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Posted: Thu Jun 13, 2019 10:58 am
by r4vvm
Currently have black limestone patio sealed with Lithofin which is around 4 years old and it has faded really bad.
So want to lay a new patio in a stone that will hold its colour longer. Looking for recommendations on something to use that is dark in colour.
Have looked at porcelain but seems really expensive.
Need around 30m2.
Posted: Sun Jun 16, 2019 12:27 pm
by RAPressureWashing
If the paving is in good shape etc, why not get it professionally cleaned & re-sealed?, No sealers are going to last especially on Black Limestone, they tend to start fading after 12 months, even the expensive ones, high maintenance paving for what it is IMO
Posted: Sun Jun 16, 2019 1:22 pm
by r4vvm
I want to change the layout as had a recent extension so need to change it around.
Just thinking to future proof and lay something that doesn't require expensive sealers or maintenance all the time.
Posted: Mon Jun 17, 2019 5:13 pm
by lutonlagerlout
kandla grey is the hardest and lowest maintenance indian stone in my experience
very monotone but doesnt stain or fade
LLL
Posted: Thu Jun 20, 2019 5:26 pm
by Tony McC
If you want long-lasting dark colour, then it's either a Padang-type granite, a Brazilian slate, or a porcelain, and none of them are particularly cheap.
The granite can be daubed with a sealant to 'enrich' the colour, but, as others have said, that will become a reasonably regular task - maybe every 2-3 years for best effect. Slate and porcelain are not suitable for (don't actually need!) a sealant, and more-or-less stay looking as they are permanently.
Dark shades are very much the in-thing right now, so you *will* pay for the look.
Buying a cheaper dark-ish stone and plastering it with a sealant every so often would probably work out more expensive over the service life of the patio (say 15 years) than it would to spend those few extra quid to buy a better quality stone or porcelain. Bear in mind that a genuinely good quality sealant will cost you 3 or 4 quid/m² and then, when it comes to re-application, you would be well advised to have a professional in to thoroughly clean the surface and prep it prior to re-sealing, which could easily cost you twice as much.
All of a sudden, paying an extra tenner or so per m² doesn't seem that bad an investment!
Posted: Thu Jun 20, 2019 5:26 pm
by Tony McC
If you want long-lasting dark colour, then it's either a Padang-type granite, a Brazilian slate, or a porcelain, and none of them are particularly cheap.
The granite can be daubed with a sealant to 'enrich' the colour, but, as others have said, that will become a reasonably regular task - maybe every 2-3 years for best effect. Slate and porcelain are not suitable for (don't actually need!) a sealant, and more-or-less stay looking as they are permanently.
Dark shades are very much the in-thing right now, so you *will* pay for the look.
Buying a cheaper dark-ish stone and plastering it with a sealant every so often would probably work out more expensive over the service life of the patio (say 15 years) than it would to spend those few extra quid to buy a better quality stone or porcelain. Bear in mind that a genuinely good quality sealant will cost you 3 or 4 quid/m² and then, when it comes to re-application, you would be well advised to have a professional in to thoroughly clean the surface and prep it prior to re-sealing, which could easily cost you twice as much.
All of a sudden, paying an extra tenner or so per m² doesn't seem that bad an investment!