Alternatives to cement for grouting slabs round pond

Make some "shuttering" out of oiled ply clamped to the undersides of the overhanging stones, fill with silicone & dust with sand/whatever. Leave to set, remove shuttering et voilà....

Reply to
Jimk
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We have a small pond with cement slabs round it, I have wire hooks embedded in the grout adjacent to the pond to hold a net to stop herons eating the fish.

Some of the grout is getting a bit decrepit and we're thus losing the hooks so I want to re-grout. Cement is not a 'good thing' in ponds and I'm wondering if there are any alternatives I could use. There's not a lot of bulk required, something stickier and gooier than cement with (maybe) a bit of flexibilty would suit the job well.

Any ideas anyone?

Reply to
Chris Green

I used this stuff to grout between blocks on a mowing strip, a bit pricey but easy to put down and so far it has not cracked and neither have any weeds come through.

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Richard

Reply to
Tricky Dicky

I know a man who does :)

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I also wondered, if it is a small area and you could set the anchors /below/ the pointing, about a sealant (e.g. the grey stuff sold as lead sealant). IIRC is used in some places on paving, and expert has at least one example - movement joints

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Reply to
Robin

Yes, like lots of others, a "sweep in" grout. I don't think that's going to work too well in my case as the paving stones overhang the pond in places.

I'm really after something that is pointed into place in a gooey state, i.e. like a strong cement mix but a bit stickier.

Reply to
Chris Green

Excellent, thank you, I can now go and "read all aboout it"! :-)

Reply to
Chris Green

Well I've had a good read and I can't really see a product that fulfils my requirements. They're aimed at being quick and easy to do standing up. I can't really use anything that involves spreading the stuff around and sweeping it into the gaps (whether wet or dry) as too much will go into the pond.

What I want is close to a cement mix but with greater adhesion and 'gooiness'. :-)

Reply to
Chris Green

Silicone sounds like the obvious. Throw some mortar (or other matching masonry) dust on it when still wet to make it look part and parcel...

Reply to
John Rumm

Further reading of the Paving Expert site suggests to me that maybe what I want is a conventional cement mix with some SBR additive, it sounds as if this might do what I want.

Does anyone have any experience of pointing paving with SBR added to cement?

Reply to
Chris Green

I've not used them but FWIW I didn't see why they /have/ to be swept in. I can't see what would go wrong if one used them on hands and knees with a pointing trowel. (Well, apart perhaps from back and said.)

Reply to
Robin

I hadn't seen that about overhang when I suggested hands-and-knees with a pointing trowel. Seems to me to strengthen the case for silicone.

Reply to
Robin

That may stop them eating the fish, surprised that it stops them killing them through the net though ...

Reply to
Andy Burns

It does seem to work pretty well, I guess it stops them standing in the water too. We certainly have a lot of fish now (rather too many really!).

Reply to
Chris Green

Screw the hooks into some kind of plastic which has more surface area to be used to hold it in place? Brian

Reply to
Brian Gaff (Sofa 2)

The usual alternative is sand epoxy mix, not cheap though. Bitumen gets used occasionally.

NT

Reply to
tabbypurr

Any particular recommendations? It sounds ideal for my requirement especially as I don't have any ordinary cement at the moment so SBR plus cement would be as costly (and more inconvenient) than a 'one item' filler like this.

I've found quite a few possibles with a search for epoxy + grout but I'd appreciate some pointers.

Reply to
Chris Green

The trouble with grouting between slabs is you need a reasonably sloppy mix in order to get right down into the gap especially if you are talking about those Indian sandstone pavers with the bevelled edges. If you have a slight overhang can you not push something thin under the edge of the slabs or even a bit of PU foam just to stop whatever you are using from dripping into the water. Once the grout is set it will stay put.

Richard

Reply to
Tricky Dicky

That's what I did originally if I remember (it was many years ago that I laid the slabs), I stuck masking tape or some such under the overhang and pointed above.

I just think something with a bit more adhesion than plain cement is required to 'glue' the slabs together a bit.

Reply to
Chris Green

I don't have enough experience with them to recommend one. Just don't make the classic mistake of thinking you can add a bit more sand & get away with it. Epoxy is expensive, sand cheap, they don't contain any more epoxy than is needed.

NT

Reply to
tabbypurr

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