I live in Texas and I put in a flagstone floor in a 350 gallon stock tank pond for the wife's turtles. I used your method and it turned out very nice. Thank you for all you have taught me about masonry. I've done block work brick small slabs and stone work around the house. it's become a new hobby. I couldn't have done any of it without your instructions.

Thanks for these videos, you're a master. Inspiring me to build something like this. -Guy from TN

Its people like you that makes me enjoy every year of age. All the things we get the opportunity learn as we age

I have a new respect and appreciation for this kind of craftmanship in stonework. I had no idea how much skill went into flagstone patios. Beautiful result. Thanks for making this video.

Layed my first flagstone patio yesterday. I'm glad that I learned how to do it the right way, from watching KZfaq videos from "dis guy". It came out great in Colorado, mid October. Thank you Mike!

Just about finished with a complicated flagstone patio/fire pit. No chance it would have come out like this without your help and your videos. My wife said she wants to send you a thank you a Christmas card. I told her she should have your T-shirt and coffee mug in the picture for all your help. Thanks Mike!!!!!

Thank you so much Mike. I recently bought a old house here with a stone foundation and I was so worried about it, until I've watched almost all of your videos now and I'm way more confident in all stone work and I can't wait to try my hand at repointing! Its amazing to me that you're able to take these super old stone structures and patios and with a little bit of work, bring them back to good as new. Much appreciated sir!

Mike, due to your videos I just refinished the exterior foundation on a customers home that is going up for sale. There were a bunch of spots where the surface failed from water getting in a fracture, freezing and pushing the surface off. I used your methods and constant statement of wet it first before adding material and before I knew it the whole foundation was smooth again. After letting it cure I primed and painted it all and the home owner was thrilled. Prior to finding your videos I would have told them to find a mason but decided to try it myself. So THANK YOU Mike, you're a good teacher.

Mr Haduck, Thank you for your videos. I started watching them a couple of years ago. I have now done several tile and stone jobs. You inspired me to get out there and do it!

I enjoy your videos Mike! I did a lot of masonry in England and loved it. I moved to Canada 22 years ago and am Leary of doing a lot up here, had flagstone blow apart that was laid for me in the past, it's a shame because I love the look but our climate is harsh like yours, we are 2 hours north of Toronto, cheers Mike!

God Bless.... Awesome video Mike and thank you so much for taking the time to share it.

Mike, thank you so much for this tutorial. I am about to try this technique for the first time on an old cement pad that a shed was on. I thought it would be good practice. Your spotter stone and joint technique answered a lot of what I was wondering about. Thank you so much for taking the time to make this video. I will let you know how it turns out!

thank you Mike for all your Videos. I have learnt so much watching you. I am about to finally build my first home, and I am trying to do it myself morgue free. I have so many skills to learn, and your a fantastic teacher. I am big fan of the old school ways that where built to last. I am slowly collecting mason tools, and I am looking forward to trying my hand at this amazing art.

Thank you Mike for the great video. I'm up in Canada with weather like yours. Had problems with my patio and now I know why. Beautiful work you did on that patio.

is a pleasure learning from you and watching you ,thank you for passing your trade

Thank you for posting the video. Very helpful and educational. I live in cold climate and your technic is the right one for me.

Your're a very good teacher.

I have my student here Ronney, he owes me money.. Oh man that line cracks me up everytime 😂 All the best Mike!

Thanks Mike for another great video...................

Wow,..I've watched this video 4 times, i think i can do it out back,, to some degree, thank you for providing confidence to the world.

Thank you Mike for your informative video. I build retaining walls with large blocks and have done some flat work laid in sand. I enjoyed listening to you and watching you laying stone with cement. Best wishes to you and yours.

Hi Mike, I've just ran across your channel and I've been watching some of your work and humor, I think you're a stand up guy, very honest and down to earth, I like your style. I'm a Tennessee guy myself but we think along the same lines when it comes to building and doing work. I'm not a mason but I've worked at it doing things for myself most of my life I'm almost 60 now, I'm a machinist by trade so I respect any professional craftsman that knows his stuff. Thanks for your contributions to so many including me.

Beautiful work Mike! Your advice about marrying everything together seems to be the only way to go in freeze/thaw climates like we get in the Eastern US & Atlantic Canada. The fewer cold joints the better.

