Your home’s exterior concrete surfaces act as the focal points of your outdoor living areas. A freshly installed and maintained paver patio can elevate the aesthetics of your space and create somewhere you always want to show off to your friends and neighbors. However, soil erosion can quickly undo your property’s pristine aesthetic, so keeping the area properly maintained and looking its best should be a priority. Homeowners want to find proven ways of protecting their investment and their entertainment area, so one of the most common questions the DuraSeal team gets asked is — how do I prevent erosion of a paver patio?
What Causes Erosion Around My Patio?
One of the biggest considerations homeowners have to account for when it comes to their property revolves around the runoff caused by their concrete surfaces. When it rains, the excess water glides over your paver patios, and in a perfect world, harmlessly runs off and drains properly. However, patios are notorious for having poor drainage systems, and the water can lead to erosion issues when the rain gets serious enough.
How Paver Construction Affects Erosion
How your paver patio gets built also plays a role in its drainage capabilities. If you opt for purely concrete slabs or cement, they provide limited drainage capabilities. Concrete will absorb the surrounding moisture and potentially start cracking. On the other hand, pavers offer small gaps between each to offer some drainage opportunities. Pavers must be angled away from your home to prevent water runoff from seeping into the foundation and potentially causing structural damage.
However, by angling them away from the house, you create a continuous stream of water flowing into the surrounding soil, flower beds, and more, causing erosion. These issues can worsen until the topsoil surrounding the pavers washes completely away.
Can Moisture Erode Concrete By Itself?
When it comes to paver patios, moisture remains one of the most significant dangers to your surface eroding over time. Whether it’s frequent heavy rainfall, flooding, or spills, unsealed pavers run the risk of absorbing a great deal of water before all is said and done.
During the winter months, the threat of persistent moisture damage rises significantly due to temperature fluctuations. Melted snow can get into the pores of your pavers, and the resulting freezing and thawing cycle can potentially cause havoc on your surfaces. This natural phenomenon can cause your concrete to expand and contract over time, creating new cracks in the material and requiring you to make repairs before you would have otherwise.
How Can I Protect My Paver Patio?
Protecting your paver patio from erosion doesn’t have to be more complicated than it sounds. While you can take steps to build retaining walls and drainage systems around your patio to protect the soil, DuraSeal can help protect your concrete itself from erosion damage. Our systems have proven highly effective in protecting your concrete surfaces from water infiltration and moisture damage that can cause lasting damage to your system.
Our team will come to your property, examine your paver patio, and determine what kind of sealant works best for your property and surrounding climate. We’ll apply our sealant through our proven process and keep your concrete looking its absolute best for years to come.
Contact the DuraSeal team for your free estimate and schedule your first appointment with concrete paver sealing specialists in NC, SC, GA, and FL and stone masonry sealant services today!