Weeds/grass growing on Interlocking - how to ensure to keep it clean

TorontoEh wrote: ↑ Hi All
We had our folks place interlocked 9 years ago I think, apart from bonding sand what else can you do to ensure no weed grass growth?

I've sprayed a mix solution of dish soap and iron based weed killer and it comes back ever year.

Appreciate all your feedback

ranjeet2000 wrote: ↑ Im too embarrassed to post pics of mine. Plus it has racoons feces

smitty9999 wrote: ↑ dandelions laugh in the face of dish soap

stansoltz wrote: ↑ I use this also... super fun.

https://www.lowes.ca/product/welding-to ... ead-246067

anon_s wrote: ↑ The long-term solution is to have a weed fabric below and use of polymeric sand that holds less moisture.

Holystone wrote: ↑These weeds don’t come from below the ground so a weed fabric is hardly going to be effective. Keeping the joints completely sealed with polymeric sand is the key.

Power wash to remove everything and get a good quality polymeric sand from a landscape store. Avoid stuff from the big box stores. You are good to go for maybe 2-3 years.

Momentix wrote: ↑It appears the area has moisture problem. If you decide to use polymeric sand, i'd say wait for sunny weather to establish, power wash to clean the joists deep down and let it dry for 3-4 days before applying polymeric sand. Again watch the weather , the sand should be given a few days to become bone dry, otherwise it will be washed out by rain. Prepair a plastic film sheet cover in case rain suddenly comes , to cover the area if you will need to. You can get one of those drop sheets from painting departments at hardware stores or dollarama.

Katedontbreak wrote: ↑ vinegar solution or salt water.

TheGreatGazoo wrote: ↑ I recommend this 1,000,000,000,000,000,000%. The trick to using a weeding torch is that you do NOT burn the weed. You apply just enough heat to make the the leaves puff out a bit and look waxy, you'll know it with just a little practice. What you have then done is boil the water in the cells of the leaves which kills them. This makes the plant die very quickly, and you will notice it within minutes or hours at the most. A day or two later the weed dries up and blows away. Sometimes the root will have enough stored energy to come back, to which you do another torching. A third application of hear is extremely rare and usually just a one time torching is enough. Torching gives MUCH faster results than using Roundup which will take several days or up to a week.

I've been touting this for years and all my neighbours now use it and love my recommendation.

grumble wrote: ↑ To kill the weeds near-term, use a mixture of vinegar, salt and a squirt of dish soap. The vinegar will kill top growth and the salt will kill the roots. Works fast. Don't spray this anywhere you want to grow stuff, as you're literally 'salting the earth'.

This won't stop future weeds (though the salty soil will inhibit them to a degree). To stop future weeds, resand the interlock. I speak from experience that it's a pain - you have to pressure wash the existing material out, remove any residual debris by hand with a scraper, let it dry for a couple of days, then get polymeric sand, brush it on, use a vibrating plat compactor to get it in deep, then another layer, vibrate, another layer then use a blower to remove any dust from the surface. Then you mist until thoroughly wet but not pooling, and it'll cure over the next day or two.

I did about 500sqft, and it took me three days of work - first day to pressure wash the gunk out, second day to remove the debris pressure washing didn't catch, and a third day to get the sand in (sand in was the easiest). It looks pretty good now, WAY better than prior, though there's still the odd weed that comes through.