WINTER SIDEWALK MAINTENANCE

To help you get prepared for winter, here are some helpful  maintenance tips cleaning brick pavers.

• Low-pressure hose washers can be helpful when removing soil.
• Detergents added to the water stream might speed the removal of soil.
• Acid cleaners should not be used (acid cleaners must never be used on clay pavers).
• High pressures may cause damage to clay pavers.

All de-icing chemicals tend to cause efflorescence (white powder crust), snow should be removed by mechanical means:

• Power brushing is good -there is little or no metal to paver contact.
• Brooms and elbow grease work well, too.
• Plows can be used if the blades are flexible or if the blades to not ride on pavers. Pads or rollers should be used to raise the blades above the slight imperfections inherent in segmental paving systems. Chamfered edges help.
• Snow blowers can also be used, but the steel guide pads at the mouths of the snow blowers should be coated with rubber to reduce the possibility of damage when the guides hit the odd-raised or canted paver.
• Shovels are fine.
• Ice scrapers are not; they will damage concrete sidewalks and may damage clay pavers.
• Ice is best handled by spreading sand on the surface of the pavement.
• Salts such as magnesium chloride, can be mixed with sand to speed melting. Remember, however, that any de-icing chemical is a soluble salt that may cause temporary bouts of efflorescence until spring rains wash away the remnants of the de-icing salts. Sodium chloride will not harm clay pavers.
• Calcium chloride can cause deterioration of concrete pavers. The instructions on many chloride bags contain warnings that calcium should not be used on Portland cement concrete products or on clay pavers.
• Urea also may be used if there is no concern about killing plants.
• Urea does not cause efflorescence, but it is very expensive compared to calcium chloride and concentrations of nitrogen at the run-off points may kill vegetation.

GENERAL PURPOSE MAINTENANCE

If you feel the need to clean pavers after they are installed, we would suggest the following:

• Spray water with a garden hose on the area to be cleaned.
• Apply a mild detergent, such as ProSoCo 600 detergent to the area. Allow the cleaner to sit on the stained area for about ten minutes, but do not allow the cleaner to dry. You may need to agitate the cleaner to keep it moist. After the allotted time, you may scrub with a nylon bristled brush and rinse thoroughly. Be sure to protect plants and flowers prior to applying the cleaner and especially during the rinse cycle. If you wish to seal units you must allow them 24 hours of drying before applying the siloxane/penetrating sealer.
• Do not use high pressure water for cleaning.
• Never use acid.
• Do not use steel brushes.
• Always do a small test are before you do the larger areas.
• If you need a stronger cleaning solution you may use light duty restoration cleaner according to instructions.<!--[if !supportEmptyParas]-->