Most patios that look finished are not. The pavers are usually fine. What has failed is the base underneath, the slope, or the joints, and those are all fixable without buying a new patio. The trick is knowing which of the five renovation levels your patio actually needs, because the price gap between them is enormous and the wrong choice fails again within two winters.
Quick price summary by renovation level
| Renovation level | What happens | Per sqft | 300 sqft patio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Refresh | Clean, weed, polymeric sand, seal | $1.20 - $2.50 | $360 - $750 |
| Spot repair | Lift and reset 1 to 6 sunken pavers | $500 - $1,500 flat | n/a |
| Relevel | Lift a settled area, re-screed bedding, relay the same pavers | $6 - $14 | $1,800 - $4,200 |
| Lift, re-base and relay | Remove pavers, dig out and rebuild the base, relay the same pavers | $18 - $32 | $5,400 - $9,600 |
| New pavers on the existing base | Base proven sound, old pavers out, new pavers in | $14 - $24 | $4,200 - $7,200 |
| Full tear-out and rebuild | Demolition and haul, new base, new pavers | $26 - $48 | $7,800 - $14,400 |
| Extend the footprint | New base and pavers for the added area only | $22 - $40 | Per added sqft |
Most companies carry a minimum of $350 to $600 on refresh work and around $1,500 on anything involving base repair, so a small landing will not be priced purely per square foot.
Repair, relay or replace: how to tell which you need
The decision comes down to two questions, asked in this order: is the base sound, and are the pavers worth keeping.
1. Is the base sound?
Lift two or three pavers in the worst area and push a long screwdriver into what is underneath. A good base is 150 mm (6 inches) or more of compacted gravel that the screwdriver barely scratches. A failed base is soft, muddy, full of sand only, or just a few centimetres of stone over topsoil.
- Firm base, shallow dip under 25 mm: the bedding sand has shifted. A relevel is enough.
- Firm base, one sunken spot: usually a washout from a downspout or a failed edge. Spot repair, and fix the water source.
- Soft or thin base across most of the patio: a relevel will last one winter. It needs a re-base. Patios built in the 1990s and early 2000s on 75 to 100 mm of base are the most common example in this region.
- Patio sloping toward the house: always a re-base, whatever the pavers look like. Slope should run 1 to 2 percent away from the foundation.
2. Are the pavers worth keeping?
Faded colour is cosmetic and cleans up better than most people expect. What rules a paver out is structural: surface scaling from salt, cracked units, chipped edges on more than about one in five pavers, or a style you genuinely dislike. Our rule of thumb is that if more than roughly 20 percent of the pavers are damaged, new pavers are better value than hunting for replacements.
3. Can you still buy the paver?
This matters more than people realise. Manufacturers discontinue lines and colours every few years. If yours is gone, a relay using the original pavers is the only way to keep the surface uniform, and any new area such as an extension will not match. A contrasting border or a separate zone in a different paver is the honest design answer to that problem.
What reusing your pavers actually saves
Paver material typically accounts for $5 to $10 of every square foot of a new patio. Keeping the originals saves that, and also saves the demolition and haul cost of $4 to $8 per square foot. On a 300 sqft patio the difference between a re-base with the original pavers and a full rebuild is often $2,500 to $5,000.
Expect 5 to 10 percent breakage during lifting, which a good crew replaces from the edges or from a cut area. Pavers are cleaned of old sand as they come up, and the surface is usually sealed after relaying if you want the colour back.
What drives the price up
- Access. If a skid steer can reach the patio, base work is fast. If everything has to be wheelbarrowed through a 36 inch side gate, labour can nearly double.
- Base depth and disposal. Old base and clay has to leave the property, typically $350 to $900 per truckload.
- Attached features. Steps, seat walls, a border course and a fire pit all have to come apart and go back together.
- Tree roots. Maple roots lifting pavers need careful root pruning, and sometimes an arborist, before the base can be rebuilt.
