Concrete and brick pavers are one of the most popular hardscaping choices in metro Atlanta, appearing on driveways, patios, pool decks, walkways, and outdoor entertainment areas throughout the region. They look premium, they perform well in Georgia's climate, and with proper maintenance they last for decades. Without proper maintenance, they fade, stain, develop biological growth, lose their joint sand, and become loose and uneven — a process that can begin surprisingly quickly in Atlanta's combination of heat, humidity, and clay-heavy soil.
Cleaning and sealing pavers is not a single simple task — it's a multi-step process where each step depends on the one before it, and skipping or rushing any step compounds the final result. This guide covers the complete process: what to clean, how to clean it, what to address before sealing, how to choose the right sealer, and what to expect from the finished job.
Understanding What You're Cleaning
Concrete Pavers vs. Brick Pavers
Concrete pavers are manufactured units made from Portland cement, aggregate, and pigment. They're highly consistent in size and shape, widely available in dozens of profiles and colors, and the most common paver type for modern installations in the Atlanta area. Brick pavers are fired clay products — denser, harder, and more uniform in color depth than concrete, but with natural variation in color and texture. The cleaning chemistry is similar for both, but concrete pavers are more susceptible to acid damage (which matters for efflorescence treatment) and brick is more porous, absorbing sealers differently.
Natural stone pavers (travertine, flagstone, slate, bluestone) require different cleaning chemistry and are not covered in this guide — natural stone is discussed in our patio cleaning content.
What Accumulates on Pavers
Georgia pavers accumulate a layered mix of contaminants: biological growth (algae, mold, moss in shaded areas), dirt and clay tracked in from the surrounding landscape, oil and fuel stains near driveways and parking areas, tannin staining from leaves and tree debris, pollen, and — particularly on concrete pavers — efflorescence. Each of these requires a different treatment approach, and a thorough cleaning job addresses all of them rather than just blasting away visible surface dirt.
Efflorescence: The White Haze Problem
Efflorescence is one of the most common and least understood issues on concrete pavers. It appears as a white or gray hazy deposit on the paver surface, often most visible in the first 1–2 years after installation. Many homeowners assume their pavers are damaged or that the color has faded. Efflorescence is neither — it's a natural chemical process inherent to cementitious materials.
What Causes Efflorescence
Portland cement contains calcium silicate compounds and free lime (calcium hydroxide). When water moves through the paver — from rain, irrigation, or ground moisture — it dissolves these soluble calcium compounds and carries them to the surface. At the surface, the water evaporates and the calcium compounds react with carbon dioxide in the air, forming calcium carbonate — a white crystalline salt deposit. The process is entirely natural and doesn't indicate product defect, though heavy or persistent efflorescence can indicate excess water movement through the pavers (drainage issues, excessive irrigation contact).
Removing Efflorescence Correctly
Light efflorescence sometimes weathers away naturally over a season or two as rain repeatedly wets and dries the surface. More significant deposits require chemical treatment with a dilute acid wash. Muriatic acid (hydrochloric acid) at 10:1 dilution or a proprietary efflorescence cleaner (typically phosphoric acid-based) is applied to the dampened surface, allowed to dwell briefly (1–3 minutes, not longer), then thoroughly rinsed. The acid reacts with the calcium carbonate deposits and dissolves them.
Never apply acid treatment to dry pavers — the acid concentrates at the surface and can etch the paver face. Always wet the pavers first, apply diluted acid, observe the reaction (fizzing), rinse thoroughly, and neutralize with a dilute baking soda solution. Acid treatment before applying sealer is critical — sealer locks in whatever is on the surface, and sealing over efflorescence traps it under the film, creating a hazy or milky appearance in the sealer that is very difficult to correct.
Pressure Settings for Paver Cleaning
Pavers are among the few exterior surfaces where meaningful pressure is not only acceptable but necessary for thorough cleaning. However, pressure must be applied correctly to avoid damaging joint sand and the paver surface texture.
Surface Cleaning with a Rotary Attachment
The best tool for cleaning large paver areas is a surface cleaner (rotary flat surface attachment), not a fan nozzle. A surface cleaner directs water in a contained spinning pattern that cleans evenly, minimizes overspray, and dramatically reduces the blowout of joint sand compared to a direct wand spray. Operating pressure for concrete pavers with a surface cleaner: 2,500–3,500 PSI. This pressure range is sufficient to dislodge embedded biological growth, clay, and compacted dirt without etching the paver surface.
