I spent a couple of hours yesterday cleaning the driveway. About half way thru, the magic cleaning device ran out of "magic" and quit. New one on the way and I hope it will hold up so I can finish the rest of the job.

Anyway, is it worth trying to seal this concrete to try to keep it cleaner? or am I whizzing in the ocean?

Surface is in good condition, but I live in the South and mildew gets to live wherever it wants down here.

Thanks,

RMD

Best advice here in the south is to just pressure wash it when it needs cleaning. Beating mold/mildew is a losing game. I pressure wash my driveway twice a year to keep it looking as good as possible.

I've had good results using a witches brew of a quart of bleach, a cup of borax & 4gals of water all in a bucket, big squirt of dawn to suds up & hold the mixture on the concrete and using a stiff push broom to move across the stains & the grime. I let it sit for 10 minutes then more push brooming & finally rinsed off with pressure washer. I had a dark mold/mildew stains due to tree shade. Came out nice, satisfied with the results. Cost me a lot less than concrete cleaner. Ps...I never had any experience sealing, might work, but mold & mildew seem ever present.

Thanks! I see this product is also available for use as hose-end sprayer. Have a 2 story that I can't reach with my brush. I should be able to blast it. Thanks again.

quote:

Originally posted by HRK:
http://www.wetandforget.com/pr..._forget_outdoor.html

Anybody have success with this on gutter and down spouts?

Be careful with the pressure washer on drive ways.
They erode the cream top layer after several uses of the washer[ask me how I know this]
But it improves traction if your drive is up hill.
Also your days of walking barefoot on it will be over.

Can't stop the mildew but you can help reduce it maybe, and reduce future stains and make cleaning easier. I have about 2500 sq feet of patio and drive so I'm looking at getting one of these, maybe this one from northern.
http://www.northerntool.com/sh..._200659584_200659584
https://youtu.be/gMa5heVZvBA

Is the drive sealed?
Does it darken and soak in water or does water mostly bead up on it?

To help preserve the life of the drive it should be sealed with a penetrating sealer.

Research Silane and Siloxane concrete sealers. This is what I used.
http://www.ccc-usa.com/products/super-seal-m

The manufacturer said for maximum protection I could apply the penetrating sealer first and then a year later apply a surface sealer. But it's the penetrating sealer that is most important. Top layer coatings are primarily for looks.

I had the home owners' version of that made by Troy and it failed on me. The drive is not sealed.

Thanks for the links.

RMD

I always presssure wash before sealing or resealing.

quote:

Originally posted by rduckwor:
I had the home owners' version of that made by Troy and it failed on me. The drive is not sealed.

Thanks for the links.

RMD

Chin up rduck; we have the real mold down here on the mosquito coast. Nasty, embedded shit.

I broke down this year and hired a professional house wash service. Best $350 dollars I ever spent (outside of pistols). Two story house and driveway shines like a new SIG.

Uh, new Sigs don't shine, they glow.

+1 on a professional house wash, best money spent. I have the same problem with my concrete. When I pressure wash it next time, I'm going to seal it. I didn't know it was possible until recently.