This is all one video that shows part of the cleaning process. There is no sperate video. If your doing cleaning professionally as a business I would avoid sealing with a barge pole. I dont do it anymore as its too much headache. Product costs and time loss due to weather make sealing a proper ballache. This resiblock sealer is best part of £145 a tin now.
Hello great video we have recently had Indian sandstone laid on a flat concrete surface . It has been 4-5 days of dry weather in london however am seeing a lot of damp patches on the slabs . We have not yet sealed the tiles . Any advice would be appreciated as I am getting mixed messages from the builder , I wonder if he has messed up and hence wet patches on the tiles maybe from the mortar . Thank you
Hi, yes I would say it's the moisture from the mortar. If the sandstone was laid on top of concrete and not a softer sub base, then the moisture in the mortar had to go somewhere. I would say it's coming through the sandstone as it more porous then concrete. You should leave any new areas for around 8 weeks before sealing, as this will allow any potential efflorescence to work its way out. The downside to laying on a solid base is that depending on the mix ratio and type of sand used you can get colour leaching from the sand. I have seen new light grey slabs turn rusty orange because the slab has absorbed the colour of the sand. When you say recently laid, how recent? Phill
Thank you for this useful video, can I just ask? what do you do if a bird pooh on your lovely sealed patio, before it dries? and what is the best thing to do about pets/fox getting on it. I cannot really get a fence round it?
Sealing in general is a big pain in the butt. Issues like weather or bird poo is huge. Bird poo I would usually use something like a solvent cleaner that evaporates quickly, brake cleaner or thinners is pretty good with a toothbrush. It's usually touch dry in about 2-4hrs so footprints etc shouldn't be an issue. To be fair the colour enhancing side of sealing doesn't tend to last long. I did my driveway with it and it lasted about 6months. Would probably last longer on a patio but it's expensive stuff. There are cheaper alternatives available that will do the same thing for half the price. Kingfisher K-seal works the same on sandstone, yes it's not a "dedicated" sandstone sealer but if its the damp look your after then any decent acrylic sealer will do that. Sandstone selaers typically rely on absorption into the stone to seal the pores, thereby blocking things like oils and greases. Acrylic sealers although they soak in also seal the surface which tends to offer that damp look that you don't tend to get with water based products. Resiblocks sealers are very good, but most are polyurethane which is hard as nails when set but it's virtually impossible to remove without a heavy duty stripper. Most acrylic/solvent sealers are xylene based and if they happen to get damp during application or generally don't adhere, you can re activate with a spray of xylene solvent to the affected area. Phill
Hi Steve, the general consensus is no. The reason is a freshly laid patio can bring on several issue from cement staining, cement bed sand leaching, efflorescence blooms etc. If you seal it straight away your effectively trapping this all in with no way to remove it. A newly laid patio should normally be allowed weather for a minimum of 8 weeks. Efflorescence is white powdery salt blooms that can appear on new stonework, these are natural Salta within the stone making there way out. There are products that can help dissolve these if they do occur. Some cement residue from pointing maybe left behind, not all contractors are clean and tidy so some residue may remain. Again there are products to help remove this but you should make sure you leave it at least 3 weeks before jet washing to ensure the pointing mortar has fully hardened. Cement bed leaching is the worst and is highly susceptible on lighter coloured stones, basically some contractors use a very orange sand in the bed mix, this colour then leaches (gets absorbed) into the stone leaving nasty light orange stains all over. These are very hard to remove as they come from within, some acidic chemicals may help but not always. So in answer to your question no, don't seal it yet. Phill
Usually a dedicated limestone sealer is best. Common sealers like this sandstone sealer is predominantly used on Indian sandstone. From memory most limestone sealers as well as porcelain tends to be a silicone based impregnating sealer as opposed to a surface sealer. Just wash as normal, you can use a mild biocide if it has obvious algae presence or deep dirt. Make sure it's rinsed really really well to avoid potential sealer adhesion issues. Most companies offer special sealers for limestone, lithofin make quite a few and using extensive.co.uk website is a good guide on what type of sealer is best to use.
Well there are sealers that are all in one such as kingfisher and smart seal. Resiblocks sealers are designed for each application (block pave, natural etc) I've never used an all in one sealer on sandstone. You may find an all in one sealer may give the sandstone a much glossier appearance than the resiblock Indian sandstone sealer. Thing is you spend thousands having sandstone laid and then people muck it up by using cheap sealers.