Direct fan nozzle work on pavers — particularly zero or 15-degree nozzles at close range — should be reserved for spot treatment of heavily stained areas. Using a zero-degree nozzle as the primary cleaning tool across a paver surface will erode the surface texture of concrete pavers over repeated cleanings and will absolutely blast joint sand out of the joints. This is the most common DIY mistake on paver cleaning jobs.
Joint Sand: What Happens and What to Do
Every paver installation has joint sand filling the spaces between the pavers. This sand is structural — it locks the pavers together laterally, prevents rocking, and keeps weeds from establishing between joints. Regular kiln-dried sand washes out over time with rain and cleaning. Once joints are depleted, pavers become loose, settle unevenly, and weeds establish rapidly in the empty joints.
After cleaning and before sealing, depleted joints must be re-sanded. The two options are kiln-dried sand (inexpensive, requires periodic reapplication, not weed-resistant) and polymeric sand. For most Atlanta installations, polymeric sand is the correct choice for any joint restoration work done before sealing.
Polymeric Sand: Why It Matters
Polymeric sand is kiln-dried sand with polymer binders added. When moistened and compacted, the polymers activate and bind the sand particles together, creating a semi-rigid joint that resists washout, insect tunneling, and weed establishment. Once cured, polymeric sand joints are dramatically more durable than standard sand.
Application Process
Polymeric sand installation requires specific conditions: pavers must be completely dry (critical — moisture in the paver surface before application causes premature polymer activation and a hazy residue on the surface), the sand must be swept into joints until completely filled and level with the paver surface, compacted with a plate compactor to settle it fully into the joints, swept once more to top off any settled areas, then activated with a misting of water. After activation, the surface must be cleared of all sand particles before the polymers set — any sand on the paver face will bond there and create a hazy film.
The common failure mode for DIY polymeric sand applications in Atlanta is attempting to apply on a humid day or on pavers that aren't fully dry after cleaning, resulting in premature polymer activation and a hard-to-remove white haze across the paver surface. Professional application in dry conditions with proper staging avoids this.
Choosing the Right Sealer
Once pavers are clean, efflorescence-free, and properly sanded, sealer is the final protective step. Sealer selection has a major impact on the finished appearance, and this is where most homeowners have the most questions.
Wet Look (High Gloss) Sealers
Wet look sealers are film-forming sealers — they sit on top of the paver surface and create a glossy coating that makes colors appear deeper and more saturated, as though the pavers are perpetually wet. These sealers provide excellent protection against staining, oil penetration, and water absorption. They require reapplication every 2–4 years as the film wears. In Atlanta's summer heat, darker pavers sealed with a film-forming sealer can become hot enough to soften the coating slightly, leading to tracking or scuffing in high-traffic areas. They also can create a slippery surface when wet, which is a significant concern for pool decks and walkways.
Natural / Matte Sealers
Penetrating sealers (silane-siloxane or acrylic penetrating) absorb into the paver surface and provide protection from the inside rather than creating a surface film. The appearance change is minimal — colors may appear very slightly enhanced but the paver looks natural and matte. These sealers don't add surface gloss, don't peel, and don't create a slippery surface. They're the correct choice for pool decks and areas where slip resistance matters. They typically last 3–5 years and re-application is simpler because there is no film to strip before recoating.
Color-Enhancing Sealers
A middle category — semi-gloss or "color enhancing" sealers — provides some color deepening and sheen without the full wet-look gloss. These are popular for driveways and patios where some color richness is desired without the high-maintenance aspects of a full film sealer.
The Full Service Sequence
A properly executed paver cleaning and sealing job follows this sequence without shortcuts: pre-wet and apply degreaser to oil stains; pressure clean entire surface with surface cleaner; hand-treat stubborn stains; apply efflorescence treatment if needed; thorough final rinse; allow complete drying (minimum 24 hours in Georgia summer, 48 hours in cooler or humid conditions); re-sand joints with polymeric sand if needed; allow polymeric sand cure time; apply sealer in two thin coats rather than one heavy coat.
We clean, re-sand, and seal paver driveways, patios, and pool decks throughout Atlanta, Marietta, Roswell, Decatur, and the full metro area. Call (678) 748-3578 for a free estimate on your paver project.