Question on DeSlicking a pebble pathway. (1 Viewer)

[yzftaco]

On a rainy day, or when the sprinklers are on the Pebble Pathway leading to the front gate gets straight up dangerous. I personally think its fun to slide the entire length of it, but I don't want to be responsible for when a neighbors kid cracks their skull open. I've already had to close calls. Luckily no one got hurt.

Short of tearing it up and pouring regular concrete, what's a good way to get rid of this phenomenon?

 

[titanpat57]

Two...

skillet

I'm not sure what your local native rock is...but maybe introduce some other type/color that is not slippery when wet. Hopefully you can keep the look, but ,make it a little safer.

 

[Jetboy]

It may be possible to etch the surface with some type of chemical. Or sand blast it. Won't look the same, but sand blasting might give it a rough enough surface to add some friction.

A concrete scarifier would probably take the pebbles off down to concrete and you could do something with that maybe. Not sure what, but might be a start.

 

[PAToyota]

Loose pebbles? Or set in concrete as Jetboy implies? Not a whole lot you can do if they are loose other than replace them with a different type.

 

[45Kevin]

There are anti-slip coatings available for ceramic tiles. I have seen them in action and they do provide much better traction.

Check with a tile dealer.

 

[sggoat]

Muriatic acid may be the trick to get the surface a little scruffy. Depending on the sealer you have applied to the pebble surface. Test it on a small area to see if it works. If the acid doesn't penetrate, you may be able to add some fine builder's sand to the top and seal that in to create a rough surface. Mix up some sealer and add the sand, apply the mix to the pebble surface--need to prep the pebble surface first, of course. Washing soda will work wonders in situations like this

 

[Titan]

if the stone is river rock..with no sealer, break a cinder block, use a piece like sandpaper,scuff the stone, if it is sealed, buy more sealer..add anti slip to path..seal,add more sand while tacky..i never understood why contractors will install river rock paths without explaining this potential nightmare first

 

[yzftaco]

Thank you everyone for the tips.. The pathway was there when we bought the house.


Yes, the pebbles are set in concrete. I believe it might be river rock like Titan said.

Going to have a nice little project before winter comes around.

Cheers!

 

[mooker82]

What about just sweeping some coarse sand over it to fill in the cracks between the pebbles.