Unilock Construction in Naples, FL | Groundwork Construction Co. of Fort Myers
We provide independent Unilock hardscape construction across Naples, from paver driveways and patios to full outdoor living builds. What sets our work apart here isn’t just the Unilock product - it’s knowing that a driveway in Aqualane Shores sits on former mangrove swamp with a water table 18 inches below grade, and that the base design has to account for Collier County’s post-Ian stormwater mandates. Call (844) 638-7249 any time - a real person answers, day or night.
With over 42 years of combined hardscape experience on our crews, we’ve installed Unilock Brussels Block, Richcliff, Umbriano, and Beacon Hill Flagstone across Naples’ coastal estates, gated communities, and older bayfront neighborhoods. We’re not a manufacturer-authorized shop - we’re an independent construction firm that chooses Unilock because the product holds up when it’s installed correctly. The “correctly” part is where local knowledge earns its keep. Unilock sales & service demand a base design tailored to the site, not a one-size-fits-all cross-section printed off a spec sheet.
Why Naples Residents Choose Us for Unilock Service
Derek Hollenbeck, our owner and GC, cut his teeth at Lorenzo Walker Technical College right here in Naples, then spent two decades building across Lee and Collier counties - including Unilock repair in Lehigh Acres - before starting Groundwork. He’s the kind of contractor who walks a Port Royal job site before a single paver gets laid, checking the advisory flood elevation for that specific parcel because he’s seen FEMA maps change mid-project more times than he can count. Our crews show up in uniform, background-checked, and they know the difference between compacted fill that’ll hold a motor court and saturated muck that needs a geotextile-wrapped underdrain.
We lean hard on the 730-Day Done Right Promise - if it’s not right, we make it right, no fine print, no runaround. Upfront pricing means the number you see is the number you pay, and with 0% financing for 18 months and $1,000 off projects over $10,000, a Unilock patio or driveway in Naples doesn’t have to be a budget-buster. Naples service area coverage includes everything from Old Naples to Grey Oaks, and we answer the phone live, 24/7 - not a voicemail black hole.
Common Unilock Construction Problems We Solve in Naples
- Saturated base failure and sinking pavers. Naples’ high water table, often just 18 to 24 inches below grade, saturates standard aggregate bases from beneath. Within 18 months of installation, you’ll see Unilock pavers settling unevenly, especially in older neighborhoods like Old Naples where original CBS homes were built at-grade with minimal site drainage. We lift and re-bed affected areas over an open-graded stone reservoir with underdrain, which stops the pump effect that pulls fines up through the joints.
- Efflorescence bleed on dark Umbriano finishes. Persistent Gulf humidity combined with salt-laden air drives mineral salts to the surface of Unilock Umbriano pavers, leaving a chalky white haze that won’t rinse off. This is exceptionally common on canal-front properties where salt spray is constant. We use a penetrating sealer rated for coastal exposure and, where the efflorescence is already set, a mild acid wash followed by re-sealing - pressure washing alone makes it worse.
- Edge restraint failure in sandy canal-front soils. Naples’ canal-front estates sit on sandy, loosely consolidated soils that don’t hold standard plastic edge restraints. Pavers drift, joints open up, and within a season or two you’ve got a wavy border pulling away from the coping. We switch to aluminum or concrete haunching on every Naples job within 200 feet of a canal or bay.
- Surface scaling from hard well water on Beacon Hill Flagstone. Older Naples estates on private wells frequently have hard water loaded with calcium and iron. When maintenance crews pressure-wash Unilock Beacon Hill Flagstone with untreated well water, the surface scales and pits. We recommend a water-softened rinse or a low-pressure soft wash, and we can refinish scaled surfaces without a full tear-out.
- Stormwater non-compliance in post-Ian rebuild zones. Collier County now mandates permeable paver systems or equivalent stormwater retention on new driveways in surge-zone neighborhoods. Homeowners who install a standard non-permeable Unilock driveway without checking the current advisory BFE risk a stop-work order or a retrofit mandate. We verify parcel-specific flood data before we order a single paver.
Unilock Service in Naples: What Local Conditions Mean for Your Equipment
In Naples’ Port Royal and Aqualane Shores rebuild corridor, a Unilock driveway isn’t just a surface - it’s a stormwater management system. After Hurricane Ian’s 10-to-15-foot surge inundated these neighborhoods in 2022, Collier County updated its land development code to require that new driveways in FEMA flood zones retain the 25-year storm event on-site. That means a Unilock paver driveway here needs a 12-inch open-graded stone reservoir wrapped in geotextile, with a perforated underdrain sloped to a positive outfall or dry well. This isn’t a suggestion buried in a manufacturer’s install guide - it’s what the county plan reviewer will look for on the permit drawings. We recently finished a 2,400-square-foot Richcliff motor court for a new elevated spec home in Aqualane Shores where the garage approach had to sit flush at a 14-foot NGVD elevation. Getting the base section engineered to hold the load while staying compliant meant coordinating with the civil engineer before a single bucket of fill was placed. That’s the reality of Unilock construction in Naples right now - the pavers are straightforward, but the subsurface engineering has to be dialled to the parcel-level flood data, and those maps are still being amended years after Ian.
