HOme improvement

The items used with home renovation products are mostly common materials such as stones and sand. One special product used by several of them is geotextile fabric. This is a tough plastic sheet material with many holes. It is buried in select locations to stabilize the soil. Stable soil can make installations of landscape and renovation products more permanent. However, geotextile fabric is not required in all situations.

Code and regulatory status

The landscape products are generally not tightly controlled by building codes or departments in small projects. Paving and low-height retaining walls have little direct influence on life safety issues. Therefore, with a few exceptions they are not covered in building codes and not closely inspected. Instead, the satisfaction of the customer is the control on methods and materials.

Architects and engineers

On most small projects, the landscape contractor does the design and selection of materials. On higher-end and larger projects, there is frequently a landscape architect that makes these decisions. Today most good landscape architects are very familiar with concrete products. They have become important tools for creating attractive and usable grounds for a building.

Engineering is rarely necessary for a small landscape project. It is often required for tall retaining walls. However, these are rare as part of a small building project and are not covered here.
Maintenance and repair

One of the major advantages of concrete landscape products is that they typically remain intact, functional, and attractive for the life of the building with little or no maintenance or repair. There may be some need for upkeep of certain decorative surfaces to maintain appearance, as discussed in the appropriate chapters.

Sustainability

Concrete landscape products can contribute to sustainability of a building project in important ways and help qualify for certain Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) points.
One environmental contribution possible with concrete paving is that it can reduce unwanted runoff of rainwater. Large volumes of water flowing over the land can cause erosion. They can carry materials and substances to downstream locations where they are unwanted or may accumulate in toxic concentrations.