# Dubai is completely covered with paver stones. Why? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [December 28, 2010, 11:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dubai-is-completely-covered-with-paver-stones-why/565593 "2010-12-28T11:53:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![ThelmaLou](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thelmalou/32/390_2.png) [@ThelmaLou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThelmaLou)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2013, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dubai-is-completely-covered-with-paver-stones-why/565593/42 "2013-10-25T17:06:10Z")
> [@russian\_heel](#): > > I am a paver installation instructor, and despite USAs love affair with asphalt and cast in place concrete, segmental concrete pavers have been the first choice of pavements the world over except in the United States…\…They are the soccer of the paving world: accepted across the globe except the United States. Like national health care. \ ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [October 25, 2013, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dubai-is-completely-covered-with-paver-stones-why/565593/43 "2013-10-25T18:20:48Z")
> [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > The modern way to lay paving stones: > > [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SJT3X4weECE](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SJT3X4weECE) Whoever selected the music for that video is much more impressed by that machine than the rest of us are. ---
**Author:** ![Precambrianmollusc](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/precambrianmollusc/32/63_2.png) [@Precambrianmollusc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Precambrianmollusc)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2013, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dubai-is-completely-covered-with-paver-stones-why/565593/44 "2013-10-26T15:46:03Z")
> [@XT](#): > > You definitely don’t want to use salt water in your concrete mix, especially if it’s reenforced concrete. They would have to use fresh water to be up to code in the US anyway. Even brackish water wouldn’t work. > > -XT Oddly you can’t use the sand either. The sand arrou d Abu Dahbi and Dubai is high in salt , sulphur and clay, all of which are really bad for construction. They import silica sand from Saudi and washed sand from Oman or Ras al Khaimah. The reason older concrete buildings ( if there are any left there now) are falling down is due to the poor quality sand used. ---
**Author:** ![justrob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a9adbd/32.png) [@justrob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/justrob)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2013, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dubai-is-completely-covered-with-paver-stones-why/565593/45 "2013-10-26T23:29:17Z")
> [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > The modern way to lay paving stones: > > [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SJT3X4weECE](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SJT3X4weECE) > [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > You’d think they would have found a way to automate that by now… While interesting that is still pretty labor intensive. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2013, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dubai-is-completely-covered-with-paver-stones-why/565593/46 "2013-10-26T23:34:24Z")
> [@justrob](#): > > While interesting that is still pretty labor intensive. You ever watch how many guys it takes to lay asphalt? ---
**Author:** ![TBG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@TBG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TBG)\ **Post date:** [October 26, 2013, 11:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dubai-is-completely-covered-with-paver-stones-why/565593/47 "2013-10-26T23:37:34Z")
> [@jz78817](#): > > there’s one or two streets in Detroit (Marlborough is the only one I’ve seen) that is still red brick paved. And last time I went down it it was practically the smoothest road in Detroit. A smooth road in Michigan? I thought those only existed in fairy tales. ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2013, 12:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dubai-is-completely-covered-with-paver-stones-why/565593/48 "2013-10-27T00:11:03Z")
> [@ThelmaLou](#): > > Like national health care. > \ Metric system. \ ---
**Author:** ![justrob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a9adbd/32.png) [@justrob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/justrob)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2013, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dubai-is-completely-covered-with-paver-stones-why/565593/49 "2013-10-27T00:15:52Z")
> [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > You ever watch how many guys it takes to lay asphalt? Yeah but they are doing more asphalt in a day. Reading another site on that paver machine says they can do 400 square meters of 18 foot wide roadway per day. ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/46a35a/32.png) [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_T-Bonham.net)\ **Post date:** [October 27, 2013, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dubai-is-completely-covered-with-paver-stones-why/565593/50 "2013-10-27T00:55:34Z")
> [@justrob](#): > > While interesting that is still pretty labor intensive. But it’s _unskilled_ labor. All they are doing is putting the pavers into process the chute – considerably less skilled than manual setting pavers. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dubai-is-completely-covered-with-paver-stones-why/565593.md?page=2)