Paving Sealant - Problem

[Georgie Boy]

Hey.

I've just finished laying a patio area using concrete pavers. We opted for a water-based paving sealant (Berger - Aqua Tread). It went down relatively easily - everybody's happy...or so I thought.

While it was drying, what we didn't realise was the wind had kicked up quite a bit and blew some sand/dust onto the wet patches. It's not over the entire area, just in the pools that had yet to dry out. Each small area affected is no bigger than business card size, most are the size of a coin, but there's a few of them. What we're left with is sand set into the sealant - as the pavers are a charcoal colour, it stands out a bit...a lot.

My question is, does anybody know a product, technique or process that will remove a water-based sealant (and the sand), so we can then re-apply? Of course, I don't want to damage the pavers or even pull any of them up, the expense would be too much.

Ideally, I don't want to have to do the entire area as there's 40 square metres in total and the majority is ok...just the effected areas.

Believe me, I've asked everybody, even the 'Advice Line' at Berger (aka Dulux). Nobody has given me a convincing answer.

Hydrochloric Acid, sanding machines, solvents and 'just let it wear off' have all been suggested!

[Cavemanvic]

In order of least aggressive to most aggressive.
You could try sanding the gritty patches until all the grit is removed then repaint.
Or maybe use a ketone solvent like MEK or even possibly ethyl acetate to soften the paint so it can be scraped off then repainted. ULP may even do the trick. These are all flammable & not good for skin or inhalation!
Or even paint stripper followed by a repaint.
Of course do it on a small secluded area first.

[Burnsy]

I would steer clear of any solvent or acids, they can discolour the pavers if not done evenly over the entire area.

Abrasive would be your best bet. Try using a spare paver or an offcut and rub it over one of the patches this should remove the embedded sand. Go easy with it and it should just remove the sand grains, get to excited and you will dig into the paver surface. If the sealer looks scratched up or marked after you have done this, rub it over with some sealer on a rag to fill the scratches but don't put on so much it pools.