Imprinted Concrete

[DarceyK123]

Does anyone have any experience with this? 

We have a biggish driveway (about 80 sq metres) and am getting fed up with weeds growing through our block paving.

Want something with less cracks so less weeding.

We got a quote for resin but came in at 15-17k which is out of our price range but did like the idea of no cracks, no weeds.

I've seen an advert for impressed Concrete which looks ideal (tho don't know the cost yet) but seen very few houses with it done so wondering why that is.

This project is going to cost us several thousands so don't want to get it wrong.

Any ideas, advice appreciated.

[Buenchico]

While I'm not a massive fan of Google's AI feature, it does seem to produce a remarkably decent summary of the pros and cons of impressed concrete.  So I suggest googling 'impressed concrete reviews' and then clicking on 'Show more'.

This might also be relevant:
https://www.build-review.com/pros-and-cons-of-imprinted-concrete/

[douglas9401]

Maybe folk were, ahem, unimpressed.

[wolf63]

WARNING ... This is a girly answer.

Can you fill in the gaps between slabs and/or add a new top layer?

 

[Buenchico]

^^^ There aren't any slabs, Wolfie.  A single, solid layer of concrete is laid down and then a pattern (which might look like slabs) is simply impressed into the top of it.

[DarceyK123]

Thanks for your replies, and the link.

Doesn't seem to have many negatives but the fact that I don't see it often has me worried, what do they know that I don't? 

Won't hurt to get a few contractors around I suppose, but they won't give me any negative as they're trying to sell it to me.

[Buenchico]

>>> " . . . the fact that I don't see it often has me worried . . ."

I suspect that you might be seeing it far more often than you realise.  Take a look at the two videos below.  (NB: You don't need to watch a total of around 20 minutes.  Simply skip to the ends of each of them).  You'll see that, in each case, the end product looks as if it's made up of individual concrete slabs, even though it's actually a solid block of concrete.  So you might have lots of similar driveways in your area without ever knowing that they're made of imprinted concrete:

[Buenchico]

[Canary42]

Try vinegar - I'm told it's an effective weedkiller, but haven't got round to testing it yet.

[Gettingonabit]

1 ltr white distilled vinegar, 3 tablespoons  of salt, 2 teaspoons of washing up liquid.  Worked a treat  on our drive.

[davebro3]

A house over the road had concrete laid for off-street parking. When it dried there is a noticeable depression at the centre which holds water in wet weather. Must be avoidable - but how?

[Old_Geezer]

Presumably by laying a foundation properly before laying the top.

[Atheist]

Impermeable parking surfaces prevent water soaking into the soil and thus increase run-off into the local drain system. Not considered good practice, although probably not many people would worry about that.

[The Builder]

Nothing wrong with imprinted concrete Darcey. It's just ordinary concrete that's been stamped with a metal grid.

Apart from the material cost, you'd need to excavate to make room for the concrete.

Have you considered a traditional gravel drive?  Excavate to a depth of 150mm (6"). Lay a landscaping membrane (weed control). Fill with clean(ish) hardcore, rolled in. Top off with chippings (a few colours available depending on where you are.) Roll that in, and there you are.

Good for security too (you can usually hear someone coming down a gravel drive.)  Self-draining too (thinking Atheist's post above ^^

[DarceyK123]

Thanks again everyone, going to get a few quotes.