Hi Phil. What is the best type roller to use on this. I use a long pile roller for block paving. I would have thought this type of roller would leave hairs off it on the stone. Your advice would be appreciated. Love the vids. Learn loads. Cheers Kev
Hi kev, normally I use a medium pile masonry roller on most jobs. They soak up a good amount of sealer to make application easier. I've never had an issue with hairs, not that you would really see them. A lot of sealers you can spray down but in my opinion that's messy and clean up is a pig. I just use 12" rollers from DIY store such as prodec or Hamilton they only about £6 each. The biggest issue with riven stones is that the textured surface holds the sealer and can lead to pooling. In which case you'll need 2 rollers, one to apply and then 1 to soak up excess sealer in the lumpy bits. Phill
Colin Regan hmm honestly don't know as I don't lay patios. I've seen a lot of these resin based mortars and they look pretty good. I suppose sealing before hand won't hurt but I reckon you would loose a lot of sealer down the open joints. Phill
Most patios like this one have mortar joints so they don't naturally drain too quickly. Sealing mainly protects the stone from wear and staining. The main time you have to think about drainage is on block paving, as sealing these sets the sand and therefore you loose the natural drainage of the sand and substrate. You can but sealers that keep the natural drainage and these are quite specific for SUDS applications.
chris macnab first thing is get an idea what your competition is charging. if your just starting out then keep your prices keen. don't do yourself out, I mean think about what you need/want to earn for a fair days graft. price per square metre of cleaning. I am too cheap I know, but I am booked up all summer every year. my pricing works on a downward scale, the bigger the area the cheaper it becomes. my lowest is £1 per sqM for 90sqM+ but the prices range from £1-£2 per sqM. sanding seems to be a standard sort of price at 50p per sqM plus sand at approx £5 per 25kg bag depending where you get it (if in UK selco is chespest). block pave is quite straight forward and so is natural. your arse ache will be anything that has dodgy mortar like crazy pave. so you can alter your prices according to how long you think it may take. sealing wise I charge £1 per sqM for natural stone. £1 - £1.50 per SqM on block pave for first coat and £1 per sqM on the 2nd, all depends on whats involved as more cutting in with a brush is more labour intensive and hence more time, all plus materials. I base my cleaning price on between £20-£25 per hour depending on what's involved and how much I have to potentially get on my hands and knees to scrape/sweep up shit. obviously this all really depends on how good your equipment is and how quick you can tear through it. Phill
ive got some mortar grout between my sandstone cobble boaerder on my patio thats gone a bit of a dusty white colour. it looks normal when its wet. if i apply some of this sealant to my cobbles and grout, will it keep the grout looking the same as it does when wet as well as the cobbles?
Depends how old the mortar is. If it's patchy white powder then it sounds like efflorescence which you can remove with a special cleaner. You only really get that on new lays. If its new then it could also depend what mix/cement was used, but i would expect it to be more all over. I suppose if it dissapears when wet you could put a sealer over it. This stuff is expensive at £100 a tin and will wear off over time. If it is efflorescence (salts) a sealer probably won't adhere to it and will flake off.
@@DirtyDriveAway it’s new, been in about 2 weeks. it was a pre mixed mortar which i made into a semi dry mix to point the cobbles with. done one bag the week before which turned out absolutely fine, then done another bag the following week and the lot went a dusty white colour. don’t think it’s efflorescence. but yeah like i say, looks absolutely fine when wet. i was gonna seal the cobbles anyway to preserve the wet look on them as they look much better wet
@@jackhopkins9618 it could just be the mortar mix then. The problem with pre mixed stuff is the ratios can be a bit hit and miss. I have known pre mixed mortars to dry out really pale/grey. You rarely get pre mixed stuff that dries to traditional buff colour. If your only going to seal the cobbles then I would opt for an acrylic sealer like k-seal or smartseal. I wouldn't use indian sandstone sealer on cobbles as its too extensive and you'll be lucky if lasts 18months (wet look). I did my indian sandstone driveway during 1st lockdown last year and the damp look lasted barely 8months and it had faded.
@@jackhopkins9618 proper mortars can take about 3 weeks to fully harden off. So long as its not resin pointing compound then acrylic sealing will be OK.
