Let’s talk about crack sand. We all try to save money where we can, sometimes to a fault. In our case, skipping the specialized polymeric sand when finishing our patio ended up costing us time and frustration after a few weeks.
If you remember, we used leftover regular paver sand to fill the joints between the stones instead of paying the stoneyard’s $95 delivery fee for polymeric sand. Polymeric sand contains binders that help it lock in place and resist weeds and washout better than ordinary sand.
At first the regular sand looked fine in the joints, but after several rains it began washing out in spots. That left uneven gaps and an inconsistent appearance that made the whole patio look unfinished.
So we swallowed our pride and bought a bucket of polymeric sand at Lowe’s for about $30. One bucket was supposed to cover roughly a third of the patio, but because the joints still had some regular sand packed at the bottom, the polymeric sand went farther than expected. One bucket ended up doing the job, and we still have some leftover.
Applying the polymeric sand was tedious. I followed the directions and used a Ziploc bag with the corner snipped off to pour the sand into the joints. My first pass was too heavy — once this sand gets wet it really does set up like cement, so you want to avoid getting it on the faces of the pavers.
Section by section I swept away the excess until the joints looked even and natural. After spreading and sweeping, I used an electric leaf blower on its lowest setting to remove lingering surface sand, then lightly misted the whole patio with a hose per the product directions, taking care to wet it thoroughly without washing it out.
In hindsight I should have blown or swept a little more sand off the surface before misting so the seams would appear slightly thinner. Lesson learned: use polymeric sand from the start. Still, the finished look is pleasant — the filled joints give the patio a settled, established appearance rather than looking too-new and stark.
Although we saved about $60 overall, I wish we’d spent the money initially. Using regular paver sand required multiple passes to get it to look acceptable, whereas the polymeric sand took only one good application. Over time I expect the polymeric sand will do a better job blocking weeds, deterring ant hills, and holding up through storms.
Here’s a photo I took about a month after installing the polymeric sand. We waited to share until after a few heavy storms to see how the joints would hold up. So far it looks just as good as the day we finished, which is a relief — I wasn’t sure I had the patience for another redo if this one failed.
Have you ever learned a similar lesson the hard way, or wished you’d spent a little more to do something properly the first time? Share your experiences — it always helps to know others make these same mistakes.
Want to follow the whole patio process from start to finish? Here’s the first post (planning), the second post (prepping), the third post (budget surprises), the fourth post (more prep), the fifth post (gravel, sand, and pavers), and the big we’re finally done post.