as it’s not really necessary. However, if you have resolved to add it, know that the cost of the project would increase.
When talking about cost, it’s not limited to just the money. Your time is also part of the cost. Do you have a substantial amount of time to allocate to the success of the project? If yes, then let’s move to calculations.
If you have a 240 sq. ft. patio to work on, you’ll need a mold, bags of concrete, and a scrapper. You can make mold yourself or use anything that looks like a tin pan or baking tray. When making your mold, it should be at least, 2-inch thick to hold the concrete. At most, a mold will cover around 4 ft. A 4 ft. mold will require one 60lb bag of concrete, which goes for approximately $6. To cover the 240 sq. ft. patio, you will need about sixty bags, amounting to $360.
On the flip side, if you decide to purchase from the store, you will spend around $3 on each paver per sq. ft. For a 240 sq. ft. patio, the total cost will be $720. Remember, delivery wasn’t budgeted.
Judging by the calculations, it will cost you an average of $360 to make your concrete pavers, while it will cost you double if purchase from the store. All in all, it’s cheaper making your concrete pavers versus buying them.
What Is the Cheapest Paving Option?
The cheapest paving option is making the pavers yourself, but you need to consider if it’s cost-efficient. Are you willing to invest your time and energy into making them yourself? If you decide to make them yourself, it means that you have agreed to allocate your time to the project. If you resolved to make them only on weekends, it could take you several weekends to make the number of pavers needed for your project, depending on the size.
The fact is to make concrete pavers, you must be willing to invest a substantial amount of your time. After making them, you’ll need to dry them out. If they are plenty, you will need a few days for them to be dried out. In total, you will spend quality time making them.
Apart from the production aspect, the expertise involved is also a huge factor to consider. If you have worked on pavers before, you won’t have difficulty making them. However, if you are a newbie, it could take you weeks before you learn how to make them. There’s no guarantee if you’ll be that proficient after all.
Pouring concrete requires some skill. The pavers need to be in equal measurements so that they can be locked equally. Although the mold helps with the uniformity, the concrete pouring is pretty delicate. In addition, the quality of the pavers is also factored.
While making pavers is cheaper, the quality may be inferior to those sold at stores. After a while, they begin to crack, and you’ll have to replace them with new ones. This means additional time and energy investment. Again, this depends on your expertise, which you may lack. At this point, you are better off buying than making pavers. These pavers are more durable and resistant.
If you have the required expertise and are willing to invest your time and energy into the project, you are better off with making the pavers yourself. It’s the cheapest paving option for you.
How to Make Your Own Concrete Pavers?
Making concrete pavers may seem difficult to you because you haven’t done it, but in an actual sense, it sounds straightforward and fun to do. You may have to practice making some pavers before you begin the actual production, which is normal.
This guide will teach you the best possible way to make a concrete paver. Let’s get started with what you need. You need the following tools and materials;
- Bags of cement (depending on the size of your project)
- Scrapper
- Trowel
- Mixer
- Bags of Sand (quantity depends on the size of the project)
- Mold
- Wheelbarrow
- Shovel or spade
The Process
- Before we begin the process of making concrete pavers, you need to first do your mold. Like we said earlier, you can use a tin pan or a baking tray as your mold. Alternatively, you can purchase a mold template from Amazon or eBay and make one yourself if you can understand the dimensions.
- Once your mold is ready, the next thing is to mix the sand and the cement. Getting the right mix proportion is essential because it impacts the durability of the pavers. If poorly mixed, the pavers will crack sooner than later. If mixed right, the pavers will be solid.
- The right mix for the pavers is three parts of sand to one part of cement. Pour them in the mixer and turn the mixture into the wheelbarrow.
- Examine the area where you want to install the pavers. Ensure that the area is smooth and flat. Remove stones or excess sand from the area using a shovel or spade. These will hinder the pavers from balancing on the ground.
- Place the mold in the area. Pour the concrete into it until it’s filled. Smoothen it with a scraper or trowel to remove excess concrete from the top and allow it to dry for some hours.
- Remove the mold carefully and place it in the next spot, close to the previous one you did.
- Repeat steps five and six and do the rest of the area accordingly. Make sure you smoothen each paver while it’s still on the mold with a trowel or scrapper. Also, the pavers need to be locked perfectly.
- That’s it. You have made and installed your concrete pavers.
Conclusion
Objectively, making your pavers is the cheapest option. Based on the factors discussed in this post, making your pavers will cost half the price of buying them. However, making them yourself requires a great deal of sacrifice. You must consider if sacrificing your time and labor is worth it.
However, some options can help you make the best pavers while still saving costs. You can hire a professional to help you with your production. They can also help you with the supply and installation if you want. It will cost you some money, but that’s still better than buying concrete pavers.