@@DirtyDriveAway well i was going to seal the cobble grout as well as the cobbles to hopefully enhance the colour in the grout too. and it’s only for the summer months while the patio is in use, but i’m doing some other research. someone said the dustiness on the grout is a haze or something? i’ve used it a few times before and not had an issue; it’s always dried a nice cement grey colour, and like i say, it looks great when wet. it’s only a cobble boarder too, so collectively it’s only 6SQM to do the lot
Resiblock Sandstone sealer is typically a single coat product. You may be able to apply a 2nd but its not something resiblock tend to recommend. If you was to apply a 2nd coat usually its after approx 4hrs. If its left longer than 24hrs the product will fully harden and any further coats won't adhere.
@@DirtyDriveAway thanks for the reply 👍 Ive put a coat on at 5pm today, got enough left to do another coat, but think im going to leave it at 1 coat. I was worried the second coat might not adhere the first coat, i think most people do put just 1 coat on. Thanks, Joe.
@@joefowler9600 most sealers are 1 coat unless its used on block paving which usually take 2. Its a fine line as th whether a second coat will bond. I've found that the colour enhancing sealer doesn't last too long to be honest. I did my sandstone driveway at the beginning of lockdown and the subtle sheen it had has already worn off.
Hi, well in theory yes you can. The problem is 1. Controlling the spray and keeping it uniform. 2. Making sure the spray doesn't go where you don't want it to, i.e over walls or caught by the wind etc. 3. The sprayer would need to be viton sealed and solvent resistant to withstand using acrylic/polyurethane sealers. 4. Cleaning the sprayer afterwards will be a ballache as you will need to use a proprietary cleaner like thinners or xylene to clean it through. 5. Depending upon the size of the area you may find the sealer starts to cure and clog up the nozzle. 6. Even when spraying you may have to back roller/brush the area to avoid pooling/flooding the area, especially on textured stones. Apart from that yes you can spray the stuff down, not an overly easy method. Of course you can ignore most of the above if using a water based sealer. Phill
such a long and fantastic reply , thank you ver ymuch Phil !, i did a block paver today , and it had a lot of over growth, and it has been negelcted the last 2- 3 years. due to personal reasons .. had lots of lichen or dark markings on it ....... alot of people in Germany are reluctant to have their PAving cleaned with too much pressure. but what other way can you do it ??. any i used a 10 Liter a minute 130 Bar PW and it ripped all of the Weeed etc out of the gaps etc .... there was a big difference at the end , not perfect color wise but a huge difference never the less... was going to resand it with this about an hour ago , ( the women bought it cost 19 € www.dansand.co.uk/products/dansandr-stone-dust-for-paving/ it was the darker coloured one ..... no i am not promoting it , i went to put it down about an hour ago unbehold i looked at the instructions and it said it cannot rain 24 hours after use, and tomorrow is rain forcast . I will try and get you a video up of what i did So you can see what a 10 Liter machine can and cannot do.
@@fensterputzernuernbergerlangen hi, I've never used dansand so can't comment on how it works. Ultimately it really depends how wide your block joints are, the usual kiln dried is so fine it will drop into really narrow gaps. From the look of the dansand it's quite course which may be the reason why it seems to recommend using a compactor to help it in. I've used polymeric sands before and it sounds like yours is air activated rather than water, I have used wide joint compound which is a resin bound sand but this is for wider joints and not block pave. The biggest problem with using poly sand after cleaning is that the joint depth is only around 5-10mm whereas a new block is 50mm+. They recommend for best results that it's installed on new paving so you get maximum depth of solid sand. A 5mm ish bed of solid sand doesn't offer full weed resistance, so they may still break through. Sealers on the other hand can soak deeper Into the joints. I use 250bar 23 litres a minute on block pave as high pressure is they only real way to shred the weeds. People get worried about damage but they neglect to realise that just leaving the block in the sun etc is enough to wear it. Acid rain and traffic are the quickest way to erode blocks. The 2 companies I use for poly sand for block paving are resiblocks resifix or kingfishers narrow joint compound (both pretty much identical) they work well but require more time and effort to sweep in properly. I've had customers that have used other dansand products i.e no weed paving sand to very little success considering the price. The best way to really keep weeds at bay is a decent depth joint with poly sand or sealing with a good acrylic/polyurethane sealer. You can clean using a mix of sodium hypochlorite/water and a garden hose but it won't shift heavy dirt and it won't do nothing for moss/weeds. Phill
Brillinat that is the most indepth reply i have ever had , if you ever need advice on Window cleaning message me i one of the best... Much appreciated Phil your the man thank you.
