Two materials are in tight competition when creating your patios, driveways, and walkways. Brick and concrete cement pavers both excel in form and function.
One may have a longer lifespan. The other will last under extreme pressure from heavy use. A lot to talk about and lots that you have to know to enable you to choose wisely. Are you going to use brick paver or concrete paver for your cement patio, driveways, and entryways?
Read on!
How to Decide: Factors to Consider when Choosing Paver Materials
You must decide the material for you to use based on the following:
- Style and aesthetic timelessness
- Color combinations and color retention
- Maintenance requirement
- Area size of your flooring
- Labor and time requirement
Uncovering Paver Materials
Now, get a closer look at what paver materials are. Compare cement pavers and brick pavers.
Concrete pavers
Concrete pavers sometimes referred to as cement pavers, are materials made of concrete ingredients. These contain cement, gravel, sand, and water as their bonding agent. Many concrete compounds have added pigments to create decorative materials. And these are often used among floors, walls, and various spaces and pathways.
How to Choose for Paver Design: Concrete Vs. Brick
- Brick paver for color retention
When choosing in terms of the design, experts would recommend that you pay attention to color retention. Sometimes what your eyes are itching to see are seamless, monolith flooring that maintains a vibrant hue. Color retention is both a design and material function that makes top-quality outcomes.
You may not have intricate paving patterns on your patio floors, but the colors stay rich, clear, and clean, then the floors are a true stunner.
So which one has better color retention? Brick pavers have natural pigments. So this makes them the ones with better color properties. Why so?
Brick pavers are made from clay. First, clay has natural warm and earthy colors. That makes it look suitable for outdoor floors as the patio and backyard living rooms.
- Concrete for more design and color combinations
However, in terms of design possibilities, you will have more options with concrete pavers.
Now, a problem you might encounter with brick paver is its limited aesthetics.
If you want more design and color options then, concrete pavers will expand your choices. That is also the reason why many DIY warriors pick concrete materials as their number one!
How to Choose for Material Functions: Innovation and Durability
Several factors make up material functions. These are:
- Innovation
- Durability
- Installation
- Maintenance
- Classic Patio Paver or Innovation for modern-traditional
Brick pavers offer a classic, timeless look. However, if you need innovative materials which give you ease of installation, it’s concrete pavers to have.
- Less Breakable or Less Maintenance
If ease of maintenance is what you are after, brick pavers will do that for you. However, bricks can be tough to maintain in terms of durability. Bricks break easily.
This is where concrete pavers excel above bricks. Concrete pavers may need resealing after a few years to prevent the surface from cracking, thus stop them from breaking.
But you will not worry about it for 20 plus years. Concrete pavers have a smooth surface that makes them repel heavy objects’ impact.
How to Choose in Terms of Cost
And finally, the last factor to consider and the most important one is the cost. Concrete pavers are less costly.
The installation cost for concrete pavers will not make your purse cry coins. It is also the reason why DIY users can easily buy and use it to revamp their spaces. Professionals, too, find it easier to purchase and use concrete pavers, making them close deals with clients with ease.
