Weed-Free Driveways and Sidewalks: The Ultimate Solution!
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- čas přidán 15. 05. 2024
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Do you want to get rid of grass and weeds that come up through cracks in your sidewalk and driveway? I have 2 options that will make quick work of this annoying and frequent maintenance item.
Chapter
0:00 Intro
0:46 Removing Grass and Weeds From Cracks In Driveway
2:37 How To Stop Grass and Weeds From Coming Back
3:31 How To Permanently Fix The Issue
4:04 Permanent Solution: Installing Backer Rod
5:15 Permanent Solution: Recommended Types of Sealant
6:13 Permanent Solution: Applying Sealant
7:59 Finished Product
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Haaa
Just pour gas and you’ll be set
One of my favorite tools to do this job. Would be a really good pair of Knee Pads.
I wish you lived in VB
A bottle of tar.
I like watching home improvement videos. Much easier than actually doing any home improvement.
😂
You know you're getting old is when you're excited to go to a home improvement store and watch people do backyard project in yt
Me too, that way when I call a handyman (which I eventually do after watching all the videos) I can give him a lot of expert advice and sound smart doing so 😃
If I am unsure on DIY specifics YT is the perfect avenue to find alternate solutions, being older means I have more tools now LOL 😅
Lol❤❤❤❤
It’s weird, I get grass where I don’t want it and weeds where I want grass. It’s like hair, I get hair in my nose and ears where I don’t want it and I’m going bald on my head where I do want it, crazy!
lol
@@blueseasbluesky b
😂😂
truth! Lol😂
I whole heartedly agree😂
Salt. I buy two 69 cent cartons of salt from the grocery store and pour it in along the crack and lightly spray it with the hose to melt it. No more weeds for a year or more. Ancient armies used to salt the earth of their enemy's land to keep their crops from growing. The process still works great. 😄
Since I am lazy, I just pour boiling water on the weeds. If you hit them early in the season, the weeds won't come back. I also do this method to remove the weeds from the patio. In a couple of days the weeds are dead and they can be broomed away. Also, environmentally cleaner than herbicides.
You can also use vinegar
I'd rather do almost any method versus putting an unsightly sealant on my driveways expansion joints.
That solution he showed won't last all that long.
The homeowner who tries it will be right back at square one within a few years, but also have a mass of unsightly gunk in their joints.
@@MrVvulfIf it's polyurethane, which I believe Sika is, he will be fine. I did a ton of it on a valet parking drive way where hundreds drive over daily and it gets rain and sun. 5 years later still looks new
Thanks for sharing this information.
That's what I do@@bobfitzgerald5056
I don't even have a house or a driveway what am I doing here
idk imma watch the whole thing though
It happens.
One day you will and it can be useful
@@miriambochenek9083 ah lamentably no, I doubt I will ever own a house, as all of our "leaders" are landlords
Really nice job. I was going to do this a few years ago on one of my homes, and replace the ghastly wood trim the previous owner had jammed in the joint. I like the sand touch, too. Thanks for the visuals on what it would have looked like had I done it. I still have the products with me.
I appreciate that you sped up the film instead of taking extra time just to make a longer video and put more ad in.
As an Engineer - I'd like to give some advice: Foam is great and I am all for sealing expansion joints. I want to suggest you find 'Polysulphide' sealant (not easy to find). The preference for polysulphide is that it has a 'garlic' type smell which keeps insects away.
.
Insects tend to find a gap in your expansion joint sealant and love to dig under the sealant and concrete itself and create the gap for weeds to come back.
Can we just sprinkle garlic salt or powder in this sealant?
Omega
@@angellas.1314❤
@markplain2555, Thank you for the information!
@@JanetBunch-nv1ue Alpha
This looks really nice.
I have used polymeric sand in the joint between the driveway and garage slab, and I absolutely love it.
You're an EXCELLENT teacher. Not only am I now assured I can do this, And do it well, I actually WANT to do it! 😅
Thank you
Great info. I work in the Lawn Care industry, and this is a very common issue that customers want addressed.
