Working and Sealing Sandstone Pavers

Sealing sandstone pavers has been a popular topic in the construction and building game for many years. Used for both domestic and commercial applications, sandstone can be soft that it can be carved, and strong and resilient, that it can withstand the elements. Some are more resistant to weathering or the breaking down of rocks through exposure to the elements such as water, wind sun or ice thus the most common application of sandstone is in pavements or floorings. A coating of sandstone sealer is applied usually the penetrating type in this kind of application or use to protect it from UV rays and exposure to rain or snow. Impregnators or penetrating sealers are absorbed into the stone, blocking moisture or any contaminants to seep into the substrates which may cause stains.

Sandstone is a sedimentary rock made up of particles of rocks or minerals the size of sand. These particles are cemented together by silica or calcite to form the rock. Quartz usually makes up sandstones because it is the most common material resistant to abrasion. Typically brown in color ranging in yellow, beige to tans, some sandstone can be red in color ranging from dark red or terracotta to pink when there is a presence of iron oxide. An addition of manganese to the iron oxide can give the sandstone a purplish tone. Sandstone can also be green because glauconite which is an iron potassium phyllosilicate mineral is present.

The environment from which it is mined or quarried determines the characteristic of sandstone, from the details, the grain size and composition as well as the sedimentary structures and rock geometry. There are two main environments from which sandstone is quarried or sourced, these are the terrestrial environment such as rivers, lakes or deserts and the marine environment such as the beach, offshore bars and deltas. In a quarry, sandstone is subjected to digging, blasting or cutting before it can be obtained. To become a building material such as tiles, blocks, slabs or strips it is further subjected to four additional steps namely dressing, cutting or sawing, surface grinding and edge-cutting or trimming.

Sandstone being a stone is porous and permeable. Its durability is determined by the cement that holds it together whether is it siliceous, felspathic or calcareous cementing material. Because it is formed in layers, cut sandstone has designs that only nature can form. This makes it a building material good for interior and outdoor decoration. But its porosity also makes it more susceptible to wear and tear such as stains and scuff marks if not treated with a sandstone sealer. A sealer will protect the surface from scratches and will fill in the pores or the space between particles to repel water, oil and chemicals that would otherwise stain the stone. Sandstone sealers can be water or solvent based although there is a shift to water based types since its application is easier and has no harmful fumes.

The other type of stone sealer is the topical sandstone sealer which can either be permanent or strippable. Because these type of sandstone sealer coats only the surface of the stone, it requires constant stripping and resealing to ensure proper protection of the material. Topical sandstone sealer products are also cheaper than impregnators thus most homeowners invest in the penetrating type of sealer which offers more protection.