I have been quoted £950 to clean and seal 35 sq metres of back yard 15 ye ars old. Has anyone had this done and if so is it a good lasting job afterw ords. Wife wants the slabs replaced and was wondering if cleaning does brin g the slabs back to life.
Wash and seal with what? Did they come to your doorstep?
Just has a quick google,
10 Lt of K-SEAL total patio covers 50 to 70 sq metres, cost less than £70 including 10 Lt of detergent and other bits/
What is going to be used to clean the paving by the company you got a quote from, and how are they going to do it?
£950 seems a bit steep to me.I have about 2/3rds of what you have and I cleaned mine using bleach or Jeyes fluid, then a pressure washer. I didn't seal them afterwards, as that is only a temporary fix to stop weeds etc. My block paved drive was sealed by the company who laid the blocks, and it only lasted a couple of years at most, before moss and weeds started to show between the blocks.
I've just had about 25 sq metres of block paving pressure washed and re-sanded (but not sealed) for £220. It comes up like new and lasts a couple of months! The weeds are already sprouting in the joints.
My mum had a smaller patio and she used a gadget sold by Lakeland to clean between the blocks. Basically a rotary wire brush on a handle (thinks; angle grinder with wire brush, all gaffer taped to a broomhandle). Then a scrub down using Jeyes fluid solution and a stiff broom. It always looked neat and tidy.
I was just thinking they obviously don't want the job. The one problem some notice is that if the slabs are coloured, its usually not that thick, and after 15 years blasting with pressure washer might result in a kind of mottled mess. Brian
This is a DIY forum. Go out and buy a pressure washer, ?200 But get the best you can afford, makes the job a lot quicker. Pressure wash it once a year. It looks loke new afterwards.. It is black algea growing on the surface. Mostly grows in Winter so do it in the Spring. Also gets the weeds out,
The sealant doesn't last long especially if you have to drive over the same spot all the time. Looks like shit when it has worn off in tramlines.
The sealer doesn't stop the algea but makes the paviours look brighter colours. Ie like when they're wet.
You wont stop the weeds, after time the soil washes down the cracks and seeds geminate in it. I think one has to be realistic here, and say, even if completely re made you only get a short break from having to kill weeds. Nature fights back!
Brian
For the weeds, put down some salt in winter. Salt can be free depending where you live. Knocks back 90% of them. Failing that it.s weedkiller once a year.
I used an engineers file and ground the pointed (handle) end to a sharper point, then taped it up good 'n proper to a broom handle with the pointed end facing down. Scraped the weeds out and then a slosh over with some Jeyes Fluid. Now they look like new, even.
+1
Brian,
When I was laying them in our garden, the colour was absolutely 100% right the way through. You could see this very clearly wherever they needed to be cut. Of course, it might depend on make and the specific range of blocks used.
Have used pressure washer and patio cleaner every other year to clean the patio / yard. The cold caller said his steam washer and sealer would bring it up like new I was just wondering how that could make 15 year old paving slabs look like new.
Run.... Have you ever seen Rogue Traders?
In message , Nick writes
Somewhere, in the last few days, I've looked at a device which looked like about a 2' long stick with a wire brush on one side and a little metal scraper on the other side both at the far end.
I picked it up, saw the price and thought I could make one myself.
It might have been in Aldi. Ooh it was
The only situation where a steam or hot water washer gives better results is where grease,oil or fat is involved. The heat would make no difference when cleaning slabs.
Anyone tried this?
The one reviewer seems to be less than impressed...
"Bought two bags of this to replace the sand in our block paved drive. Had previously power washed the whole area so needed to put kiln dried sand in. Purchased the much more expensive version with the weed inhibitor added to it. Within eight days (!) of spending the whole afternoon brushing this in I had weeds coming through. Absolute waste of money - DO NOT BUY!!"
If you are up for a bit of fun you may like to tell them that you, or a member of your family, are making a documentary on house renovation and might like to video their work. See if they come back.
I've even had itinerant, travelling, gardeners disappear when they saw that the garden was overlooked with CCTV.
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What ratio mix of beach/water have you fond to be effective?
Mike
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