My burgandy pavers were installed 6 years ago. Contractor applied a clear oil based sealer and they looked beautiful. After two years they began to fade so I applied 2 coats of sealer. Found out (too late) that appling too many coats of sealer creates a problem of locking in the moisture. Tried using strippers to remove sealer, didn't work, tried appling Xylene to reactive the sealer, worked for maybe 3 months then pavers clouded over again. Burgandy pavers seem to show this problem more than other colors. Tried using a different brand of sealer but still oil based....didn't last long.
QUESTION:
Has anyone had any luck correcting this problem?

[Bonanza]

I would call the company that installed them and explain your problem.
They should be able to tell you what to do or let them do it.

[villagetinker]

If worse comes to worse, you may need to sand blast to get the old finish of, and then reseal had done some previous research on pavers, and I found the suppliers are more than willing to help end users. Try doing a Google search on paves, and contact the manufacturers directly can offer any guidance.

NOTE: my comment regarding sand blasting, this with expert guidance and testing a small area first. You want to remove the finish, and not any of the actual stone.

Good luck, hope this helps.

Thanks Bonanza, I tried to contact the contractor, he is in jail on drug charges. He dida wonderful job installing my pavers, it was my fault for applying too many coats of sealer over the years.....wish I had known

[DeanFL]

Same thing happened to me 8 years ago in my old home in Leesburg.

I made the exact same mistake (if some is good more is better...) Same result, cloudy pavers/coating. I tried everything myself to clean off the old sealer - zip.

Called the paver company that a neighbor used (mine at the time was out of business...) and was pleased with - Contacted Paradise Pavers and they fixed the problem perfectly. FYI it was not cheap... only solution was to use pretty harsh chemicals (used wisely) and continuously power wash with heavy duty machines. It took them well over a week back&forth - 4 different cycles to see how much more was needed. Spent A LOT of time - and cost me $950 in the long run. But they did a wonderful job, and with all the labor could have charged me more - but a very reputable firm.

I had Paradise install my paver driveway and hardscape walls here a few months ago - they have since done 4 neighbs drives due to my recommendation and their great work.

Call Neil Steinmetz - owner of Paradise Pavers, 352 753 2156. Perhaps there are different chemicals developed now that will do the job at lesser cost...

Wow, that is great info Deanfl, and not a bad price, i was quoted $3000 by more than one contractor. I will call them,,,thank you

One more thing about your driveway in Leesburg......did they re-seal the driveway after stripping it and if so, did it still look good 3-4 years later?

[DeanFL]

yes they did - with water-based sealer; turned out great. Had a slight sheen and nice look. Like new actually.

After my new paver drive here in TV in the late summer, they sealed a few days after install with water-based sealer as well. We are so happy (as are our neighbors with theirs). Cannot give Paradise a high enough rating. Tell Neil that Dean recommended them - he will remember my 'strip-job from many years back. BTW one of my issues back 8+ years ago - I know I used a waterbased sealer one year then oilbased a couple years later - a huge NoNo I learned from Neil. So, I "sealed" my fate to need it all stripped. Will never do something stupid as that again. But I no doubt will find something else to mess up... you know.

I will mention your name to Neil. I didn't mix oil base with water base sealers but I did mix different brands of sealer, some from the big home stores with better quality from big paint stores,,,another no no

[Barefoot]

We had our birdcage floor painted with a design in 2010. It definitely needs some type of sealer now.
We haven't been able to reach the people who painted the floor.
Any advice for what type of product to use?
Fireboy is pretty handy, however we don't mind paying for a professional to seal it properly if that is what is needed.