Sealing your pavers not only helps protect them from all the abuse they receive from traffic, dirt, leaves and other debris, it enhances their appearance as well, bringing out all their natural colours and patterns. Whether you've just had your patio paving laid or want to clean and renew your existing paving, make sealing your pavers your top priority.

Sealing Pavers: Preparation

Sealing pavers is a relatively easy DIY project and there is little that can go wrong if you conscientiously take a few preparatory steps:

1. Brick, concrete and natural stone pavers can all benefit from sealing, but you need to choose the best sealer for your job. Your local paving supplier can recommend the best sealer and any other supplies you may need.


2. Your pavers need to be bone dry before you apply sealer. This cannot be emphasised strongly enough. Dry to the touch is not good enough, because pavers are very porous and moisture will be drawn to the surface of the pavers from deep inside. One good way to ensure your pavers are dry enough to apply sealant is to tape a length of common kitchen plastic wrap to a small section of paving that is exposed to direct sunlight. Leave it for 2 or 3 hours and then remove. If there is moisture on the underside of the plastic, the pavers need more time to dry out.


3. Your pavers need to be as clean as possible before you begin. New pavers may just have some surface dirt or leaves that need to be removed. A blower works best for this, but a broom will do. If you are going to be sealing or resealing old pavers, you will probably need to go to an equipment hire shop and rent a pressure pump first and/or use a high quality paver cleaning product. In order to ensure you only need to do this once, wait until you are reasonably sure that you will not have rain for at least a week after you hose down your pavers. They will need a few days to dry and you need to allow 2 or 3 days for applying sealant.

Sealing Your Pavers

If your pavers are clean and dry, the hardest part of the job is behind you. Now it's just a matter of applying the sealer. You can do this with a brush, roller or spray equipment and get equally good results. There are only 2 things you need to remember:

1. 2 or 3 thin coats are better than 1 or 2 heavy coats.


2. Allow 24 hours drying time between coats.

Traffic and falling debris will be your enemies while the paving sealer dries. Erect a barricade or in some other way make it clear that the surface is not to be walked on. If you have pets, you may need to keep them inside. If possible, inspect your work from time to time throughout the day and remove any leaves or other debris that falls on it. Before you apply the second coat, sweep the area clean with a broom or use a blower to remove any dirt that has accumulated over night.

For best results on concrete or concrete pavers, it is best to first treat the surface with a 10 percent solution of hydrochloric acid. Apply it with a mop, leave for half an hour and then rinse thoroughly with a hose. As with other pavers, you will then need to wait until the surface is completely dry before applying your sealer.