Thanks for the help👍🏾
Thanks for the feedback!
Well done man. Looks very professional. Cant wait to try your process on my driveway.
In grade 10, we learned of the Roman method of salting the fields. I use left over winter road salt to sterilize areas where I don't want plants.
Same here! I try to keep the chemical weed control to a minimum at my place, and a pot of boiling salt water is my go-to solution.
Huh! Brilliant. So do you remove the weeds and dirt like in this video, or just sprinkle the salt directly onto the weeds in the cracks? (I am brand new to this.)
@@ahill4642 : I'm lazy. I salt in the spring, before the plants take hold. I have used it at the fence line because of neighbour weeds, the edge of the driveway, around the shed on a stone base and killed a cut down tree with a salt pile on the stump.
Another weed killer is spray a mixture of vinegar, water and a bit of dish soap, spray it on leaves.
For some weeds that are being difficult, a propane torch works. Just enough to singe the leaves, no need to burn them.
@Stock Villain What do you think Salt is, if not a Chemical?
@@StuninRub the difference is that salt is natural and already found the the ocean, and lots of other places as well.
The sand finish is great. I've been meaning to do this same thing this spring but without a topper. Glad I watched.
Best of luck on the project.
Right! I always thought the filler was unsightly, but the sand is genius!
Thank you for the class. This is a huge help for my DIY project for the driveway.
awesome video...love the sand trick....I would've never thought of doing that and just settled with the "caulk-look".
I used that a couple years ago on all the relief cuts and cracks. Sika is the mfr. It works great. It also is an inhibitor of ants. They use those cracks as a highway to the home.
Self leveling caulk does tend to bubble if you try to fill too deep of an area or you trap air below it. That's why you need backer rods and the backer rod needs to fit tightly in the gap.
I have done that before but never thought of using the sand. Just great.
What a fantastic idea to use the rod to block the weed. Good video . Thank you from Jose from Melbourne Australia.
Excellent DIY lessons! Great job on the explanation of techniques and materials used.
Nearly every single crack and joint failed until I used Sika flex! I used every other brand. I finally broke down and bought a large calking gun and the large tube of Sika Flex. Shocking how much better it is!
Dude, I had to use sika for years in my job. I consider myself a professional but not master level caulker. That shit was bomb proof but such a pain if the temperature wasn’t perfect. Bringing back nightmares.
I did this process to install automower line in the expansion joints of my driveway. Great tip on the sand, wish I did that!
Came here looking for the effects of weed and cracks but I definitely need this as well
50 years ago my dad put something black in the cracks, possibly tar of some sort, and one year later we kids were instructed to dig it all back out as it was bubbling up from the heat of the sun and making a huge sticky mess.
This my new weekend project. I'm getting tired of mowing my sidewalk. Thanks
😂, no doubt!
No bullshit straight to the point information and links given well done! That kind of presentation gets a thumbs up.
This drives me nuts on my huge driveway!! Great diy fix… thx!!
Good tips. Some fleshy noxious weeds can cause eye or skin irritation, and they can be killed by pouring boiling water on them, without touching them or using strong chemicals
I use a propane torch that broadcasts heat
Rather than release all the irritating chemicals into the air while I'm next to it, you can grab a cup of road salt, dissolve it in a little bit of water, and pour it over. Just be aware that nothing will ever grow there again.
Don't go too buckwild with this though, salt is very bad for your local waterways. Nearby ponds and lakes really feel the effects and turn into gross, green, slimy algae blooms - some of them generating neurotoxins.
I use inexpensive table salt poured heavily in the cracks after cleaning out the cracks. This keeps them clear of weeds for most of the summer.
Hitting them with boiling water also helps.
Used motor poured into the crack is probably more permanent. But salt is more handy..
@@chiappettamark
Both eventually get washed out into our ground water.
I'll take the salt please.
@@chiappettamark ouch.... very permanent for the environment too.
@@macforme that’s your children issue. Who care. Let them worry about it 😅😅
Great idea I never thought about putting sand to blend the color
This was great. Thank you!
