Just ripped out 1,400 sq-ft of defective Belgard concrete pavers around the pool. Starting fresh with outdoor porcelain pavers (large format 24"x36"), dry laid on 1/4" clean chip (called HPB)... picture attached. These outdoor porcelain pavers are 3/4" thick and non-interlocking and are spaced apart using regular 1/8" tile spacers. We have spacers down in the bottom of the joint and also the removable X style in the top just during the install. Using the HIDE skimmer covers and will be abrasive waterjet cutting the opening this week so it should be perfect 
I'm really pondering whether a conventional expansion joint is truly needed at the pool coping. I've left a 3/8" gap along the coping with the intention of doing the backer-rod & self leveling caulk, but in my mind this type of paver deck can not exert even a fraction of the force on the coping that an interlocking 2-3/8" thick concrete paver deck could. The porcelain is just floating on top of the bedding layer which is self draining (not sand or stone screenings that just hold water).
I'm located in Pennsylvania so we do go through the whole freeze-thaw cycle. Would it be very bad practice to just fill that 3/8" joint with polymeric sand and call it a day? I don't have a winter safety cover so there's not going to be any forces trying to pull the pavers into the coping. I'm trying to avoid the constant maintenance that is required on expansion joints if truly in this particular application it's not really needed.
Thanks for any input anyone can provide!
Bryan
I'm really pondering whether a conventional expansion joint is truly needed at the pool coping. I've left a 3/8" gap along the coping with the intention of doing the backer-rod & self leveling caulk, but in my mind this type of paver deck can not exert even a fraction of the force on the coping that an interlocking 2-3/8" thick concrete paver deck could. The porcelain is just floating on top of the bedding layer which is self draining (not sand or stone screenings that just hold water).
I'm located in Pennsylvania so we do go through the whole freeze-thaw cycle. Would it be very bad practice to just fill that 3/8" joint with polymeric sand and call it a day? I don't have a winter safety cover so there's not going to be any forces trying to pull the pavers into the coping. I'm trying to avoid the constant maintenance that is required on expansion joints if truly in this particular application it's not really needed.
Thanks for any input anyone can provide!
Bryan