Pressure washing will blow the stones out. I have come across this method before and its a pressure washing nightmare as it flicks stones everywhere. If your looking to just clean the area then in my opinion your better off trying a softwash (chemical clean). Get yourself some sodium hypochlorite mix 3:1 and spray down. After about 30mins most of the dirt will go. Rinse and repeat if necessary. Flick through my channel there is some hypo cleaning videos in there somewhere, including a time-lapse of hypo working. Just remember if your thinking of sealing sodium hypochlorite can cause bonding issues with sealers if its not fully rinsed away. Chem cleaning without a jet wash won't be 100% perfect but it will save the issue with the stones flying out.
@@DirtyDriveAwaythanks for the reply, I thought as much, I'm thinking maybe just get a wet vacuum and suck it out, clean and replace. Seems a bit long winded but a I want to clean it properly and b IV got a new pressure washer I really want to use. 😅
@@KellySmunt303 are they concrete flagstones or is it block pave? If its regular square slabs and depending on your drainage you could blow the stones out and replace with sand and then put a sealer over it to bind it up. Problem is most sealers will take away natural drainage. Yoh can get aggregate binder/sealers which will help set the stones together to avoid loosing them.
@@DirtyDriveAway it's flagstone, but the joints are about 2/3 inches wide. I have got a got a pretty hardcore vac, was thinking hoover out, clean, maybe see if needed a bit more sand, then regravel.
@@KellySmunt303 wow yeah thats wide. Either vac it out or hit it with a rotary surface cleaner. It will spit the stones around but it will be cleaner and you can usually sweep up the stones, rinse and re use. Or just replace 😆
Hi. I used this exact stuff on my smooth ( sorn and honed I think it's called) light grey Indian sandstone patio, and I hate it😩 My patio is a complete disaster. It is possibly down to the other half putting it on incorrectly. He used a pump spray thingy and it's pooled in places and not nice and smooth. I think we should've chosen impregnating sealer. Water now sits on it, winter will be awful, it'll freeze and be an ice skating patio! What I'm asking is do you know a way to possibly remove it? Maybe a product we can use?
Claire Alabaster hi Claire, yes you do not apply with a pump sprayer, it will go down way to heavy and will pool up in the rough surface. It should dry with a slight texture. If it's applied too heavy it will dry smooth and thick. I've never been asked to remove it so you best bet is to give resiblock (so long as it was real resiblock) a call on 01268273344 and see what they say. I know they sell a product to remove it from tools etc but not sure if it will remove it once dry. I'm surprised the pump sprayer worked, once it starts to dry it really hardens up. Bet that sprayer is in the bin now. Phill
Dirty Drive-Away thanks so much for replying. Yes other half said pump is now in the bin, and I agree he definitely shouldn't have put it on with a sprayer🙄 I will call resiblock and ask their advice. Thanks again.
Oh so that's how you use a paintbrush and a roller. I never would have known. The essential facts of the matter could have been given in about four minutes.
Yeah but for a lot of "normal" folk who have never attempted sealing before it's quite informative. Obviously you do a lot of driveway sealing and know exactly how to do spot on.
No doubt you have very satisfied customers, very professional job. Good video too.
Thanks for the informative video. Can you tell me how to dispose of the empty cans after the job?
How do I find your prep video before you add the sealer . The video was very helpful thank you😊
This is all one video that shows part of the cleaning process. There is no sperate video. If your doing cleaning professionally as a business I would avoid sealing with a barge pole. I dont do it anymore as its too much headache. Product costs and time loss due to weather make sealing a proper ballache. This resiblock sealer is best part of £145 a tin now.
Phil, you are the man!.... Fantastic job...... Professional.
wide awake thank you, appreciate it.
Hello great video we have recently had Indian sandstone laid on a flat concrete surface . It has been 4-5 days of dry weather in london however am seeing a lot of damp patches on the slabs . We have not yet sealed the tiles . Any advice would be appreciated as I am getting mixed messages from the builder , I wonder if he has messed up and hence wet patches on the tiles maybe from the mortar . Thank you
Hi, yes I would say it's the moisture from the mortar. If the sandstone was laid on top of concrete and not a softer sub base, then the moisture in the mortar had to go somewhere. I would say it's coming through the sandstone as it more porous then concrete. You should leave any new areas for around 8 weeks before sealing, as this will allow any potential efflorescence to work its way out. The downside to laying on a solid base is that depending on the mix ratio and type of sand used you can get colour leaching from the sand. I have seen new light grey slabs turn rusty orange because the slab has absorbed the colour of the sand. When you say recently laid, how recent? Phill
What sealant did you use?
