Build a patio material order without double-counting

A worked 120 sq ft patio takeoff: pavers, base, bedding, joint sand and edging, with a supplier worksheet.

A patio is several separate purchases, not one area multiplied by a single material rate. This worksheet follows an illustrative 12 × 10 ft rectangular patio. It demonstrates a purchasing process; the layer depths and products still need to come from your chosen installation system.

First identify the paving system

The worked order below is for a system whose specification calls for bedding sand and a compatible jointing sand. It is not a universal shopping list for every patio. Before copying any quantity, obtain the paver manufacturer's installation detail and record the specified bedding, base and joint filler.

CMHA's maintenance guide for permeable interlocking concrete pavements distinguishes those systems from conventional sand-set paving: PICP uses open-graded aggregates rather than sand bedding/jointing and dense-graded bases. Its permeable-paver guide specification also requires project-specific professional adaptation. Those documents explain why the materials differ; they do not select your site design.

What changes in the purchase?

• Specified sand-set system: use the five-line example below, replacing dimensions, materials and allowances with your own.
• Specified permeable system: replace the example's bedding-sand and joint-sand lines with the specified aggregate products. Record each layer separately, including any designed reservoir/subbase and drainage components. Do not buy the example's 21 bedding bags or 3 joint-sand bags merely because the paved area matches.
• System not yet identified: pause the material order. Ask the supplier or designer for the complete section and compatible joint filler. A paver sold as permeable does not by itself establish the whole installation's drainage performance.

For example, two 120 sq ft patios can have the same surface takeoff but different bedding and joint-fill orders. In a permeable design, the surface area alone cannot convert the sand example into the correct aggregate purchase. Use specified layer dimensions in the volume planner, attach the exact material names to the exported quantities, and obtain joint-aggregate consumption from the selected system supplier. Do not reuse a polymeric-sand coverage rate for aggregate.

1. Keep five quantities separate

2. Work the same example in different units

For 8 × 4 in rectangular stones, the area model gives 120 × 144 ÷ 32 = 540 pavers before cuts. A chosen 7% allowance gives 578 whole pavers. This does not establish a feasible border pattern; draw the border and cuts before ordering packs.

If the base footprint in this example is also 120 sq ft and the supplied loose depth is 4 in, raw base volume is 1.4815 cu yd. A 5% handling allowance produces 1.5556 cu yd. A designed extension beyond the pavers must be added to that footprint; it is not hidden in this number.

An illustrative 1 in bedding layer over the same area is 0.3704 cu yd before extra material. At 5% extra, it becomes 10.5 cu ft, or 21 bags at 0.5 cu ft each. Do not use this bedding volume to estimate jointing sand.

At a hypothetical label coverage of 60 sq ft per bag, joint sand needs 120 × 1.05 ÷ 60 = 2.1, rounded up to 3 bags. The rectangle’s perimeter is 44 ft. With every edge restrained and 5% extra, 6 ft pieces give an eight-piece minimum, subject to a workable cutting plan.

Reproduce this as a purchasable order

The five-material purchase worksheet starts with this same 12 × 10 ft example. It adds two explicit supplier constraints: pavers in packs of 100 and aggregate in 0.25 cu yd increments. Those are editable example constraints, not universal supplier rules.

The result is 6 packs (600 stones rather than the 578 individual pieces required), 1.75 cu yd base rather than 1.5556, 21 bedding bags, 3 joint-sand bags and 8 restraint pieces. If a supplier sells individual pavers, set pieces per pack to 1. If no bulk increment applies, set that increment to 0.

With invented prices of $90 per paver pack, $60 per cubic yard of base, $5 per bedding bag, $30 per joint-sand bag, $10 per restraint piece and $85 combined delivery, the entered purchase subtotal is $540 + $105 + $105 + $90 + $80 + $85 = $1,005. This excludes installation, tax and unlisted accessories. It is a material-order example, not the separate installed-area quote example on the budget tool.

Test a change that affects only one material

Set base extension to 1 ft on each outside edge. The base becomes 14 × 12 = 168 sq ft while finished paving stays 120 sq ft. Base purchase rises to 2.25 cu yd; the other four quantities remain unchanged. At the same hypothetical prices, the subtotal becomes $1,035. If all quantities rise together, the wrong footprint has been reused.

Mixed-size pattern packs need a different paver line

The worked shopping list above uses identical rectangular stones. If your supplier sells a mixed-size pattern pack, do not substitute an average stone dimension. Use the pattern-pack worksheet to calculate field area, required complete packs, packaging surplus and pack cost. Subtract a different-product border only when it is included in the total measured area, and order that border separately. Replace the identical-stone paver line with this cost; retain the other materials only if their measured footprints and specifications still match. Never add both paver totals to the same budget.

3. Check where allowances overlap

A loose-volume conversion changes the basis from installed volume to delivered volume. Cut waste handles unusable paver pieces. Packaging surplus comes from rounding to full bags or packs. Keep all three visible: a quoted “10% extra” might already cover one or more of them. Ask the supplier what their number includes before multiplying it again.

4. Reconcile the order with a quote

Write the product name and buying unit next to every number. A quote for 2 tons cannot be compared directly with 2 cubic yards. A pack price cannot be multiplied by an individual stone count. Delivery, minimum loads, disposal, access, tax and installation are separate unless the quote explicitly includes them.

Use the patio budget calculator only after these units match. Put each charge in one line. The same fixed delivery charge should not appear in both preparation and fixed costs.

5. Bring unresolved questions to the supplier

• Does the base quantity use loose or compacted volume?
• Does the bundle cover the border pattern as well as the field?
• Which coverage-chart row matches the joint dimensions?
• Can unopened bags or spare packs be returned?
• Where will the truck unload each material?

Start the quantities with the base planner, bedding sand tool, joint-sand range tool and edging count. These tools share measurements, but their materials are not interchangeable.

Original worked examples by YardTakeoff · Revised October 11, 2026. Method and limitations.