I am working on planning my eagle scout project. It is being done at a local elementary school. Part of it involves building a pathway from their bus area to the entrance so the students don't walk through the grass. The path is about 70 feet long. Would it be cheaper to use cement or to build it out of bricks. Also, which would be easier? Thanks, Johnny.
If you use cement then you'll either have to have a electric cement mixer or a big wheel barrow. then you'll have to continously lift 50 pound bags of mix and rock into the mixer or if it's a wheel barrow then you'll have to mix it by hand with a shovel and use the correct amounts of water for it to cure correctly and not crack or cure at all. But first you'll have to level the ground by hand as I imagine you wont have a bobcat, then you'll have to build 70 foot long forms from 2X4's and reinforce them with rebar so it stays put. Then you'll have to by type 2 base to line the bare ground and rent a compactor to flaten it. Then if your backs not sore enough you start mixing the cement at an estimate of about 2 tons per cubic yard and do all that math depending on how wide and depth time 70 feet to get the estimate of how much your gonna be in debt for buying all this. So is that the easiest way?? HELL NO! thats why people use mixer trucks to pour side walks. Now if I were you i'd use what they call pavers. Those are the decorative flat bricks you see in secret gardens and what not. They come in all types of shapes and some places carry different colors. This will set you back about $.79 to $1.80 a piece and the average paver is about 12 inches LxW and 1 1/2D. These cover area without crushing the bank account. All you'll need is to level the ground of course, order the right amount base which is a sand and gravel mix and rent a compactor. Level,spread,compact and lay. Thats cheaper and easier as well as giving a custom touch to your project. Good luck dude.
Done correctly both require about the same amount of work, but you probably do not want to do cement, you want to do concrete. Cement is the binder that holds the sand and other substances in concrete together. Either brick or concrete will require the right amount of prep work to make sure you get a flat , uniformly thick result and that the sidewalk does not heave or crack due to weather extremes. Since this is an Eagle project you should be talking with a local contractor to learn more so that you can understand your task better and determine which way you want to go. Good luck as you work toward your Eagle award.
Johnny Congrats on almost completing your eagle scout! I know that is a huge honor and it is so generous for you to work at an elementary school and take care of the kiddos (: I would say that it is probably cheaper and more sustainable to build the path out of cement. I have done some research in that field of building and that is what i find best for my wallet and time wise! Best of luck to you!
