[JetVac Cleaning]

Can you apply pu's at £7.50 per sqm and make a profit? I charge that for acrylic.

i earn my money on the clean and only make about an extra £120 ish quid for applying the sealer on a average drive so £120 for probably 3 hrs in total isn't bad but I'm fed up with the weather being so unpredictable and having unpaid jobs because I can't get the sealer down! If all you had to worry about was diesel and kiln dried sand then happy days! I get lots of inquires and most people don't even know what sealer is until you mention it then they want it quoted in with the price and hey presto your too expensive then don't want to know after that!

[drive surgeon]

That's exactly why we worked out  7 years ago that sealing is a waste of time. 

[Aqua Power Solutions]

Simon, what would your ideal setup be on a trailer? Size of trailer, type pressure washer, size tank,hotbox or two, hose reels, ect,ect. Just thinking about doing the same myself, just thought id ask the pro's . Ed

[M W.]

Sealing is a pain. Just go back and clean n sand each year.  The vapours from sealants are cancerous too. We used to use all the resiblock ones and they are deadly fumes. Di-isocynates etc. also weather is another reason not to seal. Moss grows on top anyway. #ballache

 

[Kev Martin]

Sealing with a water based penetrating sealer is a doddle. Clean it with a rotary fitted with a soft to medium brush, then vac it dry as you are going along.  Sweep in the KDS and then fly over it with a water based sealer it's simple. Yes the surface needs to be dry but it does to resand as well properly.

Kev Martin
Tiling Logistics Ltd

[SmartSeal]

I have been cleaning drives for 10 years and working with paving sealers for nearly 20.

Applying sealer can be good for both your business and your customer, if a few simple guidelines are followed.

Manufacturers of the pavers Marshall's, Brett's etc  would always say do not pressure wash block paving as it

1, Greatly accelerates the colour loss, surface wear and makes the blocks more porous, so susceptible to algae and lichen.
2, You increase the chance of dips and spreading as the sand underneath the blocks is gradually washed away.

With this in mind, my advice would be clean the drive properly once, then once dry, seal it properly using a good quality sealer in the right ratios. This means effectively flooding the joints on the 1st coat so that the sealer penetrates deep into the sand and sets the joints solid.

From then on a simple regular maintenance programme with occasional light wash down, with a top up coat of sealer applied every few years, should help keep the paving in great condition

There are various other do and dont's regarding cleaning and sealing paving, but a lot of it is common sense and can be learned quite quickly.

Hope this helps