Whether your stone walkway leads to your front door or enhances your outdoor living space, maintaining its natural beauty is crucial for keeping it stunning for many years. Stone walkways require professional sealing to protect them from the elements, ensuring your stone paths remain durable and attractive.
Understanding the right products to use—and those to avoid—on your outdoor path is essential for long-lasting results. Luckily, Dutchies Stoneworks offers nine fantastic tips to help you maintain and preserve your stone walkways, keeping your garden paths as beautiful as the day they were built.
1. Use a High-Quality Sealer
The best thing you can do for your stone walkway is have a professional seal it with a high-quality sealer. Between everyday wear and tear, water laying on the stones from rain, and foot traffic, your path takes a beating that can cause the stone to start breaking off. A natural stone sealer can help protect it from the elements and extend its life by preventing damage.
Dutchies Stoneworks is well-versed in outdoor stone patio and walkway maintenance. An impregnating, invisible sealer provides long-term protection for your stone walkway, and we only use the best! We’ll ensure the stones are adequately sealed to protect them from the elements and make them last longer.
2. Select the Right Cleaning Products
Over time, and even with proper sealing, your outdoor path will need regular cleaning. Dirt and debris will get on your stones, no matter how careful you are. And since your walkway is an investment that you want to last for years, you will only want to use superior cleaning products specifically designed for porous stone and masonry.
We recommend Dry Treat’s S-Tech Stone and Masonry Cleaner at Dutchies Stoneworks. This ready-to-use peroxide cleaner is created to clean organic stains and embedded dirt from your garden or walkway paths. Its 7.5 pH level means that it won’t harm most stone and masonry substrates.
Bleach, ammonia, and vinegar have either very high pH or very low pH that will weaken the protective seal of natural stone. They are too abrasive and acidic to be used on natural stone, so don’t use these products to clean your stone walkway.
3. Choose Concrete-Safe Ice Melt
Concrete-safe ice melt is another way to ensure you properly maintain your stone paths. Ice melt works by attracting water to create a brine that generates heat to melt ice and snow. Calcium chloride is a popular choice in concrete-safe ice melts because it’s less corrosive. If you use an ice melt that doesn’t specify it’s safe for concrete, you risk damaging your walkway.
4. Take Care of Weeds in the Spring
Weeds are known to pop up in the oddest places, including in your stone path! Around path edges, between stepping stones, and sometimes right in the middle of your stone patio, weeds can ruin the aesthetic your stone walkway provides. For this reason, you’ll want to use a weed killer in early Spring to take care of the weeds before they become too big of a nuisance.
In addition to applying weed killer, consider using pressure-treated edging to help prevent weed growth along the sides of your stone walkways. Regularly checking for and removing small weeds as they appear can also keep your garden paths looking pristine. Remember, a well-maintained stone path enhances the natural beauty of your outdoor space and extends the life of your stone walkway.
5. Promptly Clean Spills
What good is a stunning outdoor living space if you can’t entertain? And when you’re hosting or enjoying a relaxing dinner on the patio, there’s bound to be some food or drink spilled on your natural stones. If that happens, don’t panic! Simply pick up any large food items you can, take a garden hose, and gently wash off the spillage promptly to prevent staining.
For tougher stains, consider using a cleaner specifically designed for natural stone to ensure you don’t damage the surface. Regularly maintaining your stone walkway by addressing spills quickly will help preserve the natural beauty of your stone paths, ensuring they remain the perfect backdrop for your outdoor gatherings. Additionally, applying a protective sealant periodically can provide an extra layer of defense against stains, keeping your stone walkways looking their best for years to come.
6. Prevent Mortar Joint Cracks
If you’re in the south-central Pennsylvania area, you may be aware that we live in one of the world’s highest freeze/thaw regions, which can wreak havoc on the mortar joints of your stone pathway. Water seeps into the joints and under the stone, freezes, and cracks the joints. While you can’t completely prevent this freezing and cracking from happening, Dutchies Stoneworks can treat your flagstone with the best products to protect your stone from water.
7. Remove Leaves in the Fall
Another lesser-known item that causes staining on natural stone pavers is leaves. As they fall off the trees in the fall and land on your stone, their organic matter can break down and leave a stain if not removed quickly. Removing the leaves in the fall from your walkway at least once a week is the best practice to maintain your stone walkway.
8. Repair Broken Stones
One of the reasons you probably chose natural stone for your walkway is its various shapes and colors. And while they are an elegant choice to upgrade any outdoor space, they can become a safety issue if broken. Therefore, if you have a broken stone, call Dutchies Stoneworks to get it repaired or replaced before someone trips and falls. Regularly inspecting and maintaining your stone paths preserves their natural beauty and ensures they remain safe for all who use them.
9. Yearly Power Wash
Finally, maintain your stone walkway by giving it a yearly pressure wash. Ensure the pressure washer is under 3,000 pounds per square inch to ensure you don’t damage your stones. Once a year is enough to give your walkway an excellent refresher and clear away dirt. Spring is usually the best time to do this yearly cleaning. Still, you’ll want to wait until the temperature is consistently above 50 degrees Fahrenheit (including at night) to prevent water from freezing on your stones.
Contact Dutchies Stoneworks Today for All Your Stone Walkway Needs!
Dutchies Stoneworks is your expert source for all things stone! Whether your stone walkway hasn’t been adequately maintained and needs to be repaired, upgraded, or sealed, we have the expertise to assist you every step of the way.
Our team of skilled experts will guide you from the initial consultation through to the completion of the project, ensuring that every detail is attended to with the utmost care. We’ll restore your stone paths’ natural beauty and functionality using only the highest quality materials and techniques.
Don’t wait—schedule a consultation today to get started on enhancing your stone walkway and ensuring it remains a stunning feature of your outdoor space for years to come!