r/stonemasonry

Looking for recommendations on a sealer for an outdoor irregular flagstone walkway with mortared joints. Is anything from a local big-box store actually good enough?

The photo is of the stone dry; the last photo is slightly wet. I want a product that deepens the natural color the way the stone looks when it is wet, without peeling, flaking, or haze.

A wet look with no sheen, or only a slight sheen, is what I am after. It has to hold up in Northern VA freeze/thaw cycles. I may also want to seal the bluestone treads, so I am looking for a product that works on both.

Prep would be a cleaning and a muriatic acid wash before sealing. Local products and anything that has to be ordered online are both welcome.

Also, what is a considered a fair price range to seal the walkway plus nine bluestone treads?

This is my first time doing one of these, by the way.

Appreciate anyone's input. Thanks

New front entrance but three steps don’t match the rest. It’s a vacation property so we weren’t around during install. Is there anything short of replacement that would be acceptable?

Hi,

I’m trying to remove some very stubborn black lichen from an Indian sandstone patio. There are 3 stones (1 in particular - The curved one) where I just cannot get the stuff off. So far I’ve tried… Pressure washing alone. A water based biocide then pressure washing. Sodium hypochlorite and stiff brush. This helped get some light stuff off a few of the lesser affected stones but these 3 remain stubborn.

With the hypochlorite I wet the surface first, applied solution neat, scrubbed with stiff brush. Repeated application and scrubbing every 15 minutes for about an hour. This lightened it slightly on 2 of the stones and the 3rd ever so slightly (maybe).

Various AI’s can’t agree on the best way forward.

Does anyone have a recommendation?

I’d like to get the whole lot sealed before winter kicks in and want to clean this off first if possible.

Thanks.

Hello, I hope questions of this sort are welcome here, I'm not sure where else to turn. We had this walkway installed last year and within a month of installation some of the pavers turned this yellow-brown color. The issue is isolated to certain stones while neighboring stones are unaffected. The store we purchased the stone from had agreed to replace the affected pavers in spring, but due to life events we did not reconnect and it's now October, so a little late now. It is a quartzitic sandstone, and the research I've attempted to do says it could possibly be addressed with a poultice of rust remover and diatomaceous earth, but I seem to get conflicting answers regarding what products would actually be safe to use on this sandstone. I have not had any luck contacting local stone restoration businesses; I am being told that it is not a fixable problem and haven't even been able to get someone to come out and look at it, although I am unsure if I am adequately explaining the issue, given that it is not a typical weathering discoloration.