Hardscaping & Patios in McHenry, IL

Pavers, Retaining Walls, Walkways, Fire Pits & Lighting

Landscaping Pros McHenry designs and lays paver patios, garden walks, block retaining walls and backyard fire pits for homeowners and businesses across McHenry, IL and neighboring communities. We also put in outdoor kitchens, pergolas, edging and low-voltage landscape lighting, and we repair patios that have sunk, heaved or worn. We're licensed and insured, and we clean up fully before we leave.

Hardscaping Services We Offer

• Paver patios: concrete pavers, clay brick or natural stone laid over a compacted gravel base
• Walkways and steps: front walks, garden paths and stoops that join the patio to the house and drive
• Retaining walls: segmental block or stone walls for slopes, raised beds and seat walls
• Fire pits: in-ground wood-burning pits, and paver pads for portable fireplaces
• Outdoor kitchens: grill islands and counters built on a paver or stone base
• Pergolas and arbors: shade over a patio, or a frame for climbing plants over a path
• Edging: clean borders between lawn, planting beds and paving
• Landscape lighting: low-voltage path, step and wall-cap lights
• Paver repair and sealing: lifting and relaying sunken sections, refilling joints, cleaning and sealing

Paver Patios Built for Northern Illinois Winters

A paver patio lasts as long as the base under it. The paver industry's construction guide, published by the Concrete Masonry & Hardscapes Association (the group formed from ICPI and NCMA), calls for at least 4 inches of compacted aggregate base under patios and walks on well-drained soil, compacted to at least 98% of standard Proctor density. It also says that in colder climates, soils that stay wet or weak need a thicker base. The pavers sit on a nominal inch of screeded bedding sand, they're compacted in, and the joints are swept full of sand. An edge restraint holds the outer course, and the surface slopes at least 1.5% so meltwater runs away from the house.

Frost goes deep here. McHenry's adopted residential code lists a 42-inch frost line and rates the area for severe weathering, and a long-running Illinois State Climatologist study found the deepest observed frost reaching about 30 inches in the far north of the state. Ground frost in northern Illinois generally sets in by late November and lasts until mid-March or early April. The same industry guide says base material shouldn't be laid frozen or over frozen soil, so patio building here runs from spring thaw into late fall.

Soils change from one lot to the next. Around McHenry you'll find silty loess over loamy glacial till on the moraines and till plains, mainly stratified sand and gravel in the Woodstock Moraine, and wet, peaty low ground in the Fox River lowlands. We set the base depth once we've dug and seen what's underneath, and on wet silty or clay subgrades the guide allows a geotextile under the base.

Retaining Walls and Seat Walls

Segmental block walls hold back a slope with their own weight. The industry's retaining wall guidance says unreinforced segmental walls can typically be built to about 3 to 4 feet, and lower on poor soil or where a drive or slope above adds load. Taller walls are reinforced with geogrid layers tied into the soil behind them; the installation guide sets each layer's length at no less than 60% of the wall's height and never under 4 feet. Height is measured from the top of the leveling pad, buried courses included.

Drainage keeps a wall standing through spring thaw. The installation guide calls for a leveling pad at least 6 inches thick, clean crushed stone at least 12 inches deep behind the block, and a drain pipe of at least 3 inches at the base. Terraced walls are set back at least twice the lower wall's height so each one carries its own load. McHenry's permit fee schedule includes a line for retaining walls over 4 feet. The City's sight-triangle rule also bars solid walls, hedges and fences over 2½ feet within 30 feet of a street corner, measured along each street line, and within 10 feet of where a driveway meets the street.

Fire Pits and Outdoor Fireplaces

A fire pit turns a patio into somewhere to sit after dark from spring through fall. We build in-ground wood-burning pits in stone or block, and paver pads for portable fireplaces.

McHenry's fire pit rule: City Code section 6-7-5 allows recreational fires on private property. A permanent fire pit has to be dug into the ground with a gravel, stone or dirt bottom below grade, an above-grade ring of stone, masonry, metal or another noncombustible material, and an open area no more than 48 inches across and 24 inches deep, surrounded by a noncombustible barrier. Portable fireplaces must sit on a hard, level, noncombustible surface such as concrete or paver bricks. Only seasoned dry firewood may be burned, an adult has to stay with the fire, and a connected hose or extinguisher must be on hand.

The code sets no fixed distance from the house; it bans any fire close enough to a building or flammable material to cause a fire hazard, so we site pits with clear space around them. Gas fire features and new outdoor circuits come under the fuel gas and electrical codes the City has adopted, so gas and wiring are handled by licensed trades with permits where required.

