by Garry Perkins
A trend has grown rapidly across the USA with an increasing number of Landscape Architects, Engineers, and City Planners specifying interlocking pavers. This has come about due not only to the superior durability and lower maintenance of pavers but also for the broad selections of paver colors and patterns available today.
Pavement projects have expanded from patios and residential walkways to public parks and hotels to shopping malls, amusement parks and even large stadiums and streets and roads.
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To further insure the best possible paver installations in these heavy traffic areas the use of epoxy modified joint stabilizing protective sealers have become a standard. As not only do these single application sealers enhance and bring the paver colors and patterns to life but more importantly they offer functional improvements. These clear SB-1300 sealers penetrate the surface when applied at the same time seal and bond the joint sand forming a dirt and corrosion protective barrier. This is very important as many high traffic pavements are pressure washed and cleaned once or twice a month. Often times for large stadiums and amusement parks the pressure cleaning if done nightly to remove spilled drinks and food as well as normal dirt and grime. A further and even more critical benefit of Surebond sealing is the bonding of the joint sand so it is not washed away and eroded by rain and weather and it also protects the joints from the growth of unsightly weeds and dirt pickup. These added benefits save on maintenance while keeping the pavements looking new. For Coastal states and northern winter states the stabilizing-sealers also afford protection from salt corrosion, acid rain, winter freeze and thaw as well as spalling and cracking, to keep pavements bright and clean. Being acid resistant is a real sealer benefit where minerals are present from lawn sprinkling systems, as the rust and mineral deposits can be quickly and easily removed with mild acid base commercial cleaners like Surebond's SB-488 Rust and Mineral Cleaner, as epoxy modified stabilizing-sealers are acid resistant.
The improvement in color and appearance is a real benefit as shown on a newly constructed colorful road installation.
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The improvement in today's one step sealing application of epoxy modified protective stabilizing-sealers has made the sealing very quick and simple. Not only can you seal the pavers as soon as they are installed but a single flood coat application also bonds the joint sand together forming a complete Monolithic installation. The older type sealers required a three to six month waiting period before they could be safely applied and by that time pavements with heavy traffic would be dirty. Epoxy Modified Stabilizing-sealers are breathable, allowing trapped water vapor to escape that eliminates freeze-thaw spalling problems and winter damage. The stabilizing sealers other important benefit is that they are safe and non-hazardous and no longer flammable like the older sealers.
With these many added benefits of Surebond's epoxy modified stabilizing-sealers and the joint sand erosion protection they provide, the use of pavers for the swimming pool markets has been increasing. For years the pool industry was reluctant to specify pavers due to worries about joint sand washing into the pools causing pump abrasion and worries about harmful bacteria developing in the sand but with the use of stabilizing-sealer which seals both the joint sand and the pavers these problems have been eliminated for both the large public pools as well as residential pools.
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These same benefits are enjoyed for fountain areas as well as the New fountain parks. Here again you obtain the benefits of a sealed and protected pavement and also an almost maintenance free pavement. The marriage of pavers and protective epoxy modified stabilizing-sealers has given the paver contractor and paver industry a much more durable pavement.
