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It’s possible to pour concrete if the temperatures are expected to dip below freezing at night, but you need to take some special precautions before you do. Most importantly, you need to make sure your concrete won’t freeze, so the best thing to do is enclose the area and heat it. You should also make sure you’re using cold-weather concrete that’s designed for pouring in cold weather. Use accelerants to help speed up the curing process and avoid cold temperatures from resulting in weak concrete.

In most cases, you’ll want your patio to be 4 inches thick, although you should add reinforcement and increase the thickness up to around 8 inches if you want it to support heavier loads and resist cracking more readily. Although thicker slabs will cost more, you’ll start seeing diminishing returns at around 6 inches.

You should put gravel that is 3/4 to 1 inch under a concrete slab. However, depending on the project, local building codes may dictate the proper gravel size and shape. Some concrete slabs that do not hold significant weight may have a subbase of sand. Also, keep in mind that the subbase you choose will affect the cost of your concrete patio, walkway, or driveway.

Deciding between concrete, stone, or brick pavers comes down to your budget and the ease of installation. Concrete is the least expensive material, followed by brick and then natural stone. Concrete pavers are also the easiest to install, but bricks are relatively easy as well. Stone pavers require more time and labor because their natural shapes make them harder to fit together. Professional stoneworkers, however, are able to shape them as needed.