Mike looks like Harrison Ford always great demonstrations and informative thanks for all education

Lovely job Mike... You can't beat a Stone Pencil.... Love it.. We use them too..👍

Thank you Mike! Beautiful job 👍👍👍

Thank you very much for sharing this. My dad and I will be putting in a Blackstone patio soon and this has been very helpful and gives us encouragement. God reward you!

Excellent video, thank you for the detail and explanations. I needed this for a flagstone job I'm going to do for myself on the westcoast in Canada.

Old school at work. Good stuff, looks great.

Hey Mike, I live in western Oregon, where we usually have mild wet winters. I originally talked to local masons, and used their practices. Then I tried your techniques. My earlier work develops cracks and I'll probably have to redo some of it. Since I've been doing things as though I lived in the northeast, my work has held together completely. Thank you! On a side note, my neighbor hired a contractor to put in some concrete in front of her garage. There's a downhill slope to the garage, so drainage is particularly important. The contractor, who's been working around here for about 40 years, didn't put any level lines in; he just checked around a few spots with a short level. Then he had to go back and clean up the spots where he put the level. He also put a seam in, so the water doesn't flow. It was kind of a comedy to watch. The garage fills with water and my neighbor is trying to get him to replace it. So, that bit about seeing what local contractors do is bunk.

Good job Mike, it's nice to see construction techniques in other countries. When I did landscaping (in England) we would lay a 3" sub - base of semi - dry concrete, 8 parts ballast(20mm stone down to fines) with 1 part O.P.C and lay the stone on a wet mix (think bricklaying muck consistency) of 5 parts soft sand and 1 part O.P.C. It was very hard work! But I learned my lesson with the sub - base, and when I went to work for myself, I used a sub - base of crushed limestone scalpings and compacted it with a wacker plate, much easier! All the best.

Looks great. I'm glad I live on the west coast as this is very labor intensive

I do them the same as you Mike that's the way I was taught that's the way I do it and if a customer tells me how to do it I wave goodbye as I'm driving away I can be funny like that . Another great job Mike quality as usual 👍 Dave from Wales

Thanks Mike, I learn a lot about what is much better to do , specially if depends on the weather on the place. Here in Virginia it’s raining a lot and snow once a year.

Definitely has the knack and ability to teach. Love the videos

You’re a good teacher

Lovely, Mike!!

That's a fine job you did Sir. It came out great👍

Very beautiful work ! Love it

Nice Job Mike thanks for the experience!!!

Working on your knees all day long is ha-a-a-ard work!! Such a beautiful job. I have a lot of respect for masonry workers.

Excellent presentation. Thank you. Well done.✌️❤️🪨🗿

great job. every video just is a pleasure to watch

great video Mike you make it look so easy!

Beautiful work Mike.

You are great man God bless you I learning from you🤠 thanks mike

Very informative, great work!

Another great video Mike!

Great Work - Perfect Patio Mike!

Man that patio looked good. I was surprised to see you doing it with snow on the ground but you explained the reason for that. Here in England the weather aint great either so mansons here would joint up as they go just like you do in Pennsylvania Mike.

Mike, that stone work looks real good. Nice half inch joints.

Looks great, well done sir.

This is an amazing video...thank you!

That is a very pretty patio.

Excellent. Very helpful. Thanks. God bless.

I love the God and gravity comment too. Mike i would be your student any day. Just came back from camp up in Cook Forest this morning, if you know where that is, and was glad to see another mike haduck video. I totally understand the freeze thaw thing, we get the same type of weather over here in western pa. Thanks again buddy.

Thank's for all the info!!!

nice job. a little like putting a jigsaw puzzle together!!

Top job mike.

Thanks so much for guidance on this!

Looks Great 👌

great teaching mike! thanks.

Good job Mike old school Mason are the best!!!!!

Different strokes for difficult folks.! But great job on the patio sir.!

Up here in New Hampshire it's always below freezing! Thanks.

Great video Mike, I have been travelling to the USSA for years now and i always wondered why they did not do more wet lay than what i seen, they always told me it was the freeze thaw affect but your system seems to work which i think is perfect. Kind Regards johnyboy

thank you for the information

great vid! thanks

Nice one Mike

I take something away from all of your videos. Nice work. Thanks

Good stuff.