- Drainage. If the patio is sinking because a downspout dumps under it, that water has to be rerouted as part of the job.
- Soil. Clay across much of Hamilton and Halton needs geotextile and a deeper base, 200 to 250 mm, to stop it happening again.
Upgrades worth doing while it is apart
A renovation is the cheapest moment you will ever have to change what sits under the pavers. Three things are worth considering:
- Correct the slope. Costs nothing extra on a re-base and protects the foundation.
- Run conduit for lighting or power. A length of conduit under the base costs very little now and saves boring under the patio later.
- Resize it. A dining table for six needs a clear area of roughly 3.7 m by 3.7 m (12 by 12 feet). Many older patios are simply too small to use, and extending them during a relay is far cheaper than a separate project later.
Permits and rules
Relaying or rebuilding a patio at grade on your own property does not normally need a building permit in Hamilton, Burlington or Oakville. What can apply: lot grading rules if the work changes how water leaves the property, conservation authority permits on ravine, watercourse or Escarpment land, and maximum hard-surface coverage in some zoning by-laws if you are extending the footprint. Utility locates through Ontario One Call are free and required before any digging. See our guide to landscaping permits in Hamilton, Burlington and Oakville for the detail.
Where the cheap quote is cutting
- "Lift and re-sand" sold as a fix for a failed base. It looks perfect for one season.
- A re-base quote with no disposal line. If the old base is not leaving, new base is not going in.
- No compaction spec. Base should be compacted in lifts of about 50 mm with a plate compactor, not a single pass at the end.
- Edge restraint reused. Old plastic restraint that has already let the edge spread should be replaced with new restraint and 250 mm spikes.
- Regular sand in the joints. Polymeric sand is standard. Play sand washes out in the first storm.
- Sealing the same day. A relaid patio needs to be fully dry before sealer goes on.
How long it takes, and when to book
On a 300 sqft patio with reasonable access: a refresh takes one day plus a return visit to seal, a relevel one to two days, a re-base two to four days, and a full tear-out and rebuild three to five days.
Base work needs unfrozen ground that is not saturated, which in this region means roughly late April to early November. Spring books up first. A September or October renovation is often easier to schedule and gives the joint sand time to cure before winter.
Frequently asked questions
How much does it cost to redo a paver patio in Ontario?
It depends on what has failed. Releveling with the same pavers costs $6 to $14 per square foot, a full lift, re-base and relay costs $18 to $32, and a complete tear-out with new pavers costs $26 to $48. On a 300 sqft patio that is roughly $1,800 at the low end and $14,400 at the top.
Is it cheaper to relay or replace a patio?
Relaying the original pavers is cheaper when they are in good condition, usually by $2,500 to $5,000 on a 300 sqft patio, because you skip new paver material and most of the demolition. Replacement wins when more than about 20 percent of the pavers are cracked or scaled.
Can old interlocking pavers be reused?
Yes, and it is common. Expect 5 to 10 percent breakage during lifting. Pavers with surface scaling from salt or widespread cracking are not worth relaying.
Can I just add sand under my sunken pavers?
Only if the base underneath is firm and the dip is shallow. If the base is soft or thin, more sand buys one season. Probe it with a screwdriver before deciding.
Do I need a permit to renovate a patio in Ontario?
Not usually for a patio at grade. Lot grading rules, conservation authority permits and hard-surface coverage limits can apply if you change drainage, work near a ravine or watercourse, or extend the footprint. Always call Ontario One Call for free locates before digging.
Can new pavers be laid over my old patio?
Not over old pavers. Over a sound, well-drained concrete slab that is not cracked or heaving, thin overlay pavers are an option. Over a slab that is already moving, the new surface copies every fault within a few winters.
When is the best time to renovate a patio?
Late April to early November, when the ground is neither frozen nor saturated. September and October are often the easiest months to book and give the joint sand time to cure before freeze-up.
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Replacing it with natural stone? See 2026 flagstone patio pricing per square foot.