From our professional pavers to you, below are excellent, practical yet expert tips on cleaning and maintaining walkways, driveways, tracks, and more. Steps towards lengthening their lifespan, aside from having experts regularly maintain them, has to do with a few DIY tips and tricks that are easy to accomplish through these simple guidelines.
How To Properly Maintain Pavement
1. Good Ol’ Brushing
There’s nothing like grabbing a cleaning brush (preferrably a large one with an easy-grip handle) and water mixed with mild soap when it comes to cleaning pavements. This remains true for most, if not all, types of paving materials. Again, emphasis on “mild” soap. Some create said solutions using gentle body soap like Dove, baby body wash, or a few drops of a mild dish washing gel.
Brushing is the easiest way to get rid of dirt and debris. It can also erradicate burgeoning appearances of weeds. Especially ones that are beginning to grow in between cracks and sunken surfaces.
2. Regular Weeding And De-Mossing
At the first glimpse of weed, don’t tarry. Immediately pull them out or brush them away. But don’t stop there. The mistake that many pavement owners and/or carers do is merely tug at said overgrowths. Yet they miss out on scrubbing the target area clean and dry.
Doing the latter is a safeguard against having weeds and moss grow around the same area once more. To further this, it’s a safeguard against accidents. Trails of moss and weeds tend to leave a slippery substance behind. These can cause slips and slides. Something you can avoid altogether by scrubbing the area well.
3. Power Wash When You Can
According to our pros at Danville Pavers, and as evidenced by countless other experts who recommend this, bring power washing into the mix. Every other day to every 2 days, or even just a couple of power-washing schedules a week is good enough.
A pressure, steam, or steam washer will suffice. This is an option for pavements that may be easily impaired by brushing. Brushing, though a simple tool, is one that’s abrasive. Your paving experts can give you pointers on how to power-wash more efficiently, and where you can rent larger steamers for commercial application.
4. No Acid-Based Products
Be sure to stay away from cleaners that contain acid. You can inquire with paving speciliasts Forever Greens Livermore, CA relies on for more information regarding this if your pavement is lined with materials that require extra care than average.
Acid-based cleaners can damage pavements by making their colors and/or patterns fade. With frequent utilization, they may even go so far as to weaken surfaces, thereby making the latter more vulnerable to incurring impairments due to weight and/or natural elements.
5. Immediacy Plus Proactiveness
Finally, note that all of these tips will work at their optimum only when you observe them with “immediacy” in mind. Once you spot looming dirt, debris, weed growth, and the like, urgently remove them through the steps above.
In addition to this, be proactive in applying these cleaning methods. Craft a schedule for when you and your team can clean your pavements N number of times weekly. Moreover, get ahead of the game by contacting your paving agency so that they, too, can have a regular schedule for your home or business, for regular maintenance of the the same.