How to Install a Brick Walkway With Mortar

Lay out the walkway path with two parallel ropes set 4 feet apart, plus 6 inches for the forms. Trace over the ropes with landscaping paint.

Set the bricks over a section of the walkway to figure out the pattern you want to use, like a diagonal herringbone or basket weave. Mortar hardens quickly, and you'll waste important time if you don't know exactly how you want to set the bricks once mortar it mixed.

Dig out the walkway site until it is 8 inches deep. Tamp the soil at the bottom with a tamper so it doesn't shift beneath your feet. Stabilizing the soil improves drainage and strengthens the foundation.

Lay 3 inches of aggregate evenly over the foundation and tamp it.

Line the interior walls with two stacked 2-by-4 inch wood boards. Fasten the boards together with screws and a drill. The boards will shape the wet concrete until it hardens and hold the bricks in place as they set in the mortar.

Mix the concrete with a pre-made mix and water until you have a spreadable, thick mixture.

Pour the concrete from one end of the walkway to the other end. As you pour, have a helper use a gauge rake to spread it evenly along the sides and low areas. Drag a 5 foot straight-edge across the top to smooth and level it out. Wait two days for the foundation to dry.

Mix mortar with a mortar mix and water so the consistency is slightly thinner than the concrete. Spread a ½ inch of mortar over your first section of concrete with a trowel, and lay enough to lay four bricks at a time. Set the bricks so they are pressed against each other as closely as possible.

Lay a clean board over each section of bricks and force it down into the mortar to level the bricks with each other. Continue to set the bricks until the walkway is complete.

Wait two days for the sidewalk to set. Pour stone dust or fine sand over the walkway and brush it between the bricks to pad them.