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Posted: Wed Feb 25, 2009 5:33 pm
by samandson
Hi,
I have a PIC drive(in red) and patio(in biscuit colour) which is about 5 years old.I have used a sealant with added rhino grip
twice.The colour has faded quite a bit and my question is,can a colour additive be mixed with the sealant to bring back a decent colour,or any other suggestions would be welcome.
Posted: Thu Feb 26, 2009 12:08 pm
by Tony McC
You can get a tinted sealant, but don't expect miracles. You can't make a silk purse from a sow's ear, so you're limited by just how faded is the existing.
Posted: Fri Feb 27, 2009 3:36 pm
by 87-1235666499
Very often the apparent loss of colour is simply due to wear of the sealer - as it becomes more and more scratched and ultimately starts to wear off (it is on the surface of the paving so acts as a wearing course) it's ability to reflect light diminishes as to our eye it appears that the colour is actually fading.
If the colour appears to be OK when the drive is wet then a new coat of sealer is required.
Have a look under drive cleaning and sealing in Google for your area or call a company such as Adseal (www.advancedsealingsolutions.co.uk) or PICS (www.picuk.com) for a recommendation of someone who can do the work.
Posted: Fri Feb 27, 2009 7:41 pm
by lutonlagerlout
is it the weather or the installation in the uk? but i never see any of the really nice pic you get in the USA?
LLL
Posted: Fri Feb 27, 2009 8:58 pm
by 87-1235666499
You're right LLL, the general standard is better in the USA but I'm excepting places like Vegas from that simply because of the money that's been spent on it there.
I have seen some good work in the UK but also some pretty horrible stuff. It's not the materials themselves, perhaps one reason is that you have the advantage there of being able to draw from a large pool of labour that are already qualified concrete finishers.
It would be argued here, also fairly, that the sheer volume of concrete they use for general paving compared to the UK facillitates this - a valid point.
To be honest it's a bloody hard thing to do well - of course so is block paving and stone laying for example, but I've done them all and PIC is the hardest - you don't have the same pressure on pre-cast materials - the concrete imprinting is a one-off chance, bugger it up and it's out with the Kango!
Posted: Sat Feb 28, 2009 9:56 am
by Tony McC
Too many of the problems associated with PIC are self-inflicted. I've mentioned previously that back when I was serving my time, a concrete finisher was expected to serve a 3 year apprenticeship. Concrete is a strange mistress and its not something you can come to understand overnight.
So why do people believe that a half- or one-day "training course" where they imprint a metre or two of concrete renders them technically competent to install PIC? Compare that to the training that's done in the US, where there are week-long intensive courses followed-up by regular 'refresher' and 'improver' courses, that are considered by the trade to be essential. In this country, the only time we undertake training is when it's mandatory: over there, it's seen as the only way to stay ahead of your competitors.
The number of jobs I've seen where the "contractor" is completely out of their depth is shocking, but they are quite happy to take money from customers, and then become aggressive when the shortcomings of their work are pointed out to them.
Done properly, PIC is a wonderful surface and the possibilities really are limited only by your imagination, but too many of those installing it are sorely lacking in genuine skills.
Posted: Wed Mar 11, 2009 7:09 pm
by samandson
Hi,Guest,
Thank you for your response.I have emailed the two sealant companies that you mentioned,three times each,and the result, absolutely nothing.I hope their product is better than their communication skills,which suck!
Still searching for an answer......
Posted: Sat Mar 14, 2009 6:24 pm
by Tony McC
Samandson - I've PM'ed you with a valid email address for PICS
Posted: Tue Apr 21, 2009 11:38 am
by grimwau
Unfortunately, the PICS website appears to be invalid now with the domain name up for sale. The Adseal one, however, is very informative.
Posted: Tue Apr 21, 2009 3:06 pm
by RAPressureWashing
Try this one for PIC
www.picsuk.com
Posted: Wed Apr 22, 2009 3:09 pm
by grimwau
R&A Pressure Washing wrote:
Thanks, that works fine.