How to Clean Garden Paths and Driveways – DIY Steps

Looking for a quick way to clean garden paths and the driveway outside your home? This simple DIY method will help you not just clean, but also maintain your driveway and garden paths.

Cleaning Paths and Driveways – And Keeping Them Clean

Outdoor surfaces like driveways, garden paths and pool surrounds are often constructed out of porous masonry materials. These materials include:

• Concrete
• Sandstone
• Stone
• Tiles and grout
• Terracotta
• Bricks.

With exposure to water, weather, use, and the surrounding environment, these porous surfaces take on many forms of cosmetic and structural degradation. Common signs include moss, algae, mould, dirt, grime, efflorescence and staining from fallen vegetation, food, oil or other matter.

There are a number of ways to clean these surfaces, each with benefits and considerations of their own. However, cleaning these surfaces is only the beginning; they must be maintained and protected otherwise the surface will deteriorate once again.

We will outline how to clean and maintain these surfaces in detail, below.

Methods to Clean Driveways and Paths

Brush Cleaning

Washing your surface can be done without using high-powered systems. This is also the less expensive method and is often more appropriate for smaller areas.

This involves using brushes, detergent and manual effort, and will get the job done effectively.

Benefits:

• Costs less
• Uses less water and power
• Requires simpler equipment
• More suitable for small areas
• Less likely to erode the surface
• Simple.

Drawbacks:

• More effort required
• More time required
• Less suitable for large areas.

Materials

• Broom with stiff bristles
• Bucket
• Detergent
• Soda ash/washing soda
• Baking soda/cat litter.

Method

1. Clear area of debris and dirt.
2. Apply cat litter or baking soda to the stains to absorb as much as possible first. Remove after 12-24 hours depending on absorption.
3. Spray area with water.
4. Dissolve 100g washing soda into 4.5L hot water.
5. Apply this soda/water solution to the surface using the stiff-bristled brush, removing dirt and stains.
6. Rinse when clean. Avoid rinsing into plants as this solution can be harmful to plants.
7. Seal with Resistain. This will ensure the cleaned surface state will be maintained and protected against further water damage and staining.

Stain removing solutions

Sometimes the above methods will require additional treatment with specialised stain-removal solutions.

• Degreaser
  In order to remove oil stains, degreaser can help. Simply apply it to the stain, let it sit and break the stain down, then reapply. Scrub the degreaser in.
  Degreaser can be diluted if the stain is new.
• Absorbents
  Baking soda or absorbent material like cat litter can be used to soak up new oil and petrol stains.
  Cover the stain with the above, let it sit for an hour or more. The absorbent material will soak the fresh staining liquid up, and further repetitions of this process may soak up more.
• Enzymatic cleaner
  Simply apply to the stain, following the instructions on the packaging. The cleaner will break the stains down over days. No major effort is required, just time for the cleaner to work through the stain.

Conclusion

With these methods, most outdoor masonry surfaces like driveways and paths can be cleaned back into prime condition and maintained for the long term.