You’ve carefully covered your patio or poolside with beautiful paving stones selected for how they look all sparkling and new. You’ve used a paver coating to seal in those good looks. And you’d like to believe you can enjoy it forever without doing another thing. But as with so many home improvements, a little regular maintenance will only improve your new addition’s health and well-being.
Clean Sweep
Sweep off those stones from time to time to remove leaves, dirt, stray branches, and whatever other debris may accumulate. Promptly pick up any wet towels or toys so the whole surface gets the same amount of sun and rain and drying time. Sop up spills promptly, and hose or mop off any stains to keep them from soaking into stones and grout.
Check-Up
Take a stroll around your stone-covered area and look for any problems. Keep an eye out for things like weeds growing through the grout, cracks in the stone, chips around the edges, or a faded-looking patch. Trim away any grass that looks like it’s ready to encroach on the stones’ territory, and ward off any critters that may want to burrow underneath. Addressing small concerns right away will keep them from becoming big concerns, and reduce the expense of repair and replacement.
Use with Care
Of course, better than fixing chips and cracks is never making them in the first place. You certainly don’t want to feel like you have to avoid using something neat and new to keep it from getting messed up, and pavers should be sturdy enough to take a fair amount of walking and running and playing. But you’ll want to be careful with heavy items and dragging around things like tables and chairs and barbecues.
With minimal maintenance and a certain amount of thought, your pavers should be keeping your yard looking trim and terrific for years to come.