Resiblock Indian sandstone sealer.
Thank you for this useful video, can I just ask? what do you do if a bird pooh on your lovely sealed patio, before it dries? and what is the best thing to do about pets/fox getting on it. I cannot really get a fence round it?
Sealing in general is a big pain in the butt. Issues like weather or bird poo is huge. Bird poo I would usually use something like a solvent cleaner that evaporates quickly, brake cleaner or thinners is pretty good with a toothbrush. It's usually touch dry in about 2-4hrs so footprints etc shouldn't be an issue. To be fair the colour enhancing side of sealing doesn't tend to last long. I did my driveway with it and it lasted about 6months. Would probably last longer on a patio but it's expensive stuff. There are cheaper alternatives available that will do the same thing for half the price. Kingfisher K-seal works the same on sandstone, yes it's not a "dedicated" sandstone sealer but if its the damp look your after then any decent acrylic sealer will do that. Sandstone selaers typically rely on absorption into the stone to seal the pores, thereby blocking things like oils and greases. Acrylic sealers although they soak in also seal the surface which tends to offer that damp look that you don't tend to get with water based products. Resiblocks sealers are very good, but most are polyurethane which is hard as nails when set but it's virtually impossible to remove without a heavy duty stripper. Most acrylic/solvent sealers are xylene based and if they happen to get damp during application or generally don't adhere, you can re activate with a spray of xylene solvent to the affected area. Phill
Another good video 📹
Cheers spencer
In your opinion should a new Indian sandstone patio be sealed most advise says no I’d appreciate your input thanks steve
Hi Steve, the general consensus is no. The reason is a freshly laid patio can bring on several issue from cement staining, cement bed sand leaching, efflorescence blooms etc. If you seal it straight away your effectively trapping this all in with no way to remove it. A newly laid patio should normally be allowed weather for a minimum of 8 weeks. Efflorescence is white powdery salt blooms that can appear on new stonework, these are natural Salta within the stone making there way out. There are products that can help dissolve these if they do occur. Some cement residue from pointing maybe left behind, not all contractors are clean and tidy so some residue may remain. Again there are products to help remove this but you should make sure you leave it at least 3 weeks before jet washing to ensure the pointing mortar has fully hardened. Cement bed leaching is the worst and is highly susceptible on lighter coloured stones, basically some contractors use a very orange sand in the bed mix, this colour then leaches (gets absorbed) into the stone leaving nasty light orange stains all over. These are very hard to remove as they come from within, some acidic chemicals may help but not always. So in answer to your question no, don't seal it yet. Phill
Dirty Drive-Away thanks phill I’ll take your advice love the videos keep them coming
Hi i am about to do a natural cut limestone. the customer has the sealer. what is the best way to wash limestine and what to use for the sealer?
Usually a dedicated limestone sealer is best. Common sealers like this sandstone sealer is predominantly used on Indian sandstone. From memory most limestone sealers as well as porcelain tends to be a silicone based impregnating sealer as opposed to a surface sealer. Just wash as normal, you can use a mild biocide if it has obvious algae presence or deep dirt. Make sure it's rinsed really really well to avoid potential sealer adhesion issues. Most companies offer special sealers for limestone, lithofin make quite a few and using extensive.co.uk website is a good guide on what type of sealer is best to use.
thanks for the video ,can I just ask where did you get your water butt from and what kind of van is it you use.thanks in advance Phil.
Anthony Bowler I use a LWB transit connect and it's a 400L water tank from ecosure. think it costs around £220 ish. best investment ever.
Great job wondering do you have to get a specific sealer for indian sandstone our do they all do the same job.
Well there are sealers that are all in one such as kingfisher and smart seal. Resiblocks sealers are designed for each application (block pave, natural etc) I've never used an all in one sealer on sandstone. You may find an all in one sealer may give the sandstone a much glossier appearance than the resiblock Indian sandstone sealer. Thing is you spend thousands having sandstone laid and then people muck it up by using cheap sealers.
@@DirtyDriveAway ok thanks very much.
