Sand-lock is a "polymeric sand", or a polymer you can add to sand. The premix stuff is easier to handle.

I would be wary of adding things to the polymer sands, because it might mess up the stickiness.

marbls and etc can be purchased in bags or by the yard that is ground into sand of various sizes... usually there is one company in a big city with these gravels/sands.. such a company woiuld cater to people how need filter mediums, then you can mix your own poly'sand but if you are making a patio with stone having i'm not sure why you'd use it.
- A

What is polymetric sand and for what application is it used for ?

Mich -
It's sand with a synthetic admixture that is used for filling the cracks in stone or brick paving. It solidifies and holds them well, also doesn't scater all over, but stays flexible and water permeable.

There is ready-mixed sand or stone, powder to mix into dry material on-site, or a liquid you mix in or spray on. The ready-mix is good for small spots, the others for big stuff.

Thanks for the info.

As far as I know we have never used the stuff.

It's also called "Stabilized Sand" ...

for some reason none of the polymeric sands, etc have made it into the west and NorthWest markets.
-A

I'm trying to solve what I think is the same problem. I built a beautiful tri-color patio last summer, dryset on sand with a compacted "breeze" base. I then used breeze to "grout" the joints. Survived its first winter with little to no settling; my only complaint is that the larger pebbles in the breeze work their way up to the top and eventually on to the flags, so it's not very barefoot friendly.

That's a long-winded way to say I'm exploring polymeric sand and other "joint stabilizer" formulas. What I've found is that (1) polymeric sand is virtually unknown west of the Mississippi River, and (2) the various liquid joint stabilizers I have found are designed for narrower joints, like with dimensional cut flags or pavers. A couple people have told me that they would not work for wider joints like mine (averaging about an inch between stones).

Any ideas would be welcome.

what is breeze and what is a tricolor patio-A

Per AshaK's question, breeze is crushed rock (limestone I think) that the sand/rock companies sell around here as a base material for flagstone, pavers, etc. It's probably about 80% sandy texture, with the rest being little pebbles up to approx. pea gravel size. It compacts really well as a base layer, and when used as a "grout" material it stays fairly rigid with the exception of the bigger pieces working their way out of the cracks due to foot (and paw) traffic, rain, etc.

By tri-color I just meant that I used 3 different colors of flagstone (red, beige, & sort of a carmel) to complement the stone facing on my house. It was a challenge getting the right pattern of the colors combined with the right fit of the flagstones, but worth the effort.

Has anyone used this product on a large limestone patio? We just put in an 800 sq. ft. patio and are so dissapointed with all of the crushed rocks coming into our house. The stones are irregularly shaped and some areas have 3 inches of gravel between them.

I Googled polymeric sand and also called the local Lowes. Some of their stores carry "jointing sand". The SKU number is 278095.
A long time ago on This Old House they did a walkway using a product which was suppose to be made of ground up cactus and when misted down it dried to a hard but water permable surface. It was made somewhere in Arizona. I have looked
everywhere for this product with no luck. They say it is
used on golf course paths, etc. Has anyone ever heard of this and if so where can I find the information.

Hey check out http://dynamatrix.ca for jointing sand or polymeric sand.

cheers

Here is a link that might be useful: DynaMatrix - Polymeric Sand

We sell a product called Santastic. We use it in place of Rubberized mastic. It is less mess and does not dry rot. I have used it for joints up to 3 inches in width and also at up to 30% angles. It is easily repairable.

Has anyone used a product Santastic Pool Mastic? The products is a sand mixture with a water activated polymer, sounds like a great product but want to see if anyone has used it and if there is any problem with the product before I purchase it.

I would also like info regarding others experience with this product. I need to replace the mastic around my pool.

Poly sand is good ito install ONLY in good weather no rain. never ever do it with wet pavers. Its like gum and WILL discolor the paver, 38 years in masonry , It will lock in the joint like gum and keep the weeds down sand lock is using regular paver sand dry and the spraying it on the pavers after its been sanded and compacted and sanded again , this will lock the sand and seal at same time. It works good but spray good to penetrate the joints good . 2 times and wait a few minutes between spraying. compact both after first sanding then re-sand both . compact if needed again and check, if not, lightly blow off sand on surface and seal if sandlock or lightly dust pavers with water for poly sand. You will have to use a sealer on the poly sand if you want to seal them.

Polymeric sand holds up better when you have odd shaped flagstones. It hardens enough to stop weeds and ants, but it still flexes a little so it does not crack on you. SandLock behaves more like a stabilized sand mix, which is okay in straight joints, but flagstone gaps are rarely straight or even.

I tried tinting regular sand one time and it turned into a patchy pink mess in a couple of months. If you want that red look, buy a premade red or brick colored mix.