Pressure Wash & Sealing Pavers and Concrete
April 7, 2010 by admin
Filed under California Pressure Washing Blog
Prepping the pavers before you seal is important. You want to make sure that there is no dirt, stains or foreign matter laying on the surface. If you are doing a pool area you will want to make sure that there are no chlorine residual/stains around the pavers located near the water edge.
When cleaning, you will want to apply low pressure due to the fact that you do not want to ‘blow out’ the sand in between the pavers when washing. If it is a small area that you are sealing I would recommend just going with a hose rinse and a broom to agitate the dirty areas and rinse again.
Once you are finish prepping you will want to get a leaf blower and dry the pavers as much as possible. If you leave any “puddling” of water and apply the sealant to it will “gum up” and leave a milky residue.. So ensure that you dry ALL areas. Don’t worry if a little bit of the sand in between the pavers “lift out” from the leaf blower. Keep in mind you want to keep the tip of the leaf blower far enough from the pavers so that you don’t “Push” too much of sand out but close enough to dry the pavers as quick as possible. Keep the leaf blower moving side to side and never keep it focused on just one area. You may have to make a couple of runs up and down the area you want to seal to ensure that it is dry but it is worth the time and it is important that you do this.
I use Seal ‘n Lock Systems out here in California. Water sealants are easier to work with vs. lacquer sealants. The only draw back to water base vs. lacquer is that water base sealants tend to fail sooner than lacquer. You can get a good year out of water base sealants (depending on the climate). Lacquers will give you about 18 months to 2 years ~ depending on the climate.
The application process is the same for both water and lacquer. You can either roll it on or spray it on. Either way you will want to avoid any puddling on the surface. Keep a sponge handy to “blot” up the puddling.
I recommend sealing during midday or early afternoon. You get the “shiny” look from water base sealants when the sun hits it directly. If you apply water base sealants when it is cloudy you will not get a “shiny” look. The appearance will be dull looking. Whatever product you use please make sure you read the recommended temperature for applying. If you apply water base sealants and the temperature is too cool, you will get a milky white result on the pavers.
Lacquer sealants are more expensive but do provide a unique characteristic in which you do not necessarily need the sun to get that “shiny” look. Working around water (pools) you will need to be careful when spraying around the pools edge. Lacquer in the water is not a good combination and it will ultimately affect the pool filter system if you have too much over spray that goes into the pool. With lacquer you will also have to be mindful of the vegetation near the paver area. Cover the plants. As mentioned you can either roll it on or spray it. Spraying it can cause a little bit of a problem as the lacquer can and will ‘gum” up at the tip of the sprayer. Keep the tip clean at all times.
For both Water base and lacquer, your spray pattern should be at a ‘heavy to moderate mist”. No straight streams. Side to side when you spray and make your sweeps even and overlap. Have a second person with you. His job is to roll the sealant as you spray. Go to a local hardware store and purchase a roller for smooth surfaces. You don’t want a heavy nap when rolling sealant. Screw the roller on a painter pole and have another person roll and you spray.
Never walk on the wet sealant. You will leave a boot mark. So if you see a leaf or twig fall on the area that you still have wet sealant on:
1. carefully walk over to it if it is only a step or two away and pick it up. Try to retrace your steps back. Immediately mist the area that you walked on with sealant and then roll it.
2. Wait until the sealant dries and then go over and pick it up.
With water base you will want to add a second coat. On the second application go “light” on your mist. You do not need to go heavy with the second application. Same rule applies with the roller like the first pass. Have your helper roll behind you. The key here is to make sure no puddling occurs.
You helper that is rolling should set the pace on how you two proceed across the pavers. If you are the one spraying let the individual that is performing the rolling to set the pace. Both of you should know when you are going too quick or too slow. It takes a few jobs but once you have a few under your belt the process of sealing should be natural.
If you have weeds growing in between the pavers then there is an additional step to consider prior to sealing your pavers or stamped concrete..
Depending on the growth and how much is there, you will need to determine whether or not you can pull the weeds by hand. If you can do this you will also pull out the sand along with when the roots come out. Try to keep the sand intact as much as possible.
If the there is a considerable growth of weeds between the joints of the pavers then you may have to go use a weed eater to remove the weeds. Simply tilt the weed eater sideways and edge out the plants. This may kick up all mores sand in between the pavers. If you just weed eat you run a very high risk of leaving the plants roots intact. To kill the weeds totally please consider applying a weed killer such as Round Up. Spray it in between the pavers and make sure you add a liberal amount. Make your Round-Up and water ration 2:1.
