Pools & Stonework
Around the water, up the slope and along the line of the yard.
Pool Decks & Coping
Stone that stays cool and does not get slick.
Coping set to the waterline and a deck laid to fall away from it.
What a deck has to get right
- Coping set level and true to the waterline
- Fall running away from the pool, not toward it
- A surface chosen for bare feet in August
- Expansion detail between deck and coping
Deck surfaces
Tones are indicative. Judge real samples outside, in sun, and wet, because all three change how a surface reads.
Pale and naturally cool underfoot, which is why it is common on this coast. A natural stone, so the tone varies piece to piece.
Travertine & Flagstone
Natural stone, cut and fitted on site.
Irregular flagstone fitted piece by piece, or travertine run in a set pattern.
What the work involves
- Pieces sorted for size and tone before anything is set
- Irregular stone cut and fitted piece to piece
- Travertine run in a set pattern, usually a French pattern repeat
- Joints kept consistent across the whole area
Travertine or flagstone
Both are natural stone and both are in their own portfolio. They behave very differently.
Travertine
- Cut to regular sizes, so it lays in a repeating pattern
- Pale and cool underfoot
- Reads formal and calm
- Consistent thickness
- A pattern repeat is visible once you notice it
- Being pale, it shows staining
- Less forgiving of an uneven base
Irregular flagstone
- No two areas look the same
- Sits naturally in a planted setting
- Hides variation rather than showing it
- Slow to lay, because every piece is fitted
- Uneven surface, which suits some furniture badly
- Wider joints to maintain
Solid marks are the case for it, gray marks the cost of it. Both are real; which one wins depends on the property.
Retaining & Seat Walls
Hold the slope, and give people somewhere to sit.
Block walls built with the drainage behind them, capped flat enough to use.
What sits behind the face
- A compacted base course, set level and buried
- Free-draining gravel backfill behind the blocks
- A drain at the base with somewhere to discharge
- Caps bedded flat, level enough to sit on where it is a seat wall
How a wall gets built
The first course takes the longest and decides everything above it.
- 01Excavate and baseDig out behind the line, then a compacted base trench. The bottom course sits below finished grade, not on top of it.
- 02First course levelSet true in both directions. Every error here is multiplied by the number of courses above.
- 03Build and backfill togetherCourses go up and drainage gravel goes in behind as it rises, rather than all at the end.
- 04Drain, then capPipe at the base run to a discharge, then caps bedded on. On a seat wall the cap is the part people touch, so it is set flat.
Fences & Gates
The line around the yard, and the way through it.
Board fence and framed gates, hung on hardware that carries the weight.
Where the attention goes
- Gate posts set deeper and heavier than the line posts
- A braced gate frame, so the leaf cannot rack out of square
- Strap hinges sized to the weight of the gate
- A latch that still lines up when the timber has moved
What the run has to deal with
Tick what applies. It is a list to hand over on the visit, and it changes nothing about a price.
Questions
Questions people actually ask.
Pool Decks & Coping
Which surface stays coolest?
As a rule, the paler it is the cooler it stays, whatever the material. That is the single biggest factor for bare feet, more than the material itself.
Can you re-deck around an existing pool?
That is a question about your coping and your existing deck, and it needs eyes on it. Worth raising early because it changes the scope considerably.
What about salt?
Salt systems and coastal air both matter to material choice and to what is used in the joints. Ask about it specifically on the visit rather than assuming any surface is unaffected.
Travertine & Flagstone
Will the color match the sample?
A natural stone sample shows the range, not the exact piece. Expect variation across the area, because that variation is the reason to choose stone in the first place.
Does it need sealing?
It depends on the stone and where it is going. Ask on the visit what is recommended for the specific material, and what resealing it later involves.
Can flagstone take furniture?
An irregular surface and a four-legged chair are not natural partners. If a dining set is going on it, say so early, because that can change the choice toward a cut stone.
Retaining & Seat Walls
How high can a wall go?
Above a certain height a wall becomes an engineered structure with permit requirements, and that threshold varies by jurisdiction. Get the local answer on the visit before a height is settled.
Can a retaining wall double as seating?
Where the height suits it, yes, and their own work shows walls capped for exactly that. Sitting height is lower than most people picture, so it is worth checking against the level you want to retain.
Where does the drain go?
That is the question to ask, and it should have a specific answer for your yard. A drain that discharges to nowhere is the same as no drain.
Fences & Gates
Is fencing priced like paving?
No, and it is the one trade here measured as a run rather than an area. That is also why the yard planner treats a fence as a length instead of a square footage.
What about a pool fence?
Pool barriers carry specific legal requirements on height, gaps and self-latching hardware. That is a code question for your jurisdiction, so get it answered on the visit rather than from any website.
Will the timber stay this color?
New timber weathers, and it weathers unevenly depending on sun and rain. Ask what finish is being applied and what it will look like in a year.
The rest of the list
Pools & Stonework
Around the water, up the slope and along the line of the yard. Send photos of the space and someone will come and look at it.