how patch a flagstone patio

Hello,
We have a flagstone patio that is still in very good shape. In the middle of it, there is a jacuzzi that we rarely use. We want to remove it, but it sits on a concrete pad. I'd like to get ideas on how to deal w/ that concrete pad.
But first, if you could educate me on how a patio like this is typically built? It has a concrete border. My guess would be base rocks and level sand under it. The concrete pad and border would be resting directly on the dirt.

Can I take out the concrete pad, chisel out the flagstone around the pad perimeter, and rebuilt just that section?
If that is not viable, I was thinking of building a small deck on top to cover this eye sore. In this case I guess I can anchor the deck to the concrete but not on the flagstone.

Thoughts? Thanks a bunch

 

Could the pad be removed sure, not an easy task but possible. The real question is then what? Unless you have a large amount of material left over the chances of finding matching material is not likely. You could consider taking it all out and installing new across the entire surface or as you noted something that would cover the area of the spa.

 

Patios can be built in different ways. You need to examine yours and not assume the stones are sitting on dirt or sand. When there is concrete or mortar around the perimeter and between the stones it is very possible the stones where laid over a concrete slab. If you had sand between your stones it's more likely they were installed over a sand bed. But since these projects are often done by less than professionals you never know for certain what's there without inspecting.

Have you looked underneath the spa? Why do you think it's just concrete? Do you see where the stone was saw cut in a straight line around the base of the spa? It is more likely the stone extends underneath the spa with the spa just sitting on top.

Like Marq1 mentioned. Have you found a source of stone that matches? That should be your first step for without it what are you going to do?

 

Thanks for your input. This color is quite standard and it should be easy to match given there is quite a bit of variation (some are light and some are dark)
How can I inspect what is underneath without breaking it? It is possible the stones sit on a concrete slab because the mortar between the stones has been holding up for 25 years now. I would guess sand underneath would allow for more movement and crack the joints.
The concrete pad of the spa is a straight line. The pad is flush with the stone, thus I don't believe there are stones under it. My guess is they poured the square pad first, then cut and lay the stones to meet the pad.

But I would very much like to know what is under the spa and the stones to better find a solution for it. How would I go about it?

 

No way to know till a portion is taken apart.

 

You can drill a hole if you are experienced enough to know the "feel" of what your drilling through and by what the bit brings to the surface. Other than that you just have to jump into the project and deal with what you find.

If you remove the spa you can then demo the concrete pad. That should give you access to the side of the patio to see it's profile and what layers it's made of.

 

Let's say I remove the pad under the spa. So we think there are just 2 options.
1) the patio is on top of sand. Then I can just chisel out the flagstones around the pad, pour sand and lay new flag stone
2) there is concrete under the flagstones. I think, it's more complicated because it would be one concrete pad and I can't just break it. I would need to grind it down to the same level as under the flagstones before I can fill it with flagstones.
Am I on the right track here?

Thanks