We clean and seal concrete across Hamilton, on driveways, exposed aggregate, stamped surfaces, patios and pool surrounds. Sealing keeps the colour up and slows oil and leaf tannin soaking in, and on a decorative surface it is the cheapest maintenance there is. Stamped work takes a grip additive in the sealer so the surface stays walkable when it is wet. It is maintenance rather than a one-off, so it gets repeated, not done once and forgotten.
We look at the surface first, because sealing over a slab with a problem underneath wastes your money and hides the thing you actually needed to fix. Hamilton’s sealing window runs roughly from November to April, since the surface has to be dry and stay dry while the sealer cures, and July averages 133 mm of rain across ten rain days against 76 mm in January. The assessment is free. Re-sealing is quoted per job on area, finish and how much cleaning the surface needs first.
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Sealing Work
What the surface is decides the product and the number of coats. These are the six jobs we are booked for most.
We seal driveways, and it is worth doing on any driveway you care about the look of. Sealer slows oil, rust and leaf tannin soaking in, so spills sit on top long enough to be cleaned off before they stain. New concrete waits 28 days before its first coat, once it has cured.
Tyres are hard on sealer where cars turn in the same spot, so wheel tracks always go first. Tell us if the driveway has an existing sealer and what it was.
Exposed aggregate is the finish where the sealer we apply does two jobs at once. It holds the stone colour up, which is the entire reason you paid $130 to $200+ per square metre for it, and it binds around the stone at the surface.
A dull exposed aggregate driveway has usually just lost its sealer and needs a clean and a fresh coat. Where the stone itself is loose and ravelling out, sealer will not hold it and we will say so.
The stamped surfaces we seal depend on it more than any other finish, since the colour and the pattern depth both live in the top few millimetres. On a finish costing $120 to $170 per square metre, the sealer is what protects the spend. We work a grip additive into it as standard on stamped patios, paths and pool surrounds, because a sealed pattern is smooth once it rains.
Where colour has worn through on the high points, tell us before we quote, since that is a recolour question.
On the pool surrounds we seal, the coating takes a harder life than anywhere else on a property. Chlorinated water, sunscreen and constant wetting all shorten it, so a pool surround wants resealing sooner than a driveway does. Grip additive is not optional here.
We keep sealer off the coping line where it would create a slick edge, and on a typical 15 to 30 square metre surround we work around the pool staying usable through the job.
Half of what we charge for on a sealing job happens before the sealer comes out. Sealing over dirt, moss or an oil stain locks it in permanently, and the only fix afterwards is stripping the lot back. Hamilton gives you plenty to deal with, 133 mm of rain across 10 rain days in an average July, so shaded concrete carries more than it looks like it does.
We clean, treat organic growth and lift what will lift, then tell you which marks are staying.
We put customers on a resealing cycle, which is the cheapest way to own decorative concrete. Resealing before the coat has fully gone means a clean and a recoat. Leaving it until the surface is bare means cleaning back years of ingrained dirt first, and sometimes living with stains that soaked in while it was unprotected.
New work joins the cycle at 28 days. The sealing window here runs roughly November to April, and we can put you on a reminder for those months.
Sealing Method
STEP ONE
We look at what the surface is, what sealer is on it now, and whether the slab has anything wrong underneath. Product choice follows the surface, since exposed aggregate, stamped and plain concrete all want different things. The assessment is free and it happens before any pricing.
STEP TWO
The surface gets cleaned, organic growth treated and stains lifted where they will lift. Then it has to dry properly. Sealing over a damp slab traps moisture under the coat and turns it milky, so we allow drying time and will move a date rather than seal a wet surface.
STEP THREE
Sealer goes on in even coats to the product specification, with a grip additive worked in on any surface that gets wet underfoot. Foot traffic returns within hours on most products and vehicles wait longer. We tell you the actual times for the product used on your surface.
Sealing is priced per job on the surface, the product and the number of coats it takes. Exposed aggregate and stamped surfaces absorb more and usually want a grip additive. Pre-seal cleaning is quoted on condition, since a driveway that has been bare for years takes far more work than one being resealed on schedule. A working guide, not a quote.
What moves a sealing price, in impact order.
Free Assessment
A concreter looks at the surface, identifies what sealer is on it now, and checks whether the slab has anything wrong underneath before quoting a coat. No charge and no obligation.