Remember you will be cleaning the pavers during the cleaning step and this requires water. You don’t want to dilute the round-up anymore than you have to. The sand that you “kick up”, try to save a handful of it because you will need to go the local landscaping supply store or wherever and get the exact same kind that is in the pavers.
Once you are done with this. Sweep up any excessive sand on the pavers and proceed to the cleaning phase as described above.
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admin on Tue, 27th Apr 2010 9:47 am
Your comments are greatly appreciated. Thank you for visiting the California Pressure Washing Blog!
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StingRay on Tue, 31st Aug 2010 9:10 pm
Great information. Hope you can answer a question. After reading your info on Water Based vs Laquer Sealers, I like the wet look laquer provides around my pool. However, I already sealed the pavers with a water based sealer a few moths ago. Can I apply a laquer sealer or am I stuck w/the water base? Also, my local Home Depot sells a “High Gloss” water based sealer. Thoughts?
admin on Thu, 2nd Sep 2010 4:26 pm
StingRay…Thank you for your compliment. As it relates to your question you can apply the lacquer sealant onto what you already have. Please ensure that you do a thorough first. It is important to remove/clean any all foreign matter on the surface…regardless of they type of sealant you use.
The High Gloss sealant from Home Depot fails within a year of applying and I do not recommend that product. Home Depot’s High Gloss will start flaking and your surface will turn white in areas. If you are located in the Bay Area I can recommend several places to order/purchase the correct sealant to apply. Hope this information is helpful
StingRay on Thu, 2nd Sep 2010 8:14 pm
Thanks for the quick reply. I’m in South Florida….Also, I forgot to ask one other question. I have what they call Artistic Pavers which has a somewhat smoother surface. I had to replace a few of the “tiles” pavers and they have never been sealed. After cleaning them (acid?) should I apply a coat of the same sealer I used a few months ago and then reseal again so that they blend in better or will that be a waste of time. Thanks again.
admin on Fri, 3rd Sep 2010 9:17 am
If you are in South Florida then I recommend using Seal N Lock, this is what I use. It is a water based sealer but stands on it’s own and is a TOP NOTCH Sealer. http://www.sealnlock.com/
Rich Colletti is the President of the company and feel free to give him a call at 813.545.1200 and let him know that Carlos from New Look Power Wash sent you over.
Without seeing the actual new tiles/pavers I would think that you could clean up the tiles with a mild soap/water and scrub brush. You do not need to use the old sealer for blending purposes.
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Gus Barres on Mon, 8th Nov 2010 7:38 am
Great article. I’m dealing with Rich @ Seal&Lock. I think I will be incorporating his product into our business. You mention a water base sealer last 1 year to the 2 years of lacquer. Seal&lock is water based and comes with a 2 year warranty. Is that a good testimony to how long the product will last? What has been your experience with this product?
admin on Mon, 8th Nov 2010 9:36 pm
Hi Gus. I have been sealing for many years and have tried many different sealers that promise the world but under deliver. Certainly the warranty of 2 years on residential from Seal N Lock is attractive to potential customers. From a contractors approach I enjoy the ability of using Seal N Lock on any given day. It doesnt matter if weather is overcast…you can still apply it. Traditional water base sealers highly recommend that the sun be out and shining brightly for the High Gloss to have it’s maximize impact. This is not the case with Seal N Lock. I have put this stuff down when the sky was nothing but clouds. Another component to Seal N Lock is Rich’s customer service. I can’t count the many times when I would call him on the drop of a dime for technical support and he would always spend the necessary time on the phone to walk me through some of my questions. He has in the past even gone as far as saying it is okay for the customer to call him should they have any questions regarding his product. Hands down…it is my product of choice. I have yet to have a customer contact me and complain about this product!
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Steven on Fri, 11th Feb 2011 4:47 pm
This is a great article! I am always intersted in sealing practices and products. Thanks again.
admin on Fri, 11th Feb 2011 7:33 pm
Thanks Steven…..you do much sealing?
Steven on Thu, 17th Feb 2011 7:55 pm
Actually, I do a fair amount. It is mostly in the exposed aggregate and the decorative concrete area.
admin on Mon, 21st Feb 2011 11:19 pm
Steven,
Nothing wrong with that…we do alot of stamped concrete cleaning and sealing also out here. Do you favor a particular sealant brand?
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