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CGI Driveway & Pavers: The Fresno Owner’s Guide
We install, replace, and repair CGI-compatible driveway and paver systems across Fresno, with most full driveway installations running $7,000 – $18,000 depending on square footage, base prep, and paver style. We keep common CGI paver profiles and edge restraints on the truck, so if you’re dealing with a cracked unit, a sunken section, or a failed edge, we can usually address it the same visit. The way most Fresno homeowners discover a problem is gradual: a paver that rocks underfoot near the garage, a low spot that holds water after sprinklers run, or an edge course that’s started drifting toward the lawn.
Which CGI Models This Applies To
CGI manufactures concrete pavers in a range of series and finishes, and the compatibility question comes down to three things: unit dimensions, thickness, and surface profile. Most CGI driveway pavers run 60mm or 80mm thick for vehicular use, while patio-grade units are typically 50mm. If you’re replacing a single broken paver in Fresno, matching the thickness matters more than matching the color at first glance; a color difference fades over two or three seasons in the Central Valley sun, but a height difference never settles out.
Here’s the compatibility gotcha we see regularly in Fresno: CGI changed the chamfer profile on several paver lines about eight years back. An older paver and a new paver from the same nominal series can sit side by side and still show a visible lip where the edge bevel doesn’t match. When we do a partial repair, we try to pull match units from an inconspicuous section of the same driveway and lay new units there, then blend the donor area with pavers that read the same from standing height. It’s a small thing, but it’s the difference between a repair you notice and one you don’t.
For the OEM-versus-aftermarket decision: CGI’s own units are what we specify for driveway work, because the aggregate blend and pressing method are consistent, and in Fresno that consistency matters. Our summers hit 105°F and our winter mornings drop below freezing; the thermal expansion cycle is real, and a paver that’s slightly off-spec in density will show spalling at the edges within a few years. We also stock aftermarket polymeric sand brands like Gator Maxx and Techniseal for joint stabilization, and those we’re comfortable recommending by name because the performance is well documented. When a homeowner asks us to match a discontinued CGI color, we can usually source factory seconds or leftover lots through our supply partners in the Fresno area, though it sometimes takes a week or two rather than a day.
One more note for full transparency: Elmstead Remodeling Fresno is an independent service provider. We’re not affiliated with CGI, and we don’t represent ourselves as a factory service center. We work with CGI product because it’s widely installed in Fresno neighborhoods like Woodward Park, Fig Garden, and Clovis-adjacent subdivisions, and we’ve learned its quirks the long way.
Styles & brands we work with
Signs Your CGI Driveway & Pavers Is Failing
- Rocking or wobbling pavers near the garage or walkway. This almost always traces to base erosion underneath, usually from water getting in through a failed joint. In Fresno, sprinkler overspray is the usual suspect; the base washes out slowly and the paver loses support.
- Low spots that hold water after rain or irrigation. A properly compacted base settles evenly, so a local dip means a void is forming. Left alone, the dip widens and the pavers above start to crack under vehicle weight.
- Edge restraints pulling away or disappearing into the lawn. Fresno’s expansive clay soil moves with moisture, and a plastic edge restraint that wasn’t staked properly will migrate. Once the edge lets go, the outer pavers follow it within a season.
- Polymeric sand joints turning to dust or washing out. Joint sand is what locks the pavers together. When it’s gone, each unit works independently, and the driveway starts behaving like loose gravel with extra steps.
- Cracks running through multiple pavers in a line. A single cracked paver is usually an impact or a flaw in that unit. A crack running a straight line across six or eight pavers means the base has shifted underneath, and that’s a structural repair, not a paver swap.
See the difference
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After
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AfterReplacement Cost & What’s Included
For a full CGI-compatible paver driveway installation in Fresno, plan on $7,000 – $18,000 for a typical two-car residential driveway. That range covers excavation of the old surface, 4 – 6 inches of compacted base rock, bedding sand, the pavers themselves, edge restraints, and polymeric joint sand. On the lower end, you’re looking at a straightforward tear-out and re-lay with access for equipment and no grading surprises. On the upper end, add a larger footprint, steeper grade, a Circle Drive pattern, or poor soil that needs heavier compaction and possibly a geotextile separating layer under the base.
Partial repairs run smaller, obviously: resealing and re-sanding a driveway is $250 – $700, and a paver driveway replacement, where the old surface comes out and new units go in over a reconditioned base, lands $5,000 – $14,000 in most Fresno neighborhoods. Every bid we write includes parts, labor, base material, haul-off of debris, and the cleanup. You’ll see a written line-item price before any work starts, so there’s no math happening after the crew arrives. The workmanship carries our 365-Day Done Right Promise: if something isn’t right after the job is done, we make it right.
DIY or Call Us?
Paver work doesn’t carry the same danger as high-tension springs or electrical panels, but it does carry a different risk: a DIY paver repair that looks fine for a month and then settles is a repair you’ll pay for twice. What you can safely check yourself: Is water pooling anywhere after rain? Are joints washing out? Is an edge restraint visibly loose? These observations help us diagnose faster, and they cost you nothing.
What goes wrong when owners try it themselves: they replace the visible broken paver without fixing the base underneath, they use the wrong joint sand (play sand compacts like candy, not like stone), or they skip the plate compactor on the base because renting one is inconvenient. We’ve re-done enough of those in Fresno to know the pattern. If you’d rather have it matched and compacted right the first time, call us at (559) 540-8453 and we’ll send someone out to look at what you’ve got.
FAQs
A properly installed CGI paver driveway in Fresno typically lasts 25 – 30 years with basic maintenance, though the joints will need re-sanding every 3 – 5 years. Our dry summers and mild winters are kinder to pavers than freeze-thaw climates, but the UV exposure does fade lighter colors faster than coastal areas. Call (559) 540-8453 if you’d like us to assess the remaining life in your existing driveway.
A single cracked paver is usually replaced, not repaired, because concrete doesn’t bond cleanly enough to hide the repair line. If the crack came from an impact, a matching replacement usually solves it; if it came from base settlement, replacing the paver alone won’t fix what’s underneath. Call us to look at the crack pattern and we’ll tell you which situation you have.
Most paver driveway replacements in Fresno take 3 – 5 working days from tear-out to final compaction, weather permitting. The base preparation and compaction are what take the time; laying the pavers themselves is the fast part. We’ll walk you through the schedule before we start so you know which days the driveway is unavailable.
We keep common CGI driveway paver profiles and edge restraints in our Fresno stock, so smaller repairs are often same-week. Full driveway replacements with nonstandard colors or patterns usually require a 1 – 2 week order window, and we’ll confirm the lead time in your written bid. Call (559) 540-8453 and we’ll check stock for your specific series while you’re on the phone.
Written by Graham Stein, Owner, Elmstead Remodeling Fresno at Elmstead Remodeling Fresno, serving Fresno and nearby areas.
