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New Indian Sandstone patio

maidmarian11maidmarian11 Posts: 14
in Garden design
Can anyone help me please? What are these marks on my new patio and will they go away? It was laid at the beginning of April 2021.

Posts

  • rachelQrtJHBjbrachelQrtJHBjb Posts: 819
    It looks like efflorescence. More commonly seen on brickwork. This page may prove helpful https://www.designingbuildings.co.uk/wiki/Efflorescence
  • KT53KT53 Posts: 8,045
    Did you lay it yourself?  If not, contact the people who laid it to check the reason.  We have an Indian sandstone patio and never had anything like that.
  • tui34tui34 Posts: 2,859
    I have already posted an answer on your previous post with the same title.

    You just wash it off with lots of clean water and a mop.  You'll need to do this many times - change the water - it will eventually disappear.  Living in a country where everything inside and outside is tiled, it's quite a common occurence.

    Just hosing it won't get rid of it.
    A good hoeing is worth two waterings.

  • maidmarian11maidmarian11 Posts: 14
    edited May 2021
    Thank you tuikowhai34 for replying twice :-) from France!

    KT53 - the builder who laid the patio has never seen this before either and I do believe him. I can only think that the frosty nights throughout April have something to do with this. I am going to continue to wash and mop and now we have the first rainfall due since March am hoping that will help to reduce how it looks. 

    Thank you rachelQrtJHBjb I will re-post pics in June to show how it looks after two months spent working on it.  
  • scooty883scooty883 Posts: 34
    Looks like Efflorescence leaching out. Had people suggest all sorts of methods to remove it, I've found that the British climate and time are the best remedy
  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Posts: 83,895
    edited May 2021
    This may be of help https://www.pavingexpert.com/eff01

    Having spent a large part of my life involved in the building trade, I'd been concerned that a builder who hasn't seen efflorescence before probably hasn't laid many bricks or patios 🙄

    Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.





  • maidmarian11maidmarian11 Posts: 14
    Thank you all - and the rain today may help move it on, fingers crossed. We've been busy with a stiff brush out there today.  
    Dovefromabove our builder identified the problem, but mentioned in his experience, had not seen it appear on Indian Sandstone that he has laid in the past. Thanks for the website it is really informative and the mention of it happening more often when daffodils are out struck a chord as we did indeed have daffs in the garden when the patio was laid! 
    Will post more photos in coming weeks. Just goes to show we can learn something new each day :) !
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