Hi Phil. What is the best type roller to use on this. I use a long pile roller for block paving. I would have thought this type of roller would leave hairs off it on the stone. Your advice would be appreciated. Love the vids. Learn loads. Cheers Kev
Hi kev, normally I use a medium pile masonry roller on most jobs. They soak up a good amount of sealer to make application easier. I've never had an issue with hairs, not that you would really see them. A lot of sealers you can spray down but in my opinion that's messy and clean up is a pig. I just use 12" rollers from DIY store such as prodec or Hamilton they only about £6 each. The biggest issue with riven stones is that the textured surface holds the sealer and can lead to pooling. In which case you'll need 2 rollers, one to apply and then 1 to soak up excess sealer in the lumpy bits. Phill
What sealant did you use?
Another one for you.............on new slabs, do you seal slabs before using any of these resin pointing products?
Colin Regan hmm honestly don't know as I don't lay patios. I've seen a lot of these resin based mortars and they look pretty good. I suppose sealing before hand won't hurt but I reckon you would loose a lot of sealer down the open joints. Phill
Just wondering do you need good drainage when you seal your patio from the rain.
Most patios like this one have mortar joints so they don't naturally drain too quickly. Sealing mainly protects the stone from wear and staining. The main time you have to think about drainage is on block paving, as sealing these sets the sand and therefore you loose the natural drainage of the sand and substrate. You can but sealers that keep the natural drainage and these are quite specific for SUDS applications.
@@DirtyDriveAway top man thank you.
Thanks for your videos these have been so useful in helping me plan my start up business. can I just enquiry as to how you would price up for cleaning
chris macnab first thing is get an idea what your competition is charging. if your just starting out then keep your prices keen. don't do yourself out, I mean think about what you need/want to earn for a fair days graft. price per square metre of cleaning. I am too cheap I know, but I am booked up all summer every year. my pricing works on a downward scale, the bigger the area the cheaper it becomes. my lowest is £1 per sqM for 90sqM+ but the prices range from £1-£2 per sqM. sanding seems to be a standard sort of price at 50p per sqM plus sand at approx £5 per 25kg bag depending where you get it (if in UK selco is chespest). block pave is quite straight forward and so is natural. your arse ache will be anything that has dodgy mortar like crazy pave. so you can alter your prices according to how long you think it may take. sealing wise I charge £1 per sqM for natural stone. £1 - £1.50 per SqM on block pave for first coat and £1 per sqM on the 2nd, all depends on whats involved as more cutting in with a brush is more labour intensive and hence more time, all plus materials. I base my cleaning price on between £20-£25 per hour depending on what's involved and how much I have to potentially get on my hands and knees to scrape/sweep up shit. obviously this all really depends on how good your equipment is and how quick you can tear through it. Phill
Dirty Drive-Away Thank you that's perfect advice Phil, much appreciated 👍
great vid
Thank you david
Where to buy this resin sealer
Try resiblock.
Is that resiblock ok over these resin based pointing products........such as Marshalls weatherpoint 365?
Colin Regan I can't see why not but i would give resiblock a call to check.
ive got some mortar grout between my sandstone cobble boaerder on my patio thats gone a bit of a dusty white colour. it looks normal when its wet. if i apply some of this sealant to my cobbles and grout, will it keep the grout looking the same as it does when wet as well as the cobbles?
Depends how old the mortar is. If it's patchy white powder then it sounds like efflorescence which you can remove with a special cleaner. You only really get that on new lays. If its new then it could also depend what mix/cement was used, but i would expect it to be more all over. I suppose if it dissapears when wet you could put a sealer over it. This stuff is expensive at £100 a tin and will wear off over time. If it is efflorescence (salts) a sealer probably won't adhere to it and will flake off.
@@DirtyDriveAway it’s new, been in about 2 weeks. it was a pre mixed mortar which i made into a semi dry mix to point the cobbles with. done one bag the week before which turned out absolutely fine, then done another bag the following week and the lot went a dusty white colour. don’t think it’s efflorescence. but yeah like i say, looks absolutely fine when wet. i was gonna seal the cobbles anyway to preserve the wet look on them as they look much better wet
@@jackhopkins9618 it could just be the mortar mix then. The problem with pre mixed stuff is the ratios can be a bit hit and miss. I have known pre mixed mortars to dry out really pale/grey. You rarely get pre mixed stuff that dries to traditional buff colour.
