Black limestone driveway general questions

[Rupert]

Hello all. Read here for a while on and off this is my first topic.

Im a building contractor who also undertakes patio and driveway works as part of the business.
So I have used black limestone on a few jobs before, mainly patios. As im sure u all know this is a popular product now and as a result I have 2 driveways lined up using it. Following good advice previous jobs have been sealed to enhance colours and provide protection from staining. I am aware that sealing can be a temprimental process and am keen for some real world advice on the matter.
I am curious to know if there are any issues sealing black limestone when it is going to take vehicles?
How long do u guys usually leave limestone once it is laid before sealing? Of course a few dry days directly before but how long do u reccomend it be down? I will be laying over a consolidated base on 75mm concrete mersey grit cement wet mix with splash of SBR in each mix. Pointing will also have a dash of sbr in.
Would you reccomend bond bridge when laying limestone on a drive?
all input is very welcome, thanks for taking the time to read.

one final thing, where I live we do a fair bit of mastic and boiled linseed oil pointing, I have heard that double boiled oil used to be used for sealing flagging / paving. Has anyone used it on such a surface? Would it be suitable for natural stone? I did a test on a spare bit of limestone and it came up nice but question is would it last?

[RAPressureWashing]

Tyres will mark it badly, not ideal for a driveway IMO.
A Limestone area next to a gravel drive I cleaned and sealed a couple of weeks ago, (photos are on this site) has already been marked (someone reversed onto it) and I have just spent the day removing the tyre marks.

[Rupert]

Hi. Thanks for the reply. Wouldnt the black limestone be a good choicw for a driveway as the tyre marks would show less against the black surface than some of the lighter colours? Could you recommend a specific sealant for driveway as opposed to patio?
Its a horrible irony that this is one of the best looking paving materials but is fraught with so many issues.

[RAPressureWashing]

They really show up on Black limestone, if I could sign-in to PB I'd up load a photo of the tyre marks I had to remove.

[John156]

If you're after a black stone look at black Basalt or black slate. They don't have the problems that the black limestone has.

[RAPressureWashing]

Here is a tyre mark on Limestone that I had sealed a couple of weeks before they did this?



They can be removed, but a pain, warm/hot dirty tyres & Limestone don't go together IMO.

[Rupert]

Is the tyre mark issue so common? Is it a given that driving on black limestone will leave tyre marks?

[RAPressureWashing]

Any paving can mark from tyres, IE tarmac, concrete, usually power steering as in turning in the same place day after day, but that said, Limestone is a soft paving, correct me if I'm wrong and not really suited to a drive.

[lutonlagerlout]

IMHO all but the hardest granite setts are not suitable for driveways for just this reason
having said this I have laid Indian sandstone drives but that was unregulated stone on 100mm of leanmix
LLL

[Rupert]

I believe black indian stone is the strongest of the lot, admittedly I cant prove this scientifically but my experiance is that it is a heavier denser stone. Laid on a full bed with a bond bridge I would be happy it has the ability to withstand vehicles. Im just conscious that there are problens sealing it and really want to avoid this as I want to provide the best job for my customers. What are the best products for black stone laid for this usage?

Have any of you chaps heard of sealing any time of paving with double boiled linseed oil? I have heard it used to be used in the past prior to modern chemical sealants. It is still used on certain types of brickwork today. Would it be suitable for paving? Im curious as its a natural vproduct, inexpensive and readily available. I did a test on a piece of black limestone and it came up well and appears to have drawn into the stone and sealed it. Any input is welcome.
cheers

[RAPressureWashing]

I believe black indian stone is the strongest of the lot, admittedly I cant prove this scientifically but my experiance is that it is a heavier denser stone. Laid on a full bed with a bond bridge I would be happy it has the ability to withstand vehicles. Im just conscious that there are problens sealing it and really want to avoid this as I want to provide the best job for my customers. What are the best products for black stone laid for this usage?

Have any of you chaps heard of sealing any time of paving with double boiled linseed oil? I have heard it used to be used in the past prior to modern chemical sealants. It is still used on certain types of brickwork today. Would it be suitable for paving? Im curious as its a natural vproduct, inexpensive and readily available. I did a test on a piece of black limestone and it came up well and appears to have drawn into the stone and sealed it. Any input is welcome.
cheers

Don't know about the boiled linseed oil, bit before my time maybe, but what I do know is you need a colour enhancing sealer of Black Limestone.

[higgness]

Alot of public works in Ireland use limestone as kerbs and channel drainage ( usually Kilkenny limestone ). People still end up driving on it, with out such marks.

[RAPressureWashing]

Alot of public works in Ireland use limestone as kerbs and channel drainage ( usually Kilkenny limestone ). People still end up driving on it, with out such marks.

Sealed or un-sealed Higgness?

[higgness]

Not sure. unsealed mostly.