Brick Driveway Pavers: Cleaning and Maintenance

You've probably invested a lot of time and money installing brick driveway pavers. Hiring someone to clean or maintain your driveway pavers is the last thing you want to do. This article will show you how to clean and maintain your driveway in order to keep it looking new.

Step 1 - Dry Cleaning

Depending on how bad the driveway looks you may only need to conduct this step. Brick pavers have a tendency to attract and keep dirt that never seems to go away. In a very short period of time you'll have a layer of dirt from the surrounding area or your vehicle.

Before attempting any drastic measures, use a broom and thoroughly brush away any dirt you can see. Take the time to use some pressure as you sweep so you can get between the bricks. When you have swept away the dirt you can see what else needs to be done. There may be some patches of really thick dirt or dried mud. To remove this, you need to use some elbow grease and the deck brush.

Step 2 - Wet Cleaning

If you have some very tough areas, then power washing may be in order. Do not power wash on loose bricks if you can help it and try to keep the washer approximately 1 foot from the brick pavers. If the power wash isn't as successful as you had hoped (perhaps you have oil stains or other spills) then continue on.

Grab a clean bucket and add several drops of soap detergent to hot water. Dip a deck brush in the water and scrub until the suds get into the mortar. If you have some tough stains such as grass or blood then you can put the soap directly on the pavers and scrub them before washing them off with the power washer.

Certain stains require a tougher solution: bleach. If you have oil stains, paint splashes, moss, or chemical spill discoloration then bleach may be the solution you are looking for. Fill a bucket with hot water and add bleach to it at 1 cup per gallon of hot water. Make sure you use the heavy rubber gloves and a mask to protect yourself. Dip the deck brush into the bucket and begin scrubbing the area where the tough stain is. You will be able to see it working and the stain fading. Use the power washer again to clean the brick pavers.

Step 3 - Fresh Spills on the Pavers

If you get to a fresh spill quickly you can avoid the use of bleach which can harm your pavers over time. The first thing that you have to do is pour clay-based cat litter on top of the spill. Over an hour or two the litter will absorb the excess liquid. From here you will power-wash the area to remove the litter. With any luck the liquid didn't have time to set.