If your only going to seal the cobbles then I would opt for an acrylic sealer like k-seal or smartseal. I wouldn't use indian sandstone sealer on cobbles as its too extensive and you'll be lucky if lasts 18months (wet look). I did my indian sandstone driveway during 1st lockdown last year and the damp look lasted barely 8months and it had faded.
@@jackhopkins9618 proper mortars can take about 3 weeks to fully harden off. So long as its not resin pointing compound then acrylic sealing will be OK.
@@DirtyDriveAway well i was going to seal the cobble grout as well as the cobbles to hopefully enhance the colour in the grout too. and it’s only for the summer months while the patio is in use, but i’m doing some other research. someone said the dustiness on the grout is a haze or something? i’ve used it a few times before and not had an issue; it’s always dried a nice cement grey colour, and like i say, it looks great when wet. it’s only a cobble boarder too, so collectively it’s only 6SQM to do the lot
Hi how many coats do you need to apply? If 2 coats how long would leave between coats?
Thanks Joe
Resiblock Sandstone sealer is typically a single coat product. You may be able to apply a 2nd but its not something resiblock tend to recommend. If you was to apply a 2nd coat usually its after approx 4hrs. If its left longer than 24hrs the product will fully harden and any further coats won't adhere.
@@DirtyDriveAway thanks for the reply 👍
Ive put a coat on at 5pm today, got enough left to do another coat, but think im going to leave it at 1 coat. I was worried the second coat might not adhere the first coat, i think most people do put just 1 coat on.
Thanks, Joe.
@@joefowler9600 most sealers are 1 coat unless its used on block paving which usually take 2. Its a fine line as th whether a second coat will bond. I've found that the colour enhancing sealer doesn't last too long to be honest. I did my sandstone driveway at the beginning of lockdown and the subtle sheen it had has already worn off.
Hi can you not spray that sealer on ? Great videos thanks for all the input !
Hi, well in theory yes you can. The problem is 1. Controlling the spray and keeping it uniform. 2. Making sure the spray doesn't go where you don't want it to, i.e over walls or caught by the wind etc. 3. The sprayer would need to be viton sealed and solvent resistant to withstand using acrylic/polyurethane sealers. 4. Cleaning the sprayer afterwards will be a ballache as you will need to use a proprietary cleaner like thinners or xylene to clean it through. 5. Depending upon the size of the area you may find the sealer starts to cure and clog up the nozzle. 6. Even when spraying you may have to back roller/brush the area to avoid pooling/flooding the area, especially on textured stones. Apart from that yes you can spray the stuff down, not an overly easy method. Of course you can ignore most of the above if using a water based sealer. Phill
such a long and fantastic reply , thank you ver ymuch Phil !, i did a block paver today , and it had a lot of over growth, and it has been negelcted the last 2- 3 years. due to personal reasons .. had lots of lichen or dark markings on it ....... alot of people in Germany are reluctant to have their PAving cleaned with too much pressure. but what other way can you do it ??. any i used a 10 Liter a minute 130 Bar PW and it ripped all of the Weeed etc out of the gaps etc .... there was a big difference at the end , not perfect color wise but a huge difference never the less... was going to resand it with this about an hour ago , ( the women bought it cost 19 € www.dansand.co.uk/products/dansandr-stone-dust-for-paving/ it was the darker coloured one ..... no i am not promoting it , i went to put it down about an hour ago unbehold i looked at the instructions and it said it cannot rain 24 hours after use, and tomorrow is rain forcast . I will try and get you a video up of what i did So you can see what a 10 Liter machine can and cannot do.
@@fensterputzernuernbergerlangen hi, I've never used dansand so can't comment on how it works. Ultimately it really depends how wide your block joints are, the usual kiln dried is so fine it will drop into really narrow gaps. From the look of the dansand it's quite course which may be the reason why it seems to recommend using a compactor to help it in. I've used polymeric sands before and it sounds like yours is air activated rather than water, I have used wide joint compound which is a resin bound sand but this is for wider joints and not block pave. The biggest problem with using poly sand after cleaning is that the joint depth is only around 5-10mm whereas a new block is 50mm+. They recommend for best results that it's installed on new paving so you get maximum depth of solid sand. A 5mm ish bed of solid sand doesn't offer full weed resistance, so they may still break through. Sealers on the other hand can soak deeper Into the joints. I use 250bar 23 litres a minute on block pave as high pressure is they only real way to shred the weeds. People get worried about damage but they neglect to realise that just leaving the block in the sun etc is enough to wear it. Acid rain and traffic are the quickest way to erode blocks. The 2 companies I use for poly sand for block paving are resiblocks resifix or kingfishers narrow joint compound (both pretty much identical) they work well but require more time and effort to sweep in properly. I've had customers that have used other dansand products i.e no weed paving sand to very little success considering the price. The best way to really keep weeds at bay is a decent depth joint with poly sand or sealing with a good acrylic/polyurethane sealer. You can clean using a mix of sodium hypochlorite/water and a garden hose but it won't shift heavy dirt and it won't do nothing for moss/weeds. Phill
Brillinat that is the most indepth reply i have ever had , if you ever need advice on Window cleaning message me i one of the best... Much appreciated Phil your the man thank you.
