# stripping concrete pavers of old failed sealer



## Bondo (Dec 8, 2007)

> It is eventually coming off, just Alot of work and going through Alot of stripper. 6000 square feet of driveway.


Ayuh,... I donno what'll strip 'em off, but I'm curious as to *Why* yer doin' it....


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## davearonow (Dec 29, 2011)

Bondo said:


> Ayuh,... I donno what'll strip 'em off, but I'm curious as to *Why* yer doin' it....


Because the old sealer that is on there has failed and turned milky white hiding the beautiful brick paver driveway underneath. It is an immaculate multi million dollar home in a very high end neighborhood and the owners just want the driveway to look as perfect as the rest of the house.


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## noquacks (Jun 5, 2010)

MC is so stinky to work with- powerful solvent- thing is, you have an uphill battle cuz even if the MC disolves the stuff, how are you gonna remove the slurry from the brick surface? Just pressure washing the smitherines out of it may not be effective. It has to go somewhere, and may just sit at the ground where it is and dry again. MC will dissolve some coatingds, but when dry, it deposits right back again.

My opinion- if its so expensive a home, why are thay using "fake" concrete pavers when they can use real Georgia clay bricks? Fake , molded concrete pavers are cheap, replaceable, dont hold color like real clay brick (they soon fade in the brutal sun), and I would consider removing the whole milky white/fake paver messs. May be cheaper in the end.


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## noquacks (Jun 5, 2010)

If they were clay, you could try muriatic acid. But being concrete molded pavers, the acid will eat them up, unlike clay.......


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## davearonow (Dec 29, 2011)

Muriatic acid is the prescribed treatment for removing efflorescence, which is a type of salt like deposit, which can be powdery or crystalline, caused by moisture wicking lime out of the concrete. Acid should have no effect on the sealer itself and only runs the risk of damaging the pavers themselves. I will test a small area just to satisfy everybody's curiosity, but I suspect I will prove it has no effect on the sealer. Since my thread, I have continued my research and am continuing to find methylene chloride to be the prescribed chemical to remove the old sealer.

I'm going on my fourth time stripping in some areas, but I did switch from a 15 degree too on my pressure washer to a roto, rotating too and it is helping immensely to remove the sealer. It is still a very tedious process as I have to hit every square inch of pavers with a cone of water pressure about as big around as a golf ball with the tip about 2 inches or less away from the pavers, this, of course, after using stripper. Very tedious and time consuming but is is definitely working better than the other tip. Once again, 6000 square feet of driveway. Yikes!

Anyone that has any other advice or tips , I would really appreciate it. Till then I have no choice but to keep doing what I'm doing. I've read of extreme cases of people sandblasting the sealer off, which I have no doubt will work, but neither me or the owners are willing to go through that. 

Sigh. Back to work, I guess.

I will conquer this one way or another.


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## davearonow (Dec 29, 2011)

noquacks said:


> MC is so stinky to work with- powerful solvent- thing is, you have an uphill battle cuz even if the MC disolves the stuff, how are you gonna remove the slurry from the brick surface? Just pressure washing the smitherines out of it may not be effective. It has to go somewhere, and may just sit at the ground where it is and dry again. MC will dissolve some coatingds, but when dry, it deposits right back again.
> 
> My opinion- if its so expensive a home, why are thay using "fake" concrete pavers when they can use real Georgia clay bricks? Fake , molded concrete pavers are cheap, replaceable, dont hold color like real clay brick (they soon fade in the brutal sun), and I would consider removing the whole milky white/fake paver messs. May be cheaper in the end.


I can definitely tell the difference between old sealer that still remains and hasn't been removed yet, and any redeposit of dried slurry that didn't get completely washed away. The entire driveway has plenty of slope in it and I am having very little problem getting everything washed away. The stripper also sort of foams up like soap when you blast it with water pressure and stops foaming when it is gone. You have to appreciate HOW MUCH water and pressure I am using, like I said, 3500psi a 5 gal a minute with the tip held about 2 inches or less away from the surface, and then the entire area is pressure rinsed before it dries.. I am getting 95% of the slurry off and can easily see the areas I'm not and distinguish them between old remaining sealer. 

As far as using concrete pavers, they are prestained with color during the manufacturing process and seem to be plenty durable, this driveway is over 10 years old and not a scratch, or blemish or stain or fading of color or evidence of wear on any brick once I finally strip away old sealer, there seems to be no issue with durability so far. I'm positive they won't last as long as Georgia clay bricks, we have hundred plus year old streets in places here in Florida that take a pounding from our sun's UV, sand and heavy weather and Alot of them are still in good shape.

I don't know why the owners chose concrete pavers as opposed to brick, other than you get vastly more paver shape, color, and pattern design options with concrete and I'd estimate that one out of 100 Homes in this area use brick pavers instead of concrete. You just don't see Alot of homes using brick instead of concrete for driveways around here. 

Replacing 6000 square feet of driveway is not an option. It would be immensely more expensive and troublesome than stripping it. Once again, what I'm doing is working, it is just a slow, tedious and laborious process. 

I contonue Looking for advice from anyone that has practical working experience, or knowledge that can help speed this up.

I appreciate the speculative suggestions as well, but would really welcome suggestions from anyone that has been through this and solved it in a way I'm just not seeing yet.

Thanks again.


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## opwdecks (Jan 14, 2012)

When stripping pavers it is best to do it in small sections as the stripper will dry fast. Apply the stripper about 100 square feet at a time, let sit for 10 minutes, then pressure wash off. The use of a turbo tip will make it much easier. 

There are paver sealer strippers available online that are designed for this purpose. Main difference between them and what is available at your local store is the ability to dwell longer. Typical paint strippers such as Dad's Paint Stripper will dry very fast.


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## concretemasonry (Oct 10, 2006)

davearonow -

You obviously have a high gloss sealer that failed.

When you go to seal again, look at a low gloss water based sealer. It does not last quite as long, but is far better suited to concrete pavers. Concrete pavers are the the most commonly used pavers in the world and most of those that are sealed appear to be a low gloss water based sealer.

Good paver suppliers (not big boxes) know what is needed and what works best. I know of a paving contractor that started supplying equipment and sealers to other contractors and some dealers more than 20 years ago. He installed both concrete and clay pavers (mainly concrete) in a harsh climate and knows what works with what. He knows you do not use a gloss sealer around a pool and when to use Siloxaline-type sealers. I think the name is Pave Tech (or Tek) and think they are still around.

Dick


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## opwdecks (Jan 14, 2012)

Both water based paver sealers and high gloss solvent based sealers can turn milky white. It is related to trapped moisture or "cheap" acrylics in the sealer. Best is to find a high quality sealer that is not 100% filming. This will allow the sealer to breathe. This greatly reduces the chance of the sealer turning milky white from trapped moisture.


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## davearonow (Dec 29, 2011)

Thanks everyone. Appreciate the suggestions. Still hoping for a magic bullet solution, but I'll keep doing what I am doing for now.


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