Do you really need polymeric sand? Polymeric Sand is as ubiquitous to interlocking pavers as garden soil to gardening. You need good garden soil to grow your vegetables and plans. You need good polymeric sand to maintain the look and appearance of your landscape.
What are the benefits of polymeric sand?
The primary benefit of polymeric sand over using regular sand is that it hardens up. By solidifying and bonding to the surround pavers, it provides an extra line of strength to keep the pavers together and to help prevent shifting.
Should you use polymeric sand for pavers?
Polymeric sand is a material used to fill paver joints, the empty spaces found between each paver, tile or natural stone. Polymeric sand is appreciated by paver installers because joints you get from it are durable and even .
Does water drain through polymeric sand?
Installing polymeric sand involves more than just sweeping and watering. That is because this will harden and not allow water to drain through, keeping the water below the pavers and saturating the joints, not allowing the polymeric sand to properly dry and never set.
How do you choose polymeric sand?
The key difference between polymeric sand and polymeric dust boils down to the size of the joints between the stones. In applications that have larger, natural stones with irregular contours, it can be difficult to create consistent ½” joints. For these jobs, polymeric dust would be the ideal product to use.
Related question for Do You Really Need Polymeric Sand?
Does polymeric sand harden like concrete?
Polymeric sand cures by drying. And in order to fully set, it needs to dry out completely. If your polymeric sand didn't harden up, it's pretty much guaranteed there's a moisture issue. If the joints remain wet after the installation, they will remain soft until they dry.
Can you use polymeric sand on driveway expansion joints?
When it comes to sands, there are a few options to choose from, such as a natural fine dry sweeping sand or a synthetic sand blend. However, polymeric sand is unique because it will allow the joints to expand and contract with the elements like hot sun during the summer and below-freezing temperatures in the winter.
What happens if polymeric sand gets rained on?
After installation, a hard rain on polymeric sand that has not fully set up could result in polymeric sand all over the top of the pavers. However, once water is applied, any remaining polymeric sand particles will harden and remain on the surface resulting in an unhappy customer.
Can I mix polymeric sand with regular sand?
Yes, but it may not be the best solution. Travertine pavers tend to be laid with very small joint gaps. While regular sand can be swept into these gaps, the space is not large enough for polymeric sand to form a strong bond.
How do you remove polymeric sand from joints?
The best way to remove polymeric sand from a paver surface is to use a hot water pressure washer at 180°F. The heat will reactivate the polymers in the product and allow the sand to be stripped away.
How do you compact polymeric sand?
Is polymeric sand the same as silica sand?
Polymeric sand is a fine sand that is combined with additives that form a binding agent when exposed to water. Silica is such as an additive and is often used to help lock the fine sand particles together.
What's the difference between paver sand and regular sand?
When you compare paver sand vs play sand, the biggest difference is that paver sand doesn't undergo the same testing to ensure it's child-safe. In other words, you have no way of knowing if the sand contains any harmful chemicals or is unhygienic.
How do you replace polymeric sand between pavers?
To replace sand that has been washed out, simply pour joint sand over the pavers. Next, sweep it into and across the joints using a stiff push broom. Keep the depth of the sand at ¼ inch from the surface of the paver. Afterwards, you can sweep the excess joint sand between pavers and store it again for future use.
Can you patch polymeric sand?
Can you top off polymeric sand?
Topping basically refers to filling the joints with regular sand and then topping them off with polymeric sand. We always recommend filling the entire joint depth with a single product to ensure a successful installation.
How do you top up polymeric sand?
Are there different colors of polymeric sand?
It comes in different colors: Polymeric sand comes in a variety of colors, usually in different shades of gray and beige. Choose the color that goes best with your pavers. For example, a shade of gray looks good with flagstone pavers.
Does polymeric sand have portland cement in it?
Most polymeric sand mixtures are based on silica sand, making them more like beach sand than mason sand, which is based on crushed stones such as granite and limestone. Some polymeric sands also contain Portland cement mixture. The secret ingredient, however, is the proprietary polymer.
How soon after polymeric sand can you seal pavers?
Traditionally, concrete paver manufacturers have recommended waiting at least 90 days after polymeric sand installation to apply a protective sealant to a paver surface. Nowadays, a 30 day delay is sufficient to allow the evaporation of any remaining natural efflorescence contained in the pavers.
What is the best concrete expansion joint material?
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Silicone provides an excellent alternative to the three expansion joint fillers above, and for a few reasons.
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