Thank you.

Thank you!

Beautiful Work! Also...I appreciate your opinion re: everyone does it a bit different depending on area, etc. We learn from one another. Thank you.

I've been a builder for 48 years, mainly in Arizona, Cal., Nev., (recently retired) could have used you on my projects - Good masons are hard to find. My experience was 99% commercial however I did build a few homes for my clients occasionally- Google 9401 Kings Gate Ct, Las Vegas, NV ( my most recent and last residential project). The mason I used on this house - reluctantly (owners friend) was a nightmare - had to make him re-do most of his work. There is no substitute for a craftsman like yourself who may cost a little more up front but in the end you get what you pay for.

Old school is a lot more work but the end product shows your right. Great job but people have no idea how hard this work is on your body.

Mike Haduck Masonry Expert & Stone Work Artist.

Thank you

Nice job

Well done

Love your videos Sir! You have a student in East Tx.

thanks for passing your wisdom

Здраствуйте.очень полезная информация.Спасибо

Good job

thanks alot for passing all your knowledge :)

Making joint stick to base is best, though we see your point...some make theirs with joints after like moasiac tile type

Hi Mike. Your videos are my new favorite videos to watch on KZfaq. You have a natural gift for teaching. I have a question- Do you prefer laying flagstone on a concrete pad like you are doing or a wet bed on crushed stone? I live in PA about 2 hours southeast if you.

i really really love your stone work, its got a very distinct look, im curious if you went back over those joints your buddy worked on. i wish you were a bit closer to las vegas nv.

Nice .

thanks

Good old mike.

Hey Mike...Thank you so much for your videos.. You give me the beginner the confidence to do this...I am going to do a stone pathway through my property. I have two questions.1. how wide should the path be? Do you really need a concrete pad for a path ? 2. How deep should the cement base be before you ;lay the stone? I live in Ontario Canada the weather can get 30 below in the winter.

Hi Mike, Thanks for posting these videos. Straight forward easy to understand. Humble guy just sharing his way of doing things. Excellent. I am in the central BC Canada region, dry hot summers, minimal rain and winter lows of up to -15 maybe 20. My question is, do I need to pour a concrete pad or can I use sand and gravel for a base? thanks!

Big money job right there

I am taking a break this very moment after doing joints between the flagstones. I decided to do the joints separately because I wanted them to be a different color. What a laborious job doing the seams separately is. I think I put twice the amount of cement into the joints, and then depended on my sponge from my cousin's bed mattress to clean up the excess. For me, what a laborious process. My sponge gets instantly dirty, had to keep rinsing the water bucket, it gets dirty fast, and I must have cleaned the joints/stones 10 times each so far. So right now I have the joints cleaned up at the right level and I just have to clean the film off. I only did 1/3rd of the seams. I also sacrificed a couple of towels to soak and put over the stones, the sun makes them too hot.

When i was a young guy, about 400 years ago lol my boss was a bloke that learned his trade in the 1920's. When we pointed the joints in stone walls, he would impress on us the need to work the mortar into the edge of the stone when bagging off. If we left a ledge on the edge of a joint he would make us bag it again to get rid of the ledge. He grew up in the mid north of South Australia were severe frosts would freeze the water in the pipes. He said small ledges collect water and when it froze, blows the edge of the joint away. He told us that bagging a wall was more than getting rid of trowel marks and looks. It sealed the wall and brought the lime to the surface, so it sealed the wall from water ingress. He loathed concrete lintels, portland cement in masonry work and steel bars and angles. As the years have gone by, i now know why he didn't like these things. He always said that they put far too much portland in mortar, and thats why it cracks, as it resists movement. He was a clever man, gone now but i am trying to teach a lot of the old ways to my mates 15 year old son. He loves getting mortar all over himself, same as me at his age lol.

This guy seems to do great work. The patio looks really good. I don't appreciate the multiple messages about how "every "mason" uses their own technique" That is definitely true when speaking of different hemispheres, but that doesn't change the chemistry involved. Some of the "techniques" this guy uses are proven to not withstand the test of time.

Great video. Your opinion is appreciated.

Do you have a video that explains the various stone, purpose, cost, etc? I was thinking of maybe going to the local river and loading stones up and using them, but I have no idea how to make them flat, or if that’s even a good idea.

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