Unilock Models & Products We Service in Naples
Our Naples crews install and service the full range of Unilock hardscape products: Brussels Block for traditional cobble-look driveways, Richcliff for a more contemporary linear profile, Umbriano for a smooth, fine-grained finish that reads more formal, and Beacon Hill Flagstone for natural-ledge character on pool decks and garden paths. We stock genuine Unilock edge restraints, jointing sand, and sealer locally so we’re not waiting on a truck from the distribution yard when a repair needs to turn around quickly. For repair work on existing Unilock surfaces, we can match color and dimension using current-run pavers - even on a 10-year-old patio, the patina difference blends within a season in Naples’ intense UV, and we’ll pull pavers from a less-visible area to feather the repair if needed.
Unilock Service Pricing in Naples
Our pricing is straightforward and written as a line-item quote - no change orders snuck in after the base is excavated. What drives cost in Naples more than anywhere else in the region is the base design: a permeable system with underdrain adds material and labor compared to a standard compacted-aggregate base, but it’s non-negotiable in coastal flood zones. Here’s where typical projects land:
| Project | Price Range |
|---|---|
| Paver Patio Installation | $3,500 - $11,000 |
| Paver Driveway Installation | $7,000 - $18,000 |
Every estimate is free and includes a site visit to check grade, drainage, and the current FEMA flood panel for your parcel - because a quote given over the phone without seeing the site isn’t worth the paper it’s printed on. Call (844) 638-7249 to schedule yours.
Serving Naples, FL - Our Local Coverage Area
We’re based in the Naples area and know this community well, and we also provide Unilock service in Bonita Springs. Use the map below to see our service coverage - if you’re nearby, we can almost certainly help.
FAQs - Unilock Construction in Naples
Yes - when they’re installed over a properly engineered base. Unilock’s concrete pavers themselves are non-porous and salt-resistant; the vulnerability is always the base and edge restraints. In Naples’ coastal flood zones, we use open-graded stone reservoirs with geotextile wrap and underdrains, which let water move through without washing out bedding sand. A standard sand-set base will fail here inside two rainy seasons. Call (844) 638-7249 for a site evaluation specific to your property’s flood zone.
In most of Naples’ surge-zone neighborhoods, yes - Collier County now requires permeable pavement or equivalent retention on new driveway construction. The specific requirement per parcel depends on the current advisory Base Flood Elevation, which has changed since Ian and may change again as FEMA finalizes its post-disaster map amendments. We verify the BFE for your parcel before we design the base section. It’s the only way to avoid a retrofit order six months after the pavers are down.
Old Naples was built at-grade on compacted fill over former swamp, and the water table sits high - often two feet down or less. Over time, the fines in the bedding sand migrate into the subgrade with every rain, the sand layer thins, and pavers start to rock and shift. Add in tree roots from mature oaks and banyans that push laterally, and you have a recipe for uneven surfaces. We fix it by lifting the affected area, re-compacting the subgrade, and installing a geotextile separator before re-bedding.
Yes. Unilock runs its core color blends consistently, and while a brand-new paver will look slightly different from one that’s had a decade of Naples sun on it, the difference weathers in within a season. On larger repairs, we’ll pull pavers from a less-visible corner of the patio to use in the main field and put the new stock in the corner - it speeds up the blend. We stock the current-run colors locally so we’re not waiting on a special order for most repairs.
Efflorescence happens when water carries soluble salts to the surface of the paver and then evaporates, leaving a white mineral deposit. In Naples, the combination of high humidity, frequent rain, and salt-laden Gulf air accelerates it - especially on darker finishes like Umbriano in Midnight Sky. We apply a penetrating silane-siloxane sealer after installation, which blocks moisture ingress without trapping it, and we recommend re-sealing every three to five years given the coastal exposure. Call (844) 638-7249 for a quote on sealing or efflorescence remediation - estimates are free.
Service Areas Near Naples
Our Unilock crews reach Naples plus Unilock service in Fort Myers, Unilock service in Cape Coral, North Fort Myers, Villas, and Whiskey Creek. We serve gulf-front estates, gated communities, and older in-town neighborhoods throughout Collier and south Lee counties.
Book Your Unilock Service in Naples Today
Ready to put a Unilock driveway or patio on your Naples property? Call (844) 638-7249 - a live person picks up, 24/7, and we’ll schedule a free on-site estimate. Upfront pricing, 0% financing for 18 months, $1,000 off projects over $10,000, and the 730-Day Done Right Promise on every job. We don’t just break ground - we build something worth standing on.
Written by Derek Hollenbeck, Owner at Groundwork Construction Co. of Fort Myers, serving Naples and Southwest Florida since 2014.