Paver sealing across the Central Coast.

Paver driveways are everywhere on the Central Coast, from the older terracotta and clay-brick driveways around Gosford and Woy Woy to the newer concrete and travertine paving in Erina and Wamberal estates. The weak point of any paver driveway is the joints. In the damp, humid coastal climate the joint sand washes out in storm rain, ants tunnel it loose, and weeds and moss colonise the gaps. Once the joints fail the pavers start to rock, spread and trip, and water gets under the bedding sand.

Joint stabilising is the real value.

The most important part of a paver seal is re-sanding the joints and using a joint-stabilising sealer. The sealer wicks into the sand and hardens it into a firm but flexible binder. That locks every paver to its neighbours, stops the sand washing or being tunnelled out, and dramatically reduces weed and moss growth. On a Terrigal driveway that floods in summer downpours, this is the difference between resanding every year and leaving it alone for half a decade.

Finishes for paver driveways.

• Matte / natural-look: impregnating sealer, keeps the paver looking unsealed, best slip resistance. ~$9 to $13/m².
• Colour-enhancing satin: deepens the colour without high gloss, great on terracotta and sandstone. ~$12 to $16/m².
• Wet-look gloss: rich colour and sheen, shows off feature paving, paired with a slip additive on driveways. ~$14 to $18/m².

A worked example.

A 50m² concrete-paver driveway in Woy Woy with washed-out joints and weed growth: pressure clean, kill the moss, sweep in fresh kiln-dried joint sand, then two coats of a joint-stabilising satin sealer. Around $700 to $1,000 all up, done in a day, walk on it that evening and drive on it next day. The joints set firm, the weeds stop, and the colour comes back to life. That beats lifting and relaying a spreading paver driveway, which is a $4,000-plus job.