Interlocking concrete pavers are seen by many as the best material for home landscaping projects including driveways, patios and walkways. Interlocking pavers come in many different sizes, shapes, and colours. They are durable, secure, and relatively easy to install. Despite all of these positive features, like anything else in your landscape, it will need occasional repair and maintenance. Here is a guide to keeping your concrete pavers performing and looking their best.
Sealers
Covering the surface of your pavers with a sealer can help to preserve its colour while reducing surface staining and damage that can happen over time. Typically, resealing your pavers every two to three years is sufficient. You should thoroughly clean and sweep the surface before administering the sealer. Depending on the range of your patio, you can use either a sprayer or brush or sprayer. There are numerous commercial paver sealers on the market to choose from. If you are uncertain, you can ask an expert to make a suggestion based on their knowledge of the characteristics of your particular purchase.
Polymeric Sand
Many landscapers consider polymeric sand to be the best substance for walkways and patio joint sand. The combination of binders with natural sand helps it stay in tight spaces in pavers. It strengths the overall pavement arrangement while discouraging the growth of weeds, the presence of ants, and the common pests of patio sand. Polymeric sand lasts much longer than conventional joint sand, decreasing your overall time and money spent on maintenance.
Ideally, you used polymeric sand during the initial construction of your patio or walkway. If not, once the original joint sand starts to disappear, you can repair your patio by replacing it with polymeric sand. A jet spray or pressure wash from a hose can wash out most of the former sand. After everything is dried, you can sweep polymeric sand into the paver joints. You will need to carefully must the entire surface so that the sand settles, and sweep extra sand into any cracks and holes.
Edge Repair
After a long Toronto winter, it is not unusual for pavers surrounding a patio edge to start to shift out of place. Often, the metal or plastic edging dislodges. To fix this:
- Lift the edge pavers
- Re-stake the edging for proper alignment
- Replace the pavers and add a little more sand under as needed, so the surface is even
- Sweep polymeric sand into the joints
Resetting Pavers
Sometimes, one or two pavers in the middle of a patio or walkway sink or rise above the other pavers. When a part of the surface is irregular, repairing it is not as difficult as you might think. The toughest part is removing the uneven paver. Though there are specific paver extraction tools, a couple of flathead screwdrivers and some old-fashioned elbow grease will typically work just as well. Here’s what you need to do in this case:
- Remove every paver that needs to be reset
- Add small quantities of sand to the foundation as necessary to make the surface level
- Be sure to compact any added sand
- Replace the pavers and stamp them in position
- Sweep polymeric sand between the joints
These are the necessary paver repairs you are likely going to need now and then. A few hours of work once or twice a year is ordinarily all that is required to maintain your interlocking concrete pavers in excellent condition. If you are ever uncertain about the best way to go about a repair, talk to the experts at Ampac Paving & Concrete. As a Toronto paving company, our staff can answer any of your residential paving or commercial paving questions. Call us today!
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