Chamfer

The chamfer is a defined shape, not a loose description, and ICPI's glossary gives it an angle and a usual width.

ICPI defines a chamfer as "A 45° beveled edge around the top of a unit usually 1/16 to 1/4 in. (2-6 mm) wide." The same entry lists what that small bevel does: "It allows water to drain from the surface, facilitates snow removal, helps prevent edge chipping, and delineates the individual units." The snow removal line is ICPI's own item in that list, written for the trade generally rather than for any one climate. The Brick Industry Association adds a further benefit for clay pavers with chamfered edges: it says the bevel "enhances drainage by channeling water away from the surface, which can improve skid resistance."

ICPI's own application guidance treats the chamfer as part of the target, not an obstacle. It says "Sealers are often applied with a foam roller to dry pavers having clean surfaces and chamfers", and that the sealer "should be spread and allowed to stand in the chamfers, soaking into the joints." Whether joint sand goes in before the sealer or after it is a separate step, and SEK-Surebond's order for it is set out under how paver sealing works.

Joint sand height is set against the chamfer, and the line is a ceiling rather than a target. SEK-Surebond's technical bulletin says joint sand "should not exceed the bottom of the chamfer", a maximum, not a height to fill up to. Maker literature also calls the chamfer a beveled edge. For a non-beveled or tumbled paver surface SEK-Surebond gives a different ceiling, covered at are tumbled pavers cleaned differently. The chamfer sits alongside other paver vocabulary for laying patterns and setting beds, such as running bond, sand-set and mortar-set.