Paving Stone Cleaning And Sealer Application in Dana Point / San Clemente, Ca

I was contacted by a repeat client to clean and seal his paver patio in Dana Point, Ca. He had agreed to host an event in his back yard so was under a time deadline to complete the service. I had contracted and performed the backyard remodel several years ago, so he knew who to call for the paver restoration.

Being close to the beach which makes the air more humid along with being the north side of the property we had some algae and moss to remove as a starting point. Merely cleaning the surface organics off would only work short term. In situations like this we needed to start with the application of a chemical algaecide to kill the organics to prevent re-growth. Proper knowledge of how to clean and prep of the paving stones is going to be key to a long lasting sealer application. Allowing the chemicals to have proper soak or dwell time is an important step that shouldn’t be overlooked. Once I was sure the organic growth was neutralized it was time to clean the pavers.

For this part of the process I always use a pretreatment of mild acids and detergents formulated specifically for cleaning paving stones prior to sealing. Using the proper products is important so the surface of the paver isn’t stripped of color or damaged. These same chemicals remove the water stains and efflorescence which is a white chalky residue that can stain pavers over time. I then cleaned all the paver area using hot water and my surface cleaner to ensure even cleaning without leaving stripes from missed areas. Any missed areas will be accented when the sealer is applied, so a minimum of two passes over everything is my standard to make sure this doesn’t happen. Upon a final rinse I then re-sand the joints as the cleaning will dislodge and remove the top layer.

Paver Sealing being the final step, it’s always important to use a high quality product to ensure years of protection for the paving stones. There are many off the shelf sealers readily available, most of which are essentially stir and spray. The life of these products I found in the past to be very limited. My interest isn’t in having to a come back yearly to clean and reapply an average performing product. I specifically use a product called Seal N Lock paver sealer. This is a two part water based coating that should be applied by trained professionals. We always apply a minimum of two coats depending on the final sheen the homeowner prefers. Our goal is always to protect the surface of the pavers for the longest time possible against contamination and discoloration.

Location: Orange County, CA