If you scroll through a regular masonry or landscaping forum, you’ll find folks recommend salt, vinegar, & bleach to cut down on paver weeds ruining their interlocked paver driveway. Even concrete walkways are not safe once weeds take root. No matter how much you pull them out, they’ll come back, running & cracking the paver grout. And while the salt & bleach fiasco does work, it can have environmental & aesthetic ramifications.
These are the kind of remedies that offend the sensibilities of the more eco-aware & curb appeal savvy in paver & block maintenance.
Bleach ruins the paver stain, while salt is corrosive, and eventually, the weeds prevail amidst your faltering pavers. Now, Purcell’s Paving & Masonry won’t boast our prowess in driveway blocks, hardscape, & interlocked paver maintenance, but since we install them quite adeptly, so, here are our two cents on maintaining your pavers – the eco-friendly way!
Weed Removal Remedies To Avoid
No Table Salt
Sprinkling salt over paver weeds is reputed to kill off weeds naturally, but the resulting soil salinity might affect surrounding flowerbeds too.
No Soda Bicarbonate
Salt & soda bicarb are a lethal combination for weeds, but they also corrode the walkway masonry and then leach into the surrounding landscape, deterring the soil fertility & natural organic fauna.
No Vinegar
Forums suggest spraying vinegar on paver weed leaves. While it is a temporary measure, it can affect surrounding plants. It also does nothing to deter weeds but damages your paver & book aesthetics.
Safe Weed Removal Remedies
Boiling Water
Of course, wear protective gear and try not to blanch the plants nearby. You can use a pressure washer that has been rated for hot water to make things easier. A few days of boiling water will clear off the weeds to the roots without compromising the organic content of the soil.
Polymeric Sand Grout
The best weed removal remedy is the proactive one. This entirely depends on what kind of contractor you hired for your driveway, walkway, & paver installation because concrete & paver work is not the same as masonry, and mistakes are made.
We utilize proper grout filling for our paver projects, & polymeric sand is just one of the options. There won’t be any weeds to worry about if your pavers have been interlocked with enough grout-packing.
Liquid Dish Soap
Moss is a form of weed that does look beautiful amidst pavers, but it makes surfaces too slippery for traction. Branchburg is quite rainy this time of the year, so you can expect moss to grow over your pavers. Mix 4 ounces of liquid soap in a gallon of water & disperse over the moss. It will take a week, but your hardscapes will be better.
While we don’t denounce the surefire solutions provided for weed removal, we do believe in protecting the paver & block aesthetics of our esteemed clientele, in addition to a thriving landscape. Hence, putting on a bit of elbow grease to rid of paver weeds is worth the enhanced curb appeal.
Purcell’s Paving & Masonry are your go-to specialists in all things asphalt, concrete, paving, hardscaping, site work, & streetscapes in Branchburg, NJ. Feel free to request our free estimates on a driveway block, patio, or pavers project!
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