Outdoor Kitchens and Pergolas

An outdoor kitchen starts with a level, well-drained base that can carry the weight of block, stone counters and a grill. We build grill islands and counters on paver or stone footprints laid out to suit how you cook and where the smoke drifts. City Code allows outdoor cooking fires in a permanent fireplace, a portable grill or another appliance designed for cooking, used as its maker intends.

Pergolas and arbors give a patio some shade and somewhere for vines to climb. McHenry's zoning table allows arbors and trellises in any yard and patios in rear, interior side and court yards. Detached accessory structures in residential districts are generally limited to 17 feet or one story and kept at least 3 feet from lot lines. The code doesn't name pergolas, so we confirm the rules with the City before building one. Add windows or screens and a permanent roof to a patio and the City counts it as part of the house, which changes the rules that apply.

Walkways, Steps and Edging

A front walk or garden path takes the same care as a patio: the same 4-inch minimum compacted base, edge restraint and slope for drainage, scaled to the route people actually walk. We build walks from the drive to the front door, paths through planting beds, stepping-stone routes across the lawn and stoops at back doors. McHenry's fee schedule lists private walks with steps and stoops, and any paving on a public sidewalk or street needs a separate permit from the City's Public Works director.

Edging is the finishing line between lawn, beds and paving. A crisp border in stone, brick or steel stops grass creeping into beds and keeps mulch off the patio.

Landscape Lighting

Low-voltage lighting makes steps, paths and wall caps safe to use after dark and lets a patio stay useful into the evening. We place path lights along walks, step lights in risers, and wall-cap lights on seat walls and retaining walls. McHenry's outdoor lighting ordinance exempts single-family homes except where glare or light spilling onto another property is apparent, so fixtures are aimed down and shielded away from neighbours. A new outdoor outlet or circuit for the transformer generally needs an electrical permit from the City.

Permits, Floodplain and Drainage

Who signs off on a patio depends on where you live. Inside McHenry city limits, the City's fee schedule lists retaining walls over 4 feet, private walks with steps and stoops, driveways, decks, gazebos and electrical work; it doesn't list patios, so we check with the City's Community Development Department before starting. In unincorporated McHenry County, the County's code exempts from a building permit retaining walls no more than 4 feet tall that don't hold back extra load such as a driveway, and patios that comply with its Unified Development Ordinance and Stormwater Management Ordinance.

Lots near the Fox River and the Chain O'Lakes need a closer look. The City treats paving or grading in a mapped floodplain as development that needs a floodplain development permit, and work in a floodway is referred to an engineer and may need Illinois DNR approval. McHenry is a County-certified community, so the City administers the McHenry County Stormwater Management Ordinance inside city limits. A stormwater permit is needed for, among other things, any work in a flood hazard area or work that hydrologically disturbs 5,000 square feet or more.

Where runoff is a worry, permeable pavers are worth a look. University of Illinois Extension says permeable surfaces let rain and snowmelt soak into the ground, which helps cut flooding and improves water quality, and it says it's typically best to bring in a consultant to help with the design. For grading, drain lines and planting around a new patio, see our landscape design and installation service.

Digging Safely Around Buried Lines

Every dig starts with JULIE. Under Illinois law, buried utilities have to be located and marked ahead of any excavation, however small or shallow the job. The request goes to JULIE by calling 811 at least 3 but no more than 10 days before work begins, not counting weekends and holidays. Patios, walls, fire pits and lighting trenches all count.

Gas lines, buried electric and irrigation pipes are common under suburban yards, so we wait for the locate marks before any excavation begins.

Winter Care, Salt and Paver Repairs

Salt choice matters on pavers. The paver industry's guidance names rock salt as the least damaging de-icer for concrete and advises against products containing magnesium chloride or calcium magnesium acetate. McHenry County's water resources team suggests shovelling first and using only enough salt to break the ice's grip; salt works best above 20°F and won't break the bond below 10°F. The paver industry also advises sweeping up leftover salt and sand once the ice has gone.

Pavers that have sunk, rocked or lifted can be fixed without starting over. We take up the affected section, rebuild and recompact the base, relay the same pavers and refill the joints. Faded or weedy patios can be cleaned, re-sanded and sealed. For lawns, beds and everything else around the patio, see our page on landscaping in McHenry.

Typical Hardscaping Prices

These are typical prices from current cost guides, using Chicago-area figures where they exist and national guides elsewhere. Suburban contractors often price paver patios toward the upper half of the range. We'll price your own project on a free site visit.

Hardscaping & Patio FAQs

Questions homeowners ask us most before a patio or wall goes in.

Still have a question?

Call (815) 827-⁠1515 and we’ll talk it through.