Edgings for pavements come in all sorts of shapes, sizes and materials.
The reasons for using an edging are manifold, but usually include one or more of the following...
- To restrain the paving, keeping it in place - as with block paving
- To create a step up or down between the paving and another surface
- To create 'check' that keeps traffic on the driveway
- To allow garden soil and/or turf to be kept separate from the paving
- To keep vegetation/weeds out of the paving
- Purely Decorative
Edgings can be broadly divided into one of four different classes...
BS Edging Kerbs
- - as used for driveways, public footpaths, etc.
Decorative Concrete Edgings
- - shaped and/or coloured for gardens, drivesways and patios
Strictly speaking, these items should be classified along with road kerbs, as they are specified and described in the same British Standard and are laid in the same manner. The vast majority are manufactured from naturally-coloured wet-pressed concrete, although some of the 'Round-Tops' are manufactured from cast, vibrated concrete and are not quite as tough as the wet-press kerbs
Decorative Concrete Edgings
There are possibly hundreds of different decorative edgings available today. Some are pressed, most are cast, some are only 600mm in length or even less.
They should be laid on a concrete bed when used to restrain paving, if they are being used in a garden, with no vehicular loading, they could be laid directly on earth, or on a minimal bed of sand and cement.
Clay Tiles
- - naturally coloured and often decorative. For gardens, patios and driveways
Clay Tiles and Kerbs
Tiles:
Clay edging tiles were popular from the mid 19th Century up until the mid 20th century, but nowadays, there are very few manufacturers and the main source of these charming items are the architectural salvage yards. Some of the more popular designs, such as the Rope Top (aka Barley Twist) are now replicated in concrete.
They are usually 9" (225mm) in length, and 6" (150mm) deep, but there is a good deal of variation, in size, as well as in colour, finish and pattern. Some patterns are unique to a specific region - in some cases, to a particular town, as they were manufactured in local brick kilns and would not have been transported more than 10 or 20 miles.
Traditionally, they were used as simple path or garden bed edgings and would be laid directly into the soil, with more soil packed behind to hold them in place. Nowadays, they may be used as true retaining structures and when used to contain a driveway of patio, they should be laid on and haunched with a concrete. Use of a dry-mix concrete ensures they don't become irretrievably bonded to the concrete and can therefore be salvaged and re-used again at some future date.
Kerbs:
Clay kerbs are a more modern product, although some do date back for 100 years or more. They have become more widely used with the growth in popularity of clay brick paving, which they are made to complement.
Many of the modern clay kerbs are made to match or replicate BS kerb profiles, such as half-battered or bull-nosed, although there are a few original or unique designs still manufactured.
These items are typically laid onto a bed of concrete and haunched with same. Although they are sometimes laid butt-jointed, they often look better with a tooled mortar joint.
Other products
- - other materials that doesn't fit in above
Other Edgings
All sorts of other items can be used as edgings, with varying degrees of success. The end use of the proposed edging will determine the suitability of any given product.
Some of the alternative edgings for block paving can be used quite successfully as garden, lawn or paving edgings, and a Sawtooth Edging is a simple and effective option for gardens and patios.
Edging
Add that finishing touch with kerbs or edgings to contrast with, or complement your driveway, path or patio.