Ecxellent job! 👍👍
I have gravel in the gaps between pavers, would gravel need to be removed before pressure washing? (Apologies if this is a stupid question) 😅
Pressure washing will blow the stones out. I have come across this method before and its a pressure washing nightmare as it flicks stones everywhere. If your looking to just clean the area then in my opinion your better off trying a softwash (chemical clean). Get yourself some sodium hypochlorite mix 3:1 and spray down. After about 30mins most of the dirt will go. Rinse and repeat if necessary. Flick through my channel there is some hypo cleaning videos in there somewhere, including a time-lapse of hypo working. Just remember if your thinking of sealing sodium hypochlorite can cause bonding issues with sealers if its not fully rinsed away. Chem cleaning without a jet wash won't be 100% perfect but it will save the issue with the stones flying out.
@@DirtyDriveAwaythanks for the reply, I thought as much, I'm thinking maybe just get a wet vacuum and suck it out, clean and replace. Seems a bit long winded but a I want to clean it properly and b IV got a new pressure washer I really want to use. 😅
@@KellySmunt303 are they concrete flagstones or is it block pave? If its regular square slabs and depending on your drainage you could blow the stones out and replace with sand and then put a sealer over it to bind it up. Problem is most sealers will take away natural drainage. Yoh can get aggregate binder/sealers which will help set the stones together to avoid loosing them.
@@DirtyDriveAway it's flagstone, but the joints are about 2/3 inches wide. I have got a got a pretty hardcore vac, was thinking hoover out, clean, maybe see if needed a bit more sand, then regravel.
@@KellySmunt303 wow yeah thats wide. Either vac it out or hit it with a rotary surface cleaner. It will spit the stones around but it will be cleaner and you can usually sweep up the stones, rinse and re use. Or just replace 😆
Hi. I used this exact stuff on my smooth ( sorn and honed I think it's called) light grey Indian sandstone patio, and I hate it😩 My patio is a complete disaster. It is possibly down to the other half putting it on incorrectly. He used a pump spray thingy and it's pooled in places and not nice and smooth. I think we should've chosen impregnating sealer. Water now sits on it, winter will be awful, it'll freeze and be an ice skating patio!
What I'm asking is do you know a way to possibly remove it? Maybe a product we can use?
Claire Alabaster hi Claire, yes you do not apply with a pump sprayer, it will go down way to heavy and will pool up in the rough surface. It should dry with a slight texture. If it's applied too heavy it will dry smooth and thick. I've never been asked to remove it so you best bet is to give resiblock (so long as it was real resiblock) a call on 01268273344 and see what they say. I know they sell a product to remove it from tools etc but not sure if it will remove it once dry. I'm surprised the pump sprayer worked, once it starts to dry it really hardens up. Bet that sprayer is in the bin now. Phill
Dirty Drive-Away thanks so much for replying. Yes other half said pump is now in the bin, and I agree he definitely shouldn't have put it on with a sprayer🙄 I will call resiblock and ask their advice. Thanks again.
Claire Alabaster no worries, let me know how you get on. Phill
@@calabaster1685 😂😂😂
Nice, and the best bit....getting paid...lol..
Better to use a masonry roller
Oh so that's how you use a paintbrush and a roller. I never would have known. The essential facts of the matter could have been given in about four minutes.
Yeah but for a lot of "normal" folk who have never attempted sealing before it's quite informative. Obviously you do a lot of driveway sealing and know exactly how to do spot on.
@@DirtyDriveAway Ignore them, you have given the exact info i was looking for, thanks
@@purethinking2263 i usually do, sarcasm is the lowest form of wit.
Toe-ul.....lol
Stop talking and get on with the job