Simple Pavers Patio Repair and Restoration in Plymouth

Before

Repair, Cleaning, and Sealing of brick pavers patio brings new life

This simple pavers patio in Plymouth, MI was restored this past summer to the delight of the homeowner.  Once left for dead due to neglect and many years of winter frost damage, this brick pavers patio still had enough life for us to bring it back to its original beauty and performance.

So many of our clients believe there is no hope for repairing and restoring their brick pavers patios, walkways, and driveways but hope can happen and we are just the company to perform this magic! 



 

Before

The biggest selling point about brick pavers is that we can in most cases re-use the existing pavers.  With repair & releveling, cleaning, re-sanding joints, and sealing these brick pavers, we can bring back from the ashes the appearance and strong structure that once graced the outdoor living space. 

 

AFTER

Performing this brick pavers restoration requires experience and more expertise than an original installation.  The challenges for a qualified brick paver contractor are numerous and should not be put in the hands of a handy man or landscaper.  Nothing can replace knowledge and experience when it comes to brick paver repair, cleaning, & sealing. 

Brick Paver Driveway Repair and Restoration

Repair, Cleaning, and Sealing of Pavers Driveway

This past week we performed brick paver repairs and restoration, cleaning & sealing, to a pavers driveway and entrance in St Petersburg, Florida.   This pavers driveway and entrance was installed about 7 years ago but never had any routine pavers maintenance performed.  The homeowner was becoming concerned about the appearance and performance of their brick pavers.The paver repair areas were minor so we were able to reset the brick pavers in a few hours.  The biggest pavers maintenance issue that needed to be addressed was cleaning, re-sanding the paver joints, and sealing of the

brick pavers.


This brick paver driveway had a lot of hard water rust stains from the irrigation system.  We were able to get great results cleaning these hard water stains. Other stains, like oil and grease, were reduced but complete removal is very difficult or cost inhibited.  The best approach to these oil & grease stains is replacement of the brick paver itself.  During the cleaning process, we removed most of the paver joint sand that had been compromised by dirt, debris, vegetation, and moss/ mold.

After cleaning the pavers surfaces and paver joints, we re-installed new paver joint sand.  After tedious sweeping, blowing, and joint touch ups, we applied a generous coat of Seal 'n Lock sealer to give the brick pavers a high quality protection and appearance to this brick pavers driveway.  The customer wanted a "matte" non-gloss, non-slippery finish that would further protect the brick pavers from weathering & etching.  It is highly recommended to have your brick pavers cleaned & sealed every 2-3 years for long-term performance & protection.  The improved visual appearance of the brick pavers is the best benefit for most customers. 

Keeping your brick pavers on a routine pavers maintenance program will insure a life time of performance and enhanced appearance.  Most customers are not educated by the brick paver installer or contractor as to the pavers maintenance needs.  In most cases, the first repair and restoration service we perform costs the most due to the current adverse conditions of the neglected brick pavers. Routine pavers maintenance over the future years should cost less as long as you keep on a 2-3 year pavers maintenance program. 

Pavers Patio in St Petersburg gets Cleaning & Sealing

Brick pavers patios, driveways, pool areas, and entrances require some yearly maintenance

Our most popular brick pavers maintenance request is cleaning and sealing of neglected paver patios, driveways, and pool areas in the St Petersburg, FL.  We often see excessive mold & mildew, joint sand

in paver joints eroded and void, and the over taking of joints from organic matter like weeds & grass.
 

Over time if the paver joint sand is not addressed, filled & stabilized by sealer, slow erosion from extreme Florida rains will begin to effect the performance of your brick pavers installation.  As surface water runs down the open joints, it will slowly erode or undermine the base below the paving stones. Keeping paver joints filled will allow the water to run over the top of the paving stones, not between them!  Open joints also are a safe haven for weed, grass, & moss growth if not filled & stabilized by sealer.  When the base material below your brick pavers begins to erode, the paving stones will settle by sinking or shifting.


Routine brick paver maintenance will insure the long term appearance and performance of your brick pavers installation.  Cleaning and re-sanding paver joints can be done anytime when needed.  Sealing of your brick pavers patio, driveway, pool areas, entrances, etc.. should be on an every 2-3 year program to help protect the surface of your brick pavers and help stabilize the paver joints.

