How to fill gaps between paver bricks to prevent weeds?

[andrewjd]

Hi All,

I have just joined the community after reading several threads about filling in the gaps between paving bricks.

I have been battling with weeds in my yard and decided that I should try a more permanent fix. Hopefully I can get some insight and advice from the members here. Thanks in advance.

I am thinking of weeding once off and filling up the gaps between the bricks. 

I have multiple questions to this quest

1. Regarding weeding - Would I need to weed by hand or can I just use a pressure washer to remove weed and soil/sand between the pavers? Problem is by the time I go through the yard, weeds would have started growing from where I started ! I do it only in the evening after my work, so I go through small portions at a time. But these weeds are ferocious! You can see in the photos areas which I recently weeded and areas which I had neglected over the past month or 2. 

2. I am not too sure whether to use polymeric sand, sand or sand and cement. I am wondering which is most suitable for my purposes.  I read that 1 bag of the Dingo Powerloc could fill 3.5m2. I would require around 6 to 7 bags for my small yard which amount to $140. Would sand or sand/cement be sufficient? Beneath the bricks is just dirt. 

3. Would the Polymeric Sand be able to fill up the larger gaps. Some of the bricks are worn and the corners chipped. Could I just use the sand to fill this gap or do I need to something else to repair it?

Thanks,

Andrew

[Jason]

Hi Andrew (@andrewjd)

Welcome to Bunnings Workshop. We're pleased to have you join us and trust you'll get heaps of advice and inspiration for all your projects around the house and garden from our wonderful community.

This is a common challenge. Great to see you've already received helpful advice from other discussions. I expect you've seen this one: How to prevent weeds growing between patio bricks?

Let me also tag our resident Bunnings D.I.Y. expert @EricL to help with your questions about the best approach and what products to use. 

Thanks,

Jason

[EricL]

Hello @andrewjd 

Thanks for sharing your question about filling the gaps in your brick pavers.

Based on the pictures you've posted; I suggest using a pressure washer to clear all the weeds and debris between your pavers. The drawback to using sand and cement is that if there were any large movements in your pavers the sand and cement would crack, and this would need to be filled in with more sand and cement.

However, polymeric sand does not have this issue, but it does have a limit to the size of gap it can fill. Because of the large cracks in your pavers, I suggest going with the sand and cement mix.

Using the pressure washer to clean your pavers will uproot the weeds that are currently there. Once sealed in with sand and cement it will be harder for them to come out. Unfortunately, weeds are difficult to permanently irradicate. Even after sealing the gaps in your paver's, seeds floating in the air could land between your pavers and start to grow. 

It will be easy to remove them, but it will be difficult to get all of them. 

Here is a handy step-by-step guide: How to pave a pathway. 

If you need further assistance, please let us know.  

Eric