I’m at my wits end I could never find how to outwit Mother Nature those weeds don’t quit. I can’t bend anymore so I use roundup it gives me a break for a while at least. ❤❤thanks for video it’s useful.
Great work!
Although I've always used the Sika self-leveling material w/o the backer rods😂 now I know better 😂
WOW, this is the biggest headache for me but now I have a solution, thank you.
Thanks for these tips, we usually dig the weeds out of this crack and then spray them
Better is to use Polymeric Sand, or stuff used for filling joints of brick patio. It fills and stays firm, and self adjusts when it gets damp. That silicone caulking tends to shink and come out after a few years.
The video showed the caulking was already shrinking.
That's not silicone caulk he is using. It's called sika flex and it's a polyurethane product that's made specifically for sealing concrete joints. It has held up in my driveway almost 20 years now. It's pricey but an excellent product.
Tried everything including a product that “set” like concrete that cost €50 per tub…beyond useless, the weeds & grasses came back …tried the Vinegar, salt & dish soap …again weeds came back within 1 week, just a nightmare!
The perfectionism in this video is wildly satisfying.
Well I am not a perfectionist, even though this seems like a good idea to me it seems like a lot of tedious work and very OCD to me...I have OCD but this is not where I would chose to spend my OCD time! Ha, Ha,! But if you find this video helpful, good on you and enjoy the pristine look. thank you for making this video, it was interesting! 🥰
Super cool video. Loved the sprinkling sand idea.
EXCELLENT EXPLANATIONS AND DEMONSTRATIONS
Thanks for your video... White vinegar is a lot cheaper than Preen and works the same. I use it on weeds myself. It kills weeds immediately.
Add salt to the vinegar, they won't come back.
@@justtinkering6713any particular type of salt? Table salt, Himalayan , Mediterranean, epsom, etc?
@@annaqsmith sodium chloride
@@annaqsmithuse the cheapest brand
Fill the gaps with a dry mixture of 1 part cement 4 parts polymeric sand. Then spray it with water. That should stop vegetation growth and still be flexible enough to handle the shifting of weights between concrete slabs.
The sand trick is great. Looks awesome, im still just zippin out with weedwacker for now, might have to add this on my to-do list 😏
Took me a day . Worked excellent. Alot of work
Prep concrete and stone with sealer. Commonly known as Waterglass.
Sealing the mortar or porous material by "plasticizing" the contact surface adds longevity.
On the ground...under 5 years in 4 season weather.
I did the self leveling about 3 years ago. I had to pull out 1 weed recently since. Works great. I do have to bleach it once in a while because mildew grows on it.
Vinegar works better on mold and mildew
hey, you're a brave guy kneeling without kneepads.
Good job!
Bravo. This is what I do. This is Sooooo worth it. I see people spraying poison on their driveway, year after year after year……..
I have a slate paver patio 15' x 20' and have made numerous attempts to keep the joints clean and clear. But after spending way too much time and money doing so, I now just let the vegetation grow (except the dandelions) and keep it trimmed down. It actually looks really nice, takes minimal time and effort and blends in nicely with the rest of my natural backyard.
I cast tiny Dutch clover seeds over my pavers, these crowd out taller grass and look fine.
Dandelions are not a bad thing! They actually help the soil you might want to do a little research.
There's a couple different things you could grow between them that don't require cutting search for grass alternatives.
Dandelions are one of the season’s earliest flowers and make great food for the pollinators ❤
@@riosoma And they r beneficial for ur health !!! 😅
I saw a paved walkway where the paving stones were arranged so that grass grew between them in a checker board design. The design looked really nice. Of course, that might work with a drive way or other places. Stepping on the uneven surfaces could cause a fall or twisted ankle.
There are concrete paving blocks _designed_ to make a hard surface for vehicles and allow grass to infill the gaps through and between the blocks.
Wonderful video. Great explanation and hints. 🎉
Thanks!
Thank you for posting this helpful video
Applying Preen periodically to my expansion joints works very well. Affordable and just takes just a few minutes.