Before You Book
Sealer is a surface product and it fixes surface problems. There are four situations where sealing a Hamilton driveway is money badly spent, and we will tell you if you have one of them.
New concrete keeps giving off moisture long after it looks dry, and a slab that stays damp from below never stops. Sealing over it traps the moisture and turns the coat milky. The fix is stripping it off and starting again, so we wait instead.
Where the top layer sounds hollow underfoot or is already flaking, the skin is letting go from the slab. Sealer bonds to that loose skin and comes away with it. That surface needs repair before it needs sealing.
A crack that opens season by season, with panels rocking or stepping at a joint, is telling you the base has moved. No product applied to the top fixes ground. Sealing it makes a moving slab look tidy for one summer.
Sealing over moss, dirt or an oil stain locks it in permanently under a clear coat. Cleaning is not the optional part of the job. Where a stain will not lift we say so before we start instead of sealing over it and hoping.
Send a photo before you book. Two minutes looking at the surface saves you paying for a coat that was never going to hold.
Timing the Job
Sealer needs a dry surface and a dry spell after it. Moisture trapped under a coat turns it milky and cloudy, and the fix is stripping the sealer and starting again. That makes timing a real part of the job here.
Hamilton averages about 133 mm of rain across roughly 10 rain days in July, its wettest month, and about 76 mm across 8 days in January, its driest. February averages the fewest rain days of the year at around 7. The settled run from late spring through to early autumn is the easiest window to seal in, and it is the one that books out first. Surface finishes and their preparation are specified nationally under NZS 3114.
A new slab is not ready for sealer the week it is poured. Concrete keeps releasing moisture well after the surface looks dry, and sealing too early traps it. We seal new work as a separate visit once the slab has dried out properly, which is why sealing is quoted as its own line on a new pour.Sealing is usually the last step on a job we have already poured, though we seal other people’s work too, and either way it runs through the same concrete contractors across Hamilton.
Concrete surface finishes per NZS 3114. The mix meets NZS 3104 and the workmanship NZS 3109. Hamilton rainfall and rain day figures from published long-term monthly climate averages.
Bare concrete is porous. Oil, rust, leaf tannin and organic growth all get into the surface instead of sitting on it, and once they are in, they are largely in for good. On plain grey concrete that shows as blotching. On exposed aggregate and stamped work it shows as the colour going flat.
Sealing is not permanent and it is not free. It is a maintenance item on a few-year cycle, and skipping it costs more in the end than doing it, because the cleaning needed on a surface left bare for a decade is far more than the sealing itself. On plain broom concrete in a low-traffic spot, leaving it bare is a defensible choice.
Concrete Sealing, Hamilton
Driveways, exposed aggregate, stamped surfaces, patios and pool surrounds, plus pre-seal cleaning and stain treatment. Licensed, insured and willing to tell you when a surface is not ready to seal.
Concrete Sealing Questions
Sealing is quoted per job on the surface, the product and the number of coats. Exposed aggregate and stamped work take more product. Pre-seal cleaning is quoted on condition. We assess on site across Hamilton and the wider Waikato before pricing.
Most Hamilton driveways sit on a few-year cycle, and a chlorinated pool surround needs it sooner. Resealing before the coat has fully gone means a clean and a recoat. Leaving it until the surface is bare means cleaning years of ingrained dirt out first, which costs more than the sealing.
Late spring through to early autumn. Hamilton averages about 133 mm of rain over 10 days in July and about 76 mm over 8 days in January, with February the fewest rain days at around 7. Sealer needs a dry surface and a dry spell after it, so the settled months book out first.
Not straight away. Concrete keeps releasing moisture well after the surface looks dry, and sealing too early traps it and turns the coat milky. We seal new work as a separate visit once the slab has dried out, which is why sealing is quoted as its own line on a new pour.
Dull usually yes, stained sometimes. A dull exposed aggregate surface in Hamilton has normally just lost its sealer and a clean and recoat brings it back. Old oil soaked into bare concrete rarely lifts completely, and sealing over a stain locks it in, so we tell you what is staying first.
Foot traffic returns within hours on most products and vehicles wait longer. The exact times depend on the sealer used and the weather on the day, so we give you the actual figures for your product. Keep the area clear while it cures.
