The Brew Cabin

tony, superb web site, just what i needed.

what do you recommend for sealing the silca sand at the edge of a wall as the sand keeps falling out, the top surface of the block paver is the driveway and the side of the paver is the top bed of a small wall, as you obviously know your stuff could you recommend the best solution for the problem. regards

phil durkin

Hi Philip,

there's 2 options - either use a decent sealant over the entire driveway, which will seal in all the sand, or take out a second mortgage and buy a pack of Geofix and use that to seal the block joints that are right on the edge.

Geofix is a polymeric sand, ie, it's coated with a special goo that sets when exposed to the air. We find it's never quite as good as the manufacturers (recently bought out by FEB) would have you believe, but it should be ok for this sort of work.

It's 12 months or more since I last had to buy any, but I reckon it's around 40 quid for a 10Kg pack. :(

However, a decent sealant will cost you maybe 1.25 quid per m2, but you do get the added benefit of protecting all your paving, not just the jointing sand, so you have to weight-up what suits you best.

Thanks for a speedy reply, if my bank manager spits is dummy out and i opt for the cheaper sealant, will it put a glaze over the blocks (plaspave 50 in red with charcoal border) i would prefer for the bricks to look natural in their current guise?? I am not sure if you would suggest a manufacture for the sealant, the only one i have come across in my admittedly narrow search is from Marshall's, if used would this glaze the blocks

Kind Regards Phil Durkin

Resiblock 22 has minimal effect on the character of the paving, if used as a single coat. A second coat gives a semi-gloss finish.

If you contact the Resiblock site and tell them I sent you, they'll send you a 250ml sample that you can test out in a discreet corner of your blockwork to ensure it doesn't 'varnish' your paving.

In my opinion Resiblock 22 is probably the best block paving sealant on the market, anywhere, and it's not often I unreservedly endorse a product.

I have used Geofix, and found that it has worked well. It was easy to apply and set quickly. It does however, need cleaning to avoid moss and dirt from discolouring it. I guess this would probably be the case for any jointing material. My back garden patio has been down for some two years now though, and still looks good. I have sealed it with Aquaseal block paving sealer now, and this means that it needs less cleaning!! Great.

I have now decided to use Geofix sand on my drive, and was able to purchase a 20Kg box/bag, for £25+VAT!!! I reckon this will be enough to do the whole area, and save my back!!

Is this a newly paved driveway? Block Paving? If so, it must be quite small or you've vastly over-estimated just how far 20Kg of GeoFix will go!

Have you checked the coverage rate? Personally, I'd be very reluctant to use any polymeric sand on a block paved driveway unless there were extenuating circumstances, such as a lot of scour or a steep slope. Why do you think it would be an advantage on your driveway? I'd be interested to know. :)

Sorry, did not mention, that my drive is slabbed, not block paved.

I'm going to use it for ease of use - but you were correct Tony, about the coverage. I have just contacted the manufacturer and given them the paving dimensions and joint size and they have told me that I would need 3 20kg bags. It's only a small drive!

They even offered to send someone out to show me how to use the product and ensure that it was the right product for the job!!

I thought there was summat amiss!

Get the rep out, and see what s/he has to say - you might be able to blag a free sample and get a trade discount. :)

And ask them what happened to all the bumpf they promised to send to me last year when they were on the 'phone for 90 minutes extolling the manifold virtues of GeoFix!