It will give you cancer. It is not worth dying over a few weeds.
Great idea ! I was considering filling them with small flower seeds for lawns which should fill them with flowers instead of weeds.
Na
Ya
So fun to watch the video, thank you for sharing!
Hello Every day home repairs
I just found your channel and subscribed. Thank you for posting this video. I will be trying it out. Again thank you 👍
You could skip couple of labor intensive steps by using a 3,000 psi power washer and blast everything out all at once in the cracks/control joints. The self leveling filler for cracks works pretty good for indoors like in my garage but it only lasted couple years for the driveway and sidewalks. I had an extra bag of stucco mix just to try it out by chance, not 100% but so far held up pretty good after couple of years. Much easier to use and cheaper.
Great comment
+2 on the PW. Let dry and use a compressor and air nozzle or a shop vac blower if you really want to go nuts. For an outdoor application like this, especially on a driveway in full sun, like a roof shingle, gravel would give protection from the UV degradation. Get some small fish tank gravel and gently pack it in on top. Do a short run, gravel it, and continue. Gravel needs to go on right away before the filler skins over. Might be cool to do it with colored fish gravel or fish tank glass gravel. Or even glow in the dark/ reflective gravel!
@@wingnutbert9685 killer idea with the fishtank gravel!
That's because you don't know how to use the filler.
Affter you fill the crack with caulk, you can cap it with fine sand while it is still wet and that will act as a sunscreen after it has been dried and the excess brushed off. Nice look also. Gives you longer life of the caulk.
Scott, I first met you virtually on P24 years ago and never really made an effort to reach out to you (probably should have though)...since then I've been making videos on grass and weeds and lawn care for the last three years and never made a video as explosive as this one you put together! Insane results, well done, excellent delivery, great tutorial and info! As a creator in this space I'm planning on doing some of the techniques you highlighted in this video soon and I will be sure to reference many of my beginner viewers to this video over the coming seasons. Well done and Turf Mechanic approved! :D
Turf Mechanic spotted in the comments!!!
@@AndrewK209 👈 👊
Thanks for this video. I need to do this soon.
Thank you very much, you have no ideea how much you help me. God Bless you thank you so much for sharing this.
I have found that rock salt is good to preventvweeds from growing. I use the pourable tar solution but putting sand on top sounds like a good idea over black lines. 👍
Rock salt did nothing for my tenacious weeds. 😢
Great idea, but those are called control joints. If/when the concrete cracks ,it will more than likely crack in that joint.
Thank you. I was wondering about that. After all, there is a reason those spaces are there.
Great Tutorial!!! I'm dealing with this same issue. This will be a game changer for me. Thank you!
You bet, best of luck on the project 👍
Great video, thanks for the information. Keep it up please
I use "round up." It kills everything!!!
Looks great, Scott, but what about showing the neighbors your proper command of a propane torch weed burner? "Send a message," I always say.
love this vid, also the few others you made for filling gap b/w foundation and walkway. used legit backer rods all sizes and also a couple of not poodle noodles but that foam you put on pipes for condensation, did my entire house last fall and saved the garage for this year. this killed my back though being on my knees for a couple days straight (I had to remove the previous homeowners old backer rod). i also found it interesting that not a single home depot in southern ontario had the dap polyurethane available i use that over any self levelling material. it actually just came back in stock last week. i had to drive to Buffalo home depot to get some dap a couple of months ago when I did the porch. one new thing i learned form this vid is that to sprinkle sand 30-40 min later I'm not sure if you ever mentioned that timing in your previous vids. this is my fav diy channel on the net. can you do a vid on how to replace really old seals on bathtub knobs... late 70's ish????
What an amazing video! Really helpful. Thanks!
If I don't do weed control every other Saturday, my wife will just find something else for me to do 🤔
because he likes to eat!!
My husband don’t even bother so I do myself every thing so help her with something.😂
😂
Awesome
It looks great😊
😂 ❤
I have found the weed torch to be very fast effective and economical. Weeds always find a way.
