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Custom Courtyard With Canal Brick Dean and Derek use tumbled brick to give an ordinary courtyard a more elegant look. Check out more Rock Solid home improvement projects. From "Rock Solid" episode DROC-410

	Before
	After

Dean and Derek add a tumbled brick courtyard to the top tier of an interlocking wall and steps. Then they bump it up a notch by installing a border and step made from the same material as the wall. It's an easy, colorful way to bring a sense of design and purpose to a yard that was once sloping and under utilized.

Below is a summary of the steps as seen in this project, as well as some brick installation tips and a list of materials and tools used.

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Materials:

paving brick
wall border pavers
concrete block riser modules
concrete block tread modules
snap edging
12-inch steel landscape spikes
concrete sand
crusher run
pre-mix type-s mortar
concrete block adhesive
polymeric sand
water

Tools:

small skid steer (for large projects)
plate compactor
wheelbarrow
sledgehammer
trowel
rubber mallet
iron rake
shovel
broom
hoe
6-foot level
nylon string
string level
tape measure
marking paint
wooden stakes
1-inch steel pipes
5-gallon bucket
work gloves

Marking Off the Area

Begin by marking out the borders of your planned courtyard using spray marking paint. For this project, Dean and Derek's courtyard will be centered in relation to a set of steps, so they first measure out the center of the top step, then use that as the center point for the courtyard. They then mark off the perimeter using that center point as the reference.

Excavating for the Base

• Once the area is marked off, dig down six inches to accommodate the base. The base is very important as it will ensure that your courtyard is sitting on firm, level ground. For a base that covers a large area, you may want to use a small skid steer to help with digging. It can also come in handy in situations where you're digging into ground with sizable tree roots.

• With the six inches dug for your base, set up string lines from one end of the perimeter to another, front to back and side to side. A string line will help guide your direction and level, and is created by stretching nylon string between two wood stakes in the ground. Since this particular courtyard is adjacent to a retaining wall and steps, they give their base a quarter-bubble pitch toward the wall and steps. The slight pitch will allow the rainwater to drain downward.

• Next, use a plate compactor to compact the soil. This will give the ground a nice solid base before you put in crusher run.

Crusher Run and Sand Base

• With the soil compacted, next put in a layer of crusher run that's three inches deep. Bring in the crusher run and spread it over the base. Run the compactor over it, and then rake the crusher run to make sure it follows the desired pitch. Repeat the process until your base is properly graded.

• Rock Solid Tip: If your area has poor soil quality or a lot of roots, it may help to also put down a layer of landscape fabric between the soil and crusher run.
  

  Figure A

• The next step for the base is to put in a one-inch layer of concrete sand. A simple way to ensure a one-inch layer of sand is to lay one-inch metal pipes parallel along the base. Make sure the pitch is correct, then spread out the sand and use a landscaping rake or wooden board to screed the sand up to the height of the pipes (figure A). (Don't worry about the spots left by the pipes after you remove them. You'll fill those in once you start setting brick.)

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