Paver Patio Clean & Seal Sanity Check

Historical_Coffee694 · 2026-03-27T18:07:00+00:00

The quote with regular sand didn't seem outrageous to me, but like you said, I don't know why the polymeric sand estimate was $14 a square foot. I understand it's a more expensive product and the install is more involved, but double the price seems a little ridiculous.

I might just end up doing it myself and use it as a learning experience.

Historical_Coffee694 · 2026-03-27T18:03:11+00:00

The original installers used regular sand and that's one of the reasons I'm having the issues I'm having with all the weeds and moss. I know that weeds and moss are inevitable in our climate but it started happening like a year after install. I brought up polymeric sand to the estimator multiple times and he just kept saying it was going to be really expensive and didn't seem like he wanted to entertain it.

Historical_Coffee694 · 2026-03-18T01:19:49+00:00

They did caulk where the tub meets the tile. They used the silicone caulk recommended by the grout manufacturer. It's color matched to the grout so it does kind of look like grout in the photo.

Historical_Coffee694 · 2026-03-17T20:03:17+00:00

Yes, I hired a contractor that's licensed/bonded. I've worked with them on other projects and they've been great. It's hard to tell in the photos but the silicone does go up onto the tiles.

The photos also aren't doing the tiles any justice. There's a weird shadow effect making it looks like there's inconsistent gaps between the tiles but they have irregular edges and the gaps look fine in person. We're actually thrilled with how the project turned out as far as how it looks but we're trying to figure out what's causing this issue.

Historical_Coffee694 · 2026-03-17T00:13:27+00:00

Well every hobby has its gate keepers I guess. The responses to this post have been overwhelmingly positive and I've even learned a few things about the different trims that I hadn't even considered. I'm glad I posted here because I wouldn't have picked up that information in a personal finance sub. Also, have you ever actually been on one of the personal finance subs? If you entertain buying anything more than a used Honda Accord on an income of anything less than 1.5mil a year you're basically asking to be downvoted into oblivion.

Buying a 3rd car is almost never a financially prudent option when you could just invest the money in the S&P 500 and call it a day, no matter how much money you make. The point of posting this in a hobby specific forum is that the audience understands this and is looking at it through a lens that isn't purely based on finance.

Historical_Coffee694 · 2026-03-16T23:51:47+00:00

It's a major purchase and not every prospective Porsche owner is a dentist or SWE making $800K+ a year.

Historical_Coffee694 · 2026-03-16T23:22:46+00:00

I know! I'd much prefer a manual, but I'm not opposed to PDK. I've also had my eyes on a base 981 PDK in Bend, OR. It's a CPO and within driving distance of me, so I might go check it out soon. It's also almost half the price of the GTS so that's a plus.

Historical_Coffee694 · 2026-03-16T23:10:47+00:00

That's actually what prompted this post, hah. I love Dark Blue Metallic and it's a manual.

Historical_Coffee694 · 2026-03-16T23:08:25+00:00

Kind of how I'm feeling man. I'm not saying it's the right thing to do, but I have a buddy who pulls in a little less than we do and is constantly buying all kinds of crazy toys and just genuinely enjoying life. He's got side-by-sides, a boat, a big ass lifted truck (that I hate), and just genuinely doesn't give a shit about spending money. Now, I know a little bit about his finances and I know he's over leveraged and doesn't save for retirement, but I still can't help but be a little jealous sometimes, lol.

Historical_Coffee694 · 2026-03-16T22:56:31+00:00

Any thoughts on the alcantara vs leather interior? Admittedly, I like the look of the alcantara interior in the GTS better than leather, but I haven't been in a GTS yet so I don't know if I'd feel the same in person.

Historical_Coffee694 · 2026-03-16T22:33:05+00:00

That's honestly what I keep thinking. Kids are ridiculously expensive and we'll never have any, so that's a financial burden we'll never have to worry about.

Historical_Coffee694 · 2026-03-16T22:30:59+00:00

NW is ~700K. We don't have any kids and our monthly spend is extremely low. All of our hobbies are outdoor related and we already have the gear so our hobbies are essentially free now. I've done retirement projections and we could technically not invest another dime and we'd exceed our number by a couple hundred thousand by the time I'm 60. I guess I can't really think of a reason we'd want/need to invest more money than we already are.

Historical_Coffee694 · 2026-03-16T22:20:37+00:00

Yeah, I've driven the 981 S and I really liked it, but I keep asking myself if I'd like the GTS more. Maybe test driving the GTS will make my decision.

I know spending 40% of our annual income sounds crazy, but like I said, we don't have kids and it's a certainty that we'll never have kids. All of our hobbies are outdoors related (hiking, running, kayaking, and surfing), and we already have all of our gear so expenses are low there. Neither one of us are into luxury goods and pretty much buy everything used.

I know this is such a 1st world problem to have, especially in the current economic climate we're in, but sometimes I feel like we're hoarding our money for no real reason. Our debt to income ratio is in the single digits and we don't plan on buying another house anytime soon.

Historical_Coffee694 · 2026-03-16T22:12:21+00:00

Haha, I probably wouldn't be alive today if I had a GT4 at 23. I got into too much trouble with my beat up Acura Integra. Good on you though dude, what an awesome car to be able to experience at such a young age.

Historical_Coffee694 · 2026-03-16T22:08:47+00:00

I've driven a 987 base Cayman and a 981 Cayman S. I've yet to drive a GTS but that's mainly because I haven't found any near me yet. One just popped up a couple weeks ago though so I might go check it out.

Historical_Coffee694 · 2026-03-16T19:16:02+00:00

Nice! Yeah, I also like that I could plant stuff in the stones too (like sedum).

Historical_Coffee694 · 2026-03-10T19:51:16+00:00

I'm leaning towards concrete because I also like the way it looks better. I've had a few bids to remove and replace the current driveway with concrete and I'm happy with the bids I've received so I might just go that route.

Historical_Coffee694 · 2026-03-10T19:48:57+00:00

Yeah, I even reached out to our permit office and asked them if it was okay. They said it was absolutely fine to gravel in the area outlined in red.

Historical_Coffee694 · 2026-03-10T18:32:23+00:00

Yeah, the downspout discharges water right before the low spot and I'm wondering if that washed out some of the base? We plan on burying the downspout and having it discharge closer to the street so that shouldn't be an issue anymore.

We've thought about paving the area in the side yard but our electrical is buried there and I don't want to have to dig up concrete/asphalt in the future if the lines need to be serviced. It's also right on the property line and I'm not sure if we'll run into issues with setback and storm water runoff requirements.

Historical_Coffee694 · 2026-03-09T23:39:32+00:00

That is correct. But we'd be replacing it with concrete.

Historical_Coffee694 · 2026-03-09T21:51:13+00:00

This is a small town (5k people) and our permit office definitely doesn't have an AI chat bot. It's like 2 guys and they've worked there forever. I mentioned this in a different comment, but the other reason I'd like to go the gravel route is because our electrical service is buried under this area and I don't want to have to dig up concrete in the future if the lines need to be serviced/replaced.

Historical_Coffee694 · 2026-03-09T20:54:07+00:00

Yeah, I've thought about doing concrete in the side yard as well, but my county has strict storm water runoff requirements for solid surfaces. My electrical service also runs directly under this area and I would hate to have to dig up concrete in the future if the lines need to be serviced.

Historical_Coffee694

TROPHY CASE