Does that kill the weeds permanently? Would gasoline and a match work to kill weeds in those cracks permanently you think?
Wow, that's a brilliant idea, I love it. Many thanks for sharing this.🤗👍🇨🇦
Interesting! All this time, I thought I had to live with the grass growing in the cracks. Thank you.
I use my string trimmer on them and then spray grass killers to kill the roots I might have missed, works pretty well. Bleach also works well if you are just spot treating.
most places illegal to spray poison on public walkways. dogs pick it up, poison on shoes track it into the house.
@@dicko-200 good point!
I tried the same task using polymeric sand. All that happened was getting weeds popping up through the sand and binder.
I have a grass growing threw polyurethane lol
Did you do the Preen before the caulk?
Did you put weed killer under it ?
@@jayrowe6473 no
@@survival_man7746 no
Nice video, greetings from Argentina🙋♂
Thank you, some great ideas! 👍
I use rock salt in the spring time. Works all year. Cheaper than weed killer and no other chemicals.
Ten years ago you could buy a butyl caulk to fill the joints and it lasted more than ten years-able to expand and contract. The self-leveling material dries hard and cracks and lasts less than a year I've found.
there are some roof caulks made of rubber/butyl. That should work. no?
I used a whole case of NovaLink SL then also 3 tubes of Sika SL, both are holding up equally as well. I had so much to fill because it's a large patio / driveway combo. The Sika NON self leveling I tried for 2 small areas was awful and fell apart within a year though. So, I think the Sika self leveling is in fact great quality.
For cracks in my concrete stairs I used OSI siding sealant I had a tube of just for kicks, set in the sun for a few hours then spread it with a putty knife and my spit to smooth it out, 2 years so far and the Bear concrete paint I used afterwards still looks great.
Appreciate your video beautiful work
I think I might have learned to do this from you!!
Do it all the time! Good idea with the sand!!
I use grey sika too !
The Preen doesn't break down and is bad for fish.
Definitely terrible for all those fish living in the expansion gaps of our driveways.
I’ve been using Ground Clear spray for years. No weeds for 1 year! I’m working on a video explaining it that will be out shortly.
Yup its the only way to do it,I spray twice a year fall and spring.Ground clear concentrate is amazing, haven't pulled a weed in decades.
Yeah my first thought was “Ground Clear and be done” but admittedly this looks nicer.
That stuff's a herbacide, same as RoundUp. I have a lot of people walking dogs on my sidewalk; I kinda cringe if they're near that chemical... I avoid salting my walks in the winter for the same reason
I just thank Bayer for having a crop science division ,never see a weed or bug lol I live in Vegas so we have some nasty stuff out here.
Yup super effective! I use it every spring on my properties! Saves hours and hours of weed whacking!
This is awesome! Thanks for sharing
Great info! I have this issue and have tried everything. Will definitely do this. Thanks!!
Best of luck on the project 🙌
You can also use pipe insulation foam. It is black and already cut down one side with a straight factory cut. THANK YOU for the preen idea. Simply brilliant! 🤦♀Why didn't I think of it?
I use boiling water on my brick paver driveway when the weeds are still small. Unfortunately, they do come back in other spots but it’s cost efficient. I think sprinkling salt in the cracks would also work as long as it doesn’t all get washed away. Another option is using sand that sets hard like concrete.
I've used sand for a few seasons now - just regular ol play sand - after cleaning out the cracks and, although it doesn't necessarily prevent any weeds from growing again, it does make it VERY easy to pull them in the future AND it's also entirely natural, without using any weed-killer poisons in & around my yard.
Salt makes most concretes spar, so you don't want to do that unless it's specifically made for salt exposure. Northern driveways are more likely to have admixtures to handle salt (freezing weather and salt for ice are more common), but in the South...nope.
@@rattlejake0422 A few weeds in the cracks of your driveway are never worth getting cancer over.
I used salt on cracked asphalt in my driveway. Didn't accomplish anything.
@@chairmanofthebored8684 Quite to the contrary. There are cracks in my concrete driveway and some tiny green plants will grow in them and they do not bother me whatsoever.
