Sealed Paver Patios & Walks still need Spring Sand Sweeping

Sealing Brick Pavers enhances colors and protects from weathering

I have been educating my clients for almost 30 years that sealing of brick pavers is for enhancing the color of their paving stones or modular retaining wall blocks and caps. Aesthetics is the key reason for deciding to seal your pavers.  While giving your brick paver patio, walkway, driveway, porch, etc.. the "wet", gloss, or matte look, slowing down the effects of weathering is another valuable benefit of sealing. 

Many inexperienced and misleading landscape contractors have convinced customers that sealing their brick paver patios will also permanently harden the sand in the paver joints, eliminating the growth of weeds or the need to sweep joints in the future.  This can not be further from the truth!

Over time brick paver sealants or joint stabilizers, whether applied as a liquid or swept in as a solid,
will break down in the paver joints due to winter frost, erosion, or ground movements.  Paver joints absorb the movement of the interlocking pavement system and that is one of the keys to its success and performance.

Sealed paver joints are no exception.  They will loosen over time and require refilling of paver joint sand. Time is a variable due to weather, erosion, climate, and frost conditions. It is not necessary to reseal the paver joints when re-sweeping.  Keep up will refilling your paver joints with the proper joint sand and reseal your paver patio, walkway, driveway, porch, etc.. when necessary for the paving stones which is usually every 2-3 years (or summers). 

Sand sweeping of paver joints will be a continued routine maintenance of sealed brick paver installations.  Do not have your pavers sealed because you are under the impression you will not have to have joint sand swept in periodically.  If you keep your paver joints filled with clean joint sand, and not dirt & organic matter, you will greatly reduce any evidence of weeds.

Sealing of your Brick Paver Patio

Brick Paver Sealants can bring back the Life of your Pavers Patio

We have begun working this week in Michigan with temperatures topping 85 degrees this mid-March.  As we perform our normal Spring sand sweepings for customers, we have been getting a lot of interest for sealing of their brick paver patios, walks, driveways, and more.

I always explain to my customers that sealing of pavers is optional. You do not have to seal brick pavers to insure the long-term success of their structural integrity.  If you want to insure the long-term surface appearance from the effects of weathering or need to bring your aging pavers patio or walk back to life, then sealing is a viable option.

My professional opinion is to seal your brick pavers for "aesthetic" purposes first. If you like the enhanced or darkened color of your pavers when sealed, then consider having them sealed by a professional & experienced brick paver contractor.  To get a preview, just wet your pavers down on a cloudy day or when your pavers are in the shade to get a close representation of how they will look sealed.  That should be your number one reason to seal!

Sealing your pavers patio, walkway, driveway, etc.. for the sand joints or weed deterrence is the wrong reasons to seal pavers!  Keeping up with the routine maintenance requirements of brick pavers will help alleviate these issues. It is much cheaper to do Spring maintenance programs with full service brick pavers contractor than to pay the cost of sealing each 2-3years.  In addition, the sealed joint sand in frost states such as Michigan will still loosen over the winter months and need periodic touch-ups. 

One complication that has been arising this year is that customers we did extensive paver patio cleaning & sanding last year, now want to seal this year.  The issue is that their pavers patio has to have a general prep or cleaning prior to sealing because many customers have let the patio get dirty or stained.  Depending on the severity of the conditions, I have convinced most to do the cleaning prep themselves and we will fill the paver joints with sand as needed and properly apply the paver sealant.

In an earlier post I did on prepping for sealing, I explained the reasons for prep that are needed prior to applying an approved brick paver sealant to high density interlocking concrete pavers.  When you are dealing with a horizontal surface, outside, uncovered ,and unprotected from the elements, its an uncontrolled environment that has a lot of variables. You can not make it perfect and you just try to do the best you can to get the best possible results!

Hold off Sealing Your Brick Pavers until Spring

Proper conditions for sealing brick pavers is important

It's now Fall in Michigan and you should hold off sealing your brick paver patio, walkway, porch, steps, or driveway until next Spring.  Sealing pavers is tricky enough and trying to force the issue this time of year may result in costly and aggravating results. Believe me when I say it will be worth the wait if anything went wrong.

Even if the weather is dry enough for sealing, low temperatures & moisture in the paver joints can have an adverse effect on the performance of brick paver sealants.   White clouding, residue, or hazing can result from sealing in non-optimal conditions.  In Michigan, it is best to seal in surface & air temperatures between 60-75 degrees.

If the air or brick paver surface is too cold, the brick paver sealant may crystallize or turn white, leaving you with a costly and timely effort to correct. If the paver joints are too moist (wet), it can leave white lines in the paver joints and on the edges of the paving stones.

Another issue late in the Fall is LEAVES!  If you avoid them from leaving any leaf stains after fall rains, it is treacherous to avoid any from falling on freshly sealed pavers.  Usually most brick paver sealants are dry to the touch within an hour, but if leaves fall and lay flat on the paving stone surface during this curing time, this will usually result in a problem. 

During the Summer if the air or brick paver surface is too hot, usually over 80 degrees, you can experience blistering (bubbles) or have a white haze trap under the paver sealant.  High humidity days are also a no no and very windy days can adversely dry sealant prematurely creating blistering. Again if you force the issue, you will spend alot of time, cost, and effort trying to correct these adverse conditions.

As a brick paver sealing contractor, there is a small window of months in a Michigan season to perform this service.  When you add in days of rain, heat, excessive winds, and unseasonably cold days, you can see the frustration of completing this paver maintenance service each year. 

Our peak paver sealing season is usually mid-May to early July, then we get another stretch from Labor Day to mid October.  I do recommend that you go ahead and complete the power wash cleaning of the brick pavers and paver joints and re-sanding of all the joints prior to Winter.  When Spring comes around, you will only need to touch up the paver joints with sand and then get ready to seal when temps allow.

As always, only use an approved brick paver sealant on your brick pavers.  Anything at Lowes, Home Depot, Menards, or a Hardware store is NOT the correct product.  Always purchase or insist on a paver sealant that is distributed by a brick paver manufacturer. These sealers will typically last for 2-3 years before you will need to consider having another application.


Ask your brick paver contractor which paver sealant he is using and ask that he write down the brand of sealant or leave the empty container (properly sealed up) behind.  This way you can use the same brick paver sealant for future applications. Make sure prior to sealing that all paving stones and paver joints are dry.