Power washing concrete pavers

[mitch08]

Is it recommended to power wash concrete pavers?

I don't want to blow out all the sand or take the color out of them with the blast...

Has anyone done this with decent results. These Dang things stain pretty easilly in the winter and I want to get them cleaned up and ready for summer.

edit: One more question about sealing pavers... Mine are about 3 years old and I am starting to see the colors dull out a bit. They are Cambridge Toffee Onyx with some BS thing that keeps the color forever. But I think that is a scam

Should I seal them after cleaning? I dont want them to look wet, but I wouldnt mind them with a color that pops out a bit more.

Thanks!!!

 

[denisbaldwin]

I've pressure washed mine with good results. The trick is to use the concrete/driveway soap first and let it soak in, then go back and blast them. Dirt and grime should come right off.

 

[mitch08]

I've pressure washed mine with good results. The trick is to use the concrete/driveway soap first and let it soak in, then go back and blast them. Dirt and grime should come right off.

Cool thanks. What about sealing them? Do you do that?

 

[denisbaldwin]

I've never had to. I have a series of pavers at my current place, some concrete and some flagstone, and I've never had to seal them. They just get pressured washed once a month and they seem to stay looking new.

 

[mitch08]

Ok... Last stupid question, I promise

After pressure washing them, do you need to add more sand? Does pressure washing them knock the sand out from between them?

 

[denisbaldwin]

I'm not sure on the sand part. Mine have that concrete/mortar/sand slag that holds them together. After I wash them, it looks almost like grout until they get dirty again.

 

[bk406]

Mine have that concrete/mortar/sand slag that holds them together. .

Hopefully it;s not mortar/concrete

It's most likely polymeric sand. It's sand with a polymer in it that hardens up when activated with water. It gets pretty hard and wont come out like regular sand will. Depending on how hard you power wash the pavers, you may or may not need to add sand back at some point. Even w/o power washing, you may ned to add some every couple of years.
You can seal the pavers with anything advertised to seal concrete pavers. Its all mostly pretty good stuff. Most of the pavers up in the northeast are Unilock. They sell a sealer that is pretty good. You can get it that when applied wont change the look of the paver, or you can get a gloss sealer that will give thme a wet look. My pavers arent sealed nor do you really need to. But once a month seems excessive.