Sandwash

[scduck]

Hi everyone,

Has anyone got a contact / experience for a reliable "sandwash" crew / person / foreman.

Phone numbers, emails contacts etc.

I have a villa and want to keep the grounds low maintenance with carefully selected ferns / plants.

[jayhech]

Hi everyone,

Has anyone got a contact / experience for a reliable "sandwash" crew / person / foreman.

Phone numbers, emails contacts etc.

I have a villa and want to keep the grounds low maintenance with carefully selected ferns / plants.

What's Sandwash?

[scduck]

What's Sandwash?

It's the concrete and pebble mix (pebbledash) that forms the driveways, pool surrounds / outside floor areas of most Thai villas.

[hhfarang]

What's Sandwash?

It's the concrete and pebble mix (pebbledash) that forms the driveways, pool surrounds / outside floor areas of most Thai villas.

From my experience, I wouldn't recommend it for a driveway. Ours looked beautiful when it was first completed but within two months it was cracking and crumbling at the seams from our cars driving over it. Also, oil stains and black tire marks are nearly impossible to remove by anything I've tried.

[PETERTHEEATER]

What's Sandwash?

It's the concrete and pebble mix (pebbledash) that forms the driveways, pool surrounds / outside floor areas of most Thai villas.

From my experience, I wouldn't recommend it for a driveway. Ours looked beautiful when it was first completed but within two months it was cracking and crumbling at the seams from our cars driving over it. Also, oil stains and black tire marks are nearly impossible to remove by anything I've tried.

Oil stains on sandwash can be easily removed using hydrochloric acid and water. Acid is avaliable locally but needs to be handled with care. Ask any sandwash crew for tips on how to use it. They don't use safety equipment but eye protection and welly boots are minimum in my view. I've used it and it works.

[hhfarang]

What's Sandwash?

It's the concrete and pebble mix (pebbledash) that forms the driveways, pool surrounds / outside floor areas of most Thai villas.

From my experience, I wouldn't recommend it for a driveway. Ours looked beautiful when it was first completed but within two months it was cracking and crumbling at the seams from our cars driving over it. Also, oil stains and black tire marks are nearly impossible to remove by anything I've tried.

Oil stains on sandwash can be easily removed using hydrochloric acid and water. Acid is avaliable locally but needs to be handled with care. Ask any sandwash crew for tips on how to use it. They don't use safety equipment but eye protection and welly boots are minimum in my view. I've used it and it works.

Thanks, I'll give that a try. What about the cracking and crumbling at the seams, is that common or did the guys I used just do a poor installation? It did look beautiful for the first month or so but after a year it's a mess.

[philliphn]

My parents had it around their pool in Florida. It started to crumble and looked bad. They replaced it with some tile.

[Chaichara]

Sandwash, if laid correctly, should not crack. it is however not designed for heavy load bearing such as driveways. it is excellent for patios and pool surrounds. It is ideally suited for making creative patterns, and using colour pigments. It costs about 250 baht per m2, materials and labour, in Isaan, but in Pattaya they charge up to 750 baht/m2.

[PETERTHEEATER]

Sandwash is a thin skin usually laid on a concrete base. If it cracks or crumbles it is usually due to movement of the base i.e to thin or laid over improperly consolidated soil.

If you use it on a driveway then make sure that the base is stable and the slab is thick enough and reinforced to resist movement.

[Burgernev]

Sandwash is a thin skin usually laid on a concrete base. If it cracks or crumbles it is usually due to movement of the base i.e to thin or laid over improperly consolidated soil.

If you use it on a driveway then make sure that the base is stable and the slab is thick enough and reinforced to resist movement.

Agree Peter, if sandwash done properly you may get some minor hairline cracks, if a major and long crack you'll probably find its the concrete under that has cracked and has split the sandwash.

Cheers,

[hhfarang]

...if sandwash done properly...

Therein lies the rub... your chances of getting it properly done here over properly laid cement are about one in twenty. I will stay away from it in the future as even since my previous post my driveway has crumbled more to the point of looking like total crap now. I've seen driveways made of tiles (slip resistant ceramic or granite) with a 2 to 4 centimeter space between (around) each tile filled with sandwash. Those actually look good and maybe have less chance of crumbling as the sandwash is only used as a decorative filler between tiles and does not cover a huge area. But again, you'd have to find a competent installer and that may be the hardest part.

[ladybiker]

Did anyone suggest a possible sandwash contractor !!! in HH, as the discussion seems to have moved to pros and cons.

I also am looking to employ a company/person to complete same, recommendations would be appreciated.

Thank You

[klikster]

Wouldn't sandwash be a little uncomfortable for bare feet (around a pool). I have never seen 'salt-finish' over here. Maybe it's too old fashioned?

[hhfarang]

"Did anyone suggest a possible sandwash contractor !!! in HH, as the discussion seems to have moved to pros and cons.

I also am looking to employ a company/person to complete same, recommendations would be appreciated.

Thank You"

I think what everyone is trying to tell you is that there are no pros, only cons. And the fact that you haven't gotten an answer to your original question should tell you that nobody knows one that can do it right... my advice, come up with another idea. Sandwash will end up being a headache unless you have enough money to redo it every couple of years...