Pavers Driveway Cleaning and Sealing in Bradenton, FL

Brick pavers repair, cleaning, joint sanding, and sealing restores some original beauty!

This past week we completed a pavers driveway restoration project in Bradenton, Florida. Like most brick pavers in the St Petersburg, Bradenton, Lakewood Ranch, & Sarasota areas, neglect and lack of proper maintenance inhibits the appearance and performance of this exceptional paving surface. With some professional attention to this brick paver driveway, we were able to restore some of its original beauty and long-term performance.

  We began this pavers driveway restoration project by doing some minor touch-up paver repairs by resetting some settled paving stones in the driveway and front paver walk.  We were able to successfully clean the mold, mildew, and organic matter in the joints and paver

surface by performing a high powered power wash cleaning.  By using a surface cleaner and turbo tip powerwash wand, we were able to prep the pavers driveway surface for proper sealing.

We re-sanded the paver joints with the proper paver joint sand, did numerous touch-ups of the joints, and blew off the pavers to remove any reminiscence of joint sand off the paver surface to allow for a clean and quality pavers sealing application.

After cutting in some tight areas, we generously applied with a commercial sprayer the high quality SEAL 'n LOCK Easy Seal brick paver sealant.  Due to the porous and weathered nature of this particular pavers driveway surface, we did apply 2 coats or applications of Easy Seal which normally only requires 1 coat.  Keep in mind that the current condition or porosity of your brick pavers will reflect the amount of paver sealant & applications needed which reflects into the overall job price.

 The end result was an incredible resurgence of the appearance of this brick pavers driveway and walk.  The homeowner was ecstatic about the restoration appearance but we were more concerned about the protection and long-term protection of the brick pavers!  We educated the homeowner on the on going maintenance requirements of their pavers driveway.  Cleaning and sealing of brick pavers should be performed about every 2 years and in between, joint sand sweeping should be performed to keep joints filled that become void from erosion and vehicle/foot traffic. 

Brick Pavers Driveway installed in Ann Arbor

Old asphalt driveway replaced with long-term Interlocking Brick Pavers

In Ann Arbor this Fall, we replaced an old dilapidated asphalt driveway that was not only unsightly, but pitched rain water back towards the garage.  There are many decisions to be made when replacing an old driveway and considering interlocking brick pavers. Brick pavers is usually your best long-term option.

It is true that interlocking brick pavers are going to be one of your more expensive options but over the course of several years, it becomes one of the most economical solutions.  When you factor in aesthetics,routine maintenance, repair & replacement costs, interlocking brick pavers will be your best long term financial option.

The biggest reason brick paver driveway installations cost more is because the base prep under the pavement far exceeds, sometimes 5 times, any prep work done for concrete, asphalt, or stamped concrete installations.  Make sure you are asking the right questions and and what are warranty periods when considering your pavement options.

We started this brick paver driveway project by doing some core tests to check the base material under the asphalt.  When I bid a brick paver driveway, I always discuss the possibility of some cost savings or additional costs due to the unforeseen conditions below.  In this case, we discovered that there was approximately 10-11 inches of gravel base under the pavement.

Since we were going to raise most of the driveway height 1-2", we were confident that there was an adequate depth of base material present for a brick paver driveway.  We did skim off the contaminated layer of  top base and installed a reinforcement layer of strata grid in the upper half of the existing base material.

We did saw-cut the garage floor to give a clean transition line for the paving stones and set the pitches to better flow surface water away from the garage.  It is always a challenge to properly channel water flow when the street is higher than the garage floor.  The homeowner really wanted to avoid the use of drains if possible and we made that happen. We properly surveyed the project to achieve maximum water flow across the surface of the paving stones.

We installed 2 large circle patterns in the middle of the pavers driveway to match their current paver patio design. We filled in the "field", the area between any designs & soldier course borders, with a random pattern to improve the weight distribution strength of the paving stones.

The final result was a dramatic transformation from the drab potholed asphalt drive they endured for many years.  They now enjoy a dry garage floor and are the envy of the neighbors.


We were able to contract a neighbor for another paver driveway transformation next Spring.  The creative design and long term performance of brick pavers is unmatched in frost states such as Michigan.