Imitation brick sidewalks

Ken

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Jan 1, 2002
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From Playa Dorada into Puerto Plata they have been making concrete sidewalks that, after being painted, look just like brick sidewalks. The condo where I live in Sosua is talking about replacing the walkway/patio in front of our buildings with something just like that. Any suggestions as to people who do this work that we can contact will be apprciated.
 

gringosabroso

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Oct 16, 2004
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Attractive! Durability??

These sidewalks are very attractive, a pleasant maroon, not a garish red. Are they only painted? If so, I suspect that they won't wear well; there is so much salt & dust in the air in Costambar, the Zona Franca, etc. Is it possible to color the actual cement this this maroon? If so, this may be viable.
 

GKC

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Mar 1, 2006
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I had this done on my driveway.

Ken, I did this last year on my driveway and parking area. The people that I used mixed the colorant with dry cement, spread it on the wet poured cement, covered that with plastic, then positioned the molds on top and then stamped it. This actually pushes the color into the cement. I have had it for about a year now and have had no problems.

I think it provides a more durable covering than pavers, but since you have to pour a concrete base, your costs could be more depending on your particular job.

The people I used where:
Ing. Esteban Rodr?guez
Pisos Industriales & Hormigones Estampados
Ave. Bartolom? Col?n, Plaza Isabel, M?dulo II
Santiago, RD
Tel: 430-3146, 222-3144

I was overall very pleased with their work but had to push a little to force them to verify the points with a transit.

They charged me $ 143.00 RD per SQUARE meter (not based on the cubic meters of concrete that was poured) after some negotiating.

I think that it would look very good in your parking area, BTW.

Hope this helps,

Greg
 

Ken

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Jan 1, 2002
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gringosabroso said:
These sidewalks are very attractive, a pleasant maroon, not a garish red. Are they only painted? If so, I suspect that they won't wear well; there is so much salt & dust in the air in Costambar, the Zona Franca, etc. Is it possible to color the actual cement this this maroon? If so, this may be viable.

I saw them painting a second coat with a roller and long handle. Don't know for sure if there was a first coat or colorant in the concrete, but believe both coats painted.

Greg, thanks for detailed info.
 
Jan 5, 2006
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The color is suppossed to be mixed into the concrete or spread over it. The painting should be limited to a clear sealant.
 

sweetdbt

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Sep 17, 2004
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If the color is not actually mixed into the concrete, it should be in the form of a stain, which is able to be absorbed into the surface, and then a sealant applied over that. Using paint would be a disaster. It would just peel off.
 

Ken

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Jan 1, 2002
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What I saw being done could very well have been the application of a sealant. I thought it was paint because as it was applied it appeared to be fresh paint, but sealant would give the same effect. Hopefully it is stain and sealant. This input is very helpful as it rases a qiestion that certainly must be addressed with any contractor we talk with.
 

joecanada

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Jan 15, 2004
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I looked into using it some years back and decided against it after seeing the disastrous results of some projects. First up, it has to be applied properly, and then rigourously maintained. Add to that the hot caribbean sun and the daily wear and tear and I was convinced that it won't maintain it's original look and therefore 's not an appropriate surface for any surface that requires some sort of asthetic. For a parking space, maybe, but nor for walkways. Go take a look at Camino/Paraiso del Sol or Breezes -- they had it done there.

Cheers!

Joe
 

Ken

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Jan 1, 2002
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Thanks for the input, Joe. We will check out the places you mentioned. I assume the Breezes you are referring to is the one between Sosua and Cabarete. Correct?

Btw, what did you use instead of that?
 

GKC

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Mar 1, 2006
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Ken, I forgot the sealant!

Ken you are welcome. As other more astute posters have pointed out, the last step was applying a coat of sealant with a roller. I forgot that step, sorry about that!

Anyway, here is a photo that I took yesterday of my driveway. It was finished almost a year ago:

23r0g8n.jpg


I have done no maintenance other than washing it off with a hose. I can tell no noticable wear or discoloration since completion.

If I am not mistaken, the ones at Breezes seemed to have been painted to me (seems as I recall them peeling).
 

Ken

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Jan 1, 2002
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We went today to Paraiso/Camino del Sol today. They have the imitation brick on all walkways and the entrance driveway. We talked with the head of maintenance and he told us it has been there for 18 years. Considering the years and amount of traffic, it didn't look bad, but it did not seem to be as well maintained as we would like it for our installation. I also think the process today of coloring the concrete may be different than it was 18 years ago. I am looking forward to talking with somebody in the business.

We then went to Breezes. They said they had nothing like what we described. They showed us walkways of flagstone and interior floors of ceramic tile that could be mistaken for brick, but nothing like what we were interested in. They were extremely helpful, so it wasn't because they didn't want to bother us.

If there is still something at Breezes we should look at, please tell me exactly where we should look.

GKC, thanks very much for posting your picture.
 

duhtree

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Jun 2, 2003
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the small park/plaza in boca chica has the same treatment. It was done a couple of years ago and still looks good.