If they want to grow in such marginal conditions I can live with them and I do not have to dominate and control every square inch of my lot with poisons and carcinogenic compounds to keep the place where I park my car free of all forms of life.
The difficulties must come for people like you who will get cancer in a few years from now and can't imagine how they got it.... The tiny plants will grow back in defiance of your best efforts that in the end will prove to be self destructive .
I have bigger fish to fry than to worry about a trace of green life in such a inconsequential place.
I actually feel sorry for you.
Thank you for the nice detailed video
I’m glad you mentioned the pool noodle. It works great.
I want to know how to stop the weeds from ever growing again. What would you suggest, what's better, plutonium or uranium?
I've been using a cheap string trimmer for many years. It only takes a few minutes. I don't even have to bend down.
Great tip , thanks I will give this a go.
oh man this was great! thank you so much!
my eye: "Yes, that's easy, I can do it."
my hand: "No, you can't"
Scott, what you are doing is 99.9% accurate. However I didn’t heard why you used the backer rod. Myself I know and if you don’t mind I’ll explain. For the adhesive in this case driveway sealant to stay in place you must make the surface you are attaching to twice the surface area as the width of the cavity you are filling! So if the width of our cavity (joint) is one half inch wide then you should clear out the debris to a minimum of an inch deep! Once done I would use a wire brush to really clean both sides of the joint the power wash out remains debris! Let dry as you describe but myself I’d try and find a compatible primer and I’m not sure what Sikaflex recommends but I’m sure Sikaflex will do fine with or without primer on most porous surfaces! So now the joint is clean and dry….. time to add the backer rod! To install the backer rod you must keep in mind the width of the joint…… so if the joint is one half inch wide then use a half inch close-cell backer rod and push the backer rod so that the (top) rounded surface of the backer rod is slightly deeper then a quarter of an inch from the top surface of the concrete and once that’s done you’ll see that the backer rod automatically will be one half inch on the edge to be sealed!!! The quarter inch at the center of the joint will allow for the concrete to move with the joint’s expansion! Now after getting this written done I see that it’s is kind of wordy! However if you want this to be permanent (which is not possible) these are the precautions you will need to follow!!! I expect Sikaflex should last several years but nothing is permanent when dealing with concrete and the weather!
Nice
Are you implying if the gap is 1 inch wide, the depth needs to be 0.5 inch deep? 2 inches gap needs 1 inch deep?
I clean it out, then used only the grout and paver sand since i have pavers. on another awkward 1x4 gap: taped overlapping edges 3 inches back -used can spray foam then placed cardboard on top as it expanded, light trim, quick shot color match spray paint. No weeds since 2 year ago and holding
Another awesome tip. Thanks. Appreciate your videos
Thanks for the support!
The best sidewalk joint detail IMO:
1. Clean joint as shown in video.
2. Place pea gravel or 1/4" fine crushed rock into the joint to within 3/8" of Top of Slab.
3. Lock the pea gravel down with a light coat of clear floor epoxy poured over the top making sure to brush the epoxy along the verticals as a primer.
4. Once the epoxy is cured, place your favorite caulking over gravel/epoxy matrix without backer rod. Top with sand as needed.
5. This creates a relatively thin caulking layer over a relatively weed-resistant sidewalk joint. Recaulking is as easy as peel away the old, hose out the dirt, and recaulk.
Better yet, put put a water permeable type Earth & water- friendly turfstone and make the grass a feature.
What about expansion and contraction?
That's how you get cracks in your slabs. The expansion joints aren't there because it makes concrete easier to pour. They're necessary for the life/health of your concrete.
@@billveek9518 it only restrains the slab on one side, the other side is free to move.
@@RochelleHasTooManyHobbies it only restrains the slab on one side.
I had done something almost identical to this years back, along w/polymeric sand.
First time my driveway was pressure washed, it destroyed hours of work *in less than a few minutes.*
Hey Scott, Thanks for the video and guess what I have planned in several weeks.. same final solution as you stated.