If you’re not keen, it’s easy to assume that any paving product that looks like brick is indeed brick. Traditional paving brick is made of clay while concrete pavers, which may appear similar to paving brick is actually very different. When it comes to concrete pavers, one of the most common questions people ask themselves is: Do concrete pavers fade over time?
Do Concrete Pavers Fade Over Time?
In this article, we’ll discuss concrete pavers and how they’re made. We’ll also highlight some of the pros and cons and compare them to traditional paving bricks.
Concrete pavers are similar to concrete block, made up of cement and aggregate. These pavers are formed in molds, through a vibration process that provides the combined materials with the density needed to make pavers. Over time, curing and hardening of the cement give the units strength. Colors other than gray are achieved by adding pigments to the mixture of aggregate and cement.
Do They Fade?
Because the pigment that’s added to a concrete paver is not inherent to the material, the color can fade, eventually exposing the color of the aggregate and perhaps resulting in a completely different change in color from the original color of the concrete paver. Dark pigments are often more likely to fade over time. Once the color of the paver has faded, it’s impossible to restore the color to its original appearance without having to replace the concrete paver.
Like the more modern brick pavers on the market today, concrete pavers are easily available at large home improvement stores and are made with accurate dimensions.
Advantages of Concrete Pavers
Do Concrete Pavers Fade Over Time
- Less expensive: Due to the low cost of materials used to make them, concrete pavers are less costly than brick.
- More choice: Concrete pavers have a broader array of color and design options than brick. The color options are only limited by your imagination. If you can think of a color, you can get it.
- Innovation: Thanks to advancements in technology, new and improved concrete pavers are being designed by the day. You might even find choices that correct some of the most common and known downsides of concrete.
- Easier to install: Concrete pavers are easier to cut and precisely uniform, that’s why they’re a popular choice for DIY projects.
Disadvantages of Concrete Pavers
- Color can fade: The color pigments can fade over time, especially if you live in a sunny area
- Sealing: Paver sealants can help to prolong the color in your concrete pavers but that translates to higher maintenance costs.
- Surface erosion: While a brick paver will wear by cracking or chipping, a concrete paver will wear more gradually, exposing more of the aggregate underneath.
- Varying quality: When it comes to durability and strength, concrete varies widely depending on the manufacturer’s recipe.
Bottom Line
Do concrete pavers fade over time? The answer is yes. However, you can reduce the fading by investing in sealants and taking care of your pavers by killing weeds when they appear in between them and fixing them when they get loosened. Overall, concrete pavers offer more benefits than drawbacks, which makes them a great option for walkways, driveways and patios.
