EP #5: Benefits of paver sealing

Why is it important to seal your brick pavers or travertine surfaces?  Tune in and find out on this weeks podcast.
To learn move go to: https://www.PaverProtectors.com

Paver Protectors, Inc.
12801 Commerce Lakes Drive, Ste 13
Fort Myers, FL. 33913-8640
(239) 288-0705

Transcript

Welcome to the Adventures in Paver Sealing podcast, with your host, Jeff Evers of Paver Protectors. Thank you for tuning into the Adventures of Paver Sealing podcast. I'm your host Jeff Evers. Today. I wanted to discuss the benefits of sealing your travertine and brick paver surfaces. No matter where you live in the country, if you have brick pavers or travertine or any similar type surface on the exterior of your home, it is important to protect them.

One of the benefits of sealing your pavers is protection. Actually, it's probably the main benefit. When you seal your pavers, you are protecting them from several things, such as the harsh environment that we have here in Florida. I don't know where you're at in the country. But here in Florida, we have extreme temperatures. We have 

• Extreme sun exposure
• High humidity
• High water tables. 

So the sealer will offer a level of UV rate protection. It's kind of like sunscreen for your skin. So you should reseal about every two years is the norm. Sometimes three years, depending on how much coverage you get in the area in question. This will definitely help protect it. Makes it stain resistant as a lot of people like to barbecue in their backyards. Suntan lotion & a lot of different stains can end up getting onto your pavers. So when you seal your pavers, that does make 'em stain resistant, lets you get some of those stains out...most of them, if you act quickly. 

And we actually had a case where in a neighborhood (it was a community when they had done new asphalt on the streets), and somebody's stray cat ran through the asphalt and up somebody's driveway, leaving paw prints. It was cute looking, but the homeowner wasn't too crazy about it. So being that it was sealed, we got out there swiftly and with a little chemical that we have and a little bit of elbow grease, we were able to get those cat prints out. Had it not been sealed, those would have been pretty much permanent in the pores of the bricks.

Sealing will also help with mold. As we all know, mold grows like crazy especially in these Southern tropical climates. So it makes the pavers less porous so that mold will grow a lot slower and make it easier to clean up and also helps protect against dirt and grime. A lot of the landscapers and the communities we have down here in Florida by these landscapers and their lawnmowers, they take these tight turns on there, leave tire marks, and that sort of thing. They wash off pretty easily when these pavers have been sealed. So as you can see, protection from environment is really one of the main benefits that we try to explain to our customers on why sealing is important.

Additional benefits of sealing and sand stabilization.

Everybody knows with brick pavers and even travertine tiles, there is sand joints in between the pavers. When you seal the stabilizing sealer (which is one of the sealers that we offer here at Paver Protectors) that will actually stabilize that sand. So what that means is it's hardened that sand in the joints and it helps keep it from washing out. Now it doesn't cement the joints together. However, it does help. So if you get heavy rains and that sort of thing, or even a light pressure washing, that sand, won't blow out.

To a lesser extent, the sand stabilization will also help with insect intrusion. It doesn't stop it completely, but you will find that you get a lot less ant mines and that sort of thing, when that sand is stabilized and hardened in the joints.

Now really, the real benefit (or at least the one that's most popular with our clients and most people that get sealing done) is how it looks. The color enhancement is just awesome. These sealers offer superior color enhancement, and there's a lot of different sealers on the market. Some call it the wet look. Some call it the enhanced look. But either way, what it does is it darkens and enriches the colors of the brick. It does not change the color, however. Kind of like it does when it's damp or wet, it'll make that paver color really come to life and bring up the natural beauty.

Now, when it comes to coloring, there are options available for additional color enhancement, which is called tinting. There are a lot of companies out there that have specialized in tinting your pavers, which means say, if you've got a light gray paver and you would rather it be red, they can change the color of the brick. I'm not a real big fan of it because I have found with tinting, a lot of times you will see some discoloration. You'll see some blotchiness. Some companies have mastered it pretty well, and it's not as noticeable. But because of that, you're actually trying to change the color of the brick. We're not big fans of it, only because to the trained eye, it just doesn't look as nice as the natural enhancement. But that is an option that's available to you. So depending on where you're at in the country, you may have a professional that does that sort of thing. So if you don't like the color of your bricks, tinting them is definitely an option and it is cheaper than replacing them.

Last, but not least is the sheen. Our sealers that we use at Paver Protectors offer a nice sheen and most companies have additional sheens available as do we. Our water-based sealers that enhance the color, they also enhance the sheen. So we call it like a satin to semi-gloss type sheen. It's not too shiny. The reason we stay away from the super shiny sealers is they become quite slippery and they're not breathable, which means they trap condensation and moisture underneath creating like a white hazy film. And the only way to rectify that, is to strip off the old sealer, which is quite expensive. So we don't use those types of sealers.

Now, a lot of that depends on the part of the country that you're in. If you're up North and you don't have high humidity, high water tables, you can definitely use these types of sealers without the risk of them trapping moisture. You would have to do a test spot area and see how that turns out. So the slipperiness and the whiting issue...stay away from the high gloss, unless you're in those areas and you do a test spot.

So that's going to wrap it up for today. If you have any questions, particularly about the protection, the color enhancement, that sort of thing, please feel free to reach out to me. If you're doing a project on your own and do it yourself, reach out to your local professional. Ask some good quality questions and most companies are very eager to help. They want you to make the right decisions. No question is a dumb question. We urge customers and clients and people that are out there doing this yourself. Just ask a professional. We're here to help. And that's what we do. That's the main reason for this podcast. So thank you for tuning in and we'll see you next time.

Thank you for listening to the Adventures in Paver Sealing podcast. To learn more about Paver Protectors, please visit paverprotectors.com or call (239) 288-0705.