Shaded Steps In Oshawa Glaze With Ice Every Winter Afternoon
Rubber surfacing gives a shaded front step a surface that ice does not bond to the way it bonds to concrete. On a north-facing porch in O'Neill or a ravine lot in Samac the sun never touches the steps in January, and the meltwater that runs off the roof refreezes on them every afternoon.
Step rubber surfacing drains that water through instead of holding it on top, and the surface is rougher and warmer than concrete, so what ice does form is thin and breaks under a boot. A fall on a rubber step is also a far softer landing than a fall on a concrete one.
Patio Slabs On Oshawa's Old Lakebed Heave And Open At The Joints
Rubber surfacing covers a heaved patio in one continuous layer, so the joints and control cuts that have been widening for years are gone. South of King Street the ground is silty clay from an old glacial lake, and it keeps water near the top. Ice lifts a slab a fraction of an inch, the thaw sets it back down, and every winter the joints end up a bit wider.
Patio rubber surfacing flexes with that small seasonal movement instead of cracking against it. Cracks that are still moving are cut and filled first. Hairline and static cracks are simply bridged by the rubber surfacing, and the pavers or stamped concrete under it stay right where they are.
Patio And Walkway Rubber Surfacing Is Poured In A Day Or Two
A patio or walkway gets a pressure wash first and a close look for sealer, since most stamped concrete in Oshawa was sealed at some point and that sealer has to come off under a grinder before rubber surfacing will bond. Once live cracks are filled and the primer is down, EPDM granules and binder are blended on the spot and the rubber surfacing goes on by trowel, three-eighths of an inch deep or a touch more.
On steps the rubber surfacing wraps across the tread and down the riser, so the nosing, which takes the most wear, is covered. You pick a colour from the EPDM range; if it is a pale one in full sun, we use the aliphatic binder, which holds its colour. By the next day you can walk on the rubber surfacing.