ᐅ Experiences with the Herringbone Pattern for Laying Patio Slabs

Hello everyone,
we had to tear down our old terrace and are currently rebuilding it.
Due to negative experiences with the previous construction method, we decided against a concrete foundation and want to install it on gravel instead. We have already found nice 80x40cm (31x16 inches) slabs.
Our preferred laying pattern would be with staggered joints. Our contractor mentioned that the risk of the slabs shifting and settling would be higher with this pattern.
I don’t understand why that is. Could someone explain?

What are your experiences with staggered joints? Would you recommend it and install your hypothetical next terrace the same way?

Best regards, xola

xola123 schrieb:

I don’t understand that. Why is it like this?

This is less a technical issue and more an aesthetic one. With large tiles featuring cross joints, even the slightest inaccuracies become immediately noticeable and are quickly perceived as disturbing. Installing them on a gravel bed makes it nearly impossible to achieve a perfect finish, and complaints from picky customers are almost guaranteed – even if it’s after two years, when a few ants have settled in. As a tradesperson, I wouldn’t just advise against it, I would refuse to do it.

We recently discussed this here.

Terrace slabs on gravel must only be installed with adjustable pedestal supports. There will always be some movement. The gravel bed should not be more than 2cm (about 0.8 inches) high; otherwise, there will be even more movement, and so on.

We have crossed joints on our panels. No problems!