GARDENERS have been warned against a viral patio hack that uses a 35p kitchen essential that could destroy your garden.
Expert Landscaper Trevor Knight has explained why people should avoid the hack it at all costs.
3
3
The viral TikTok hack involves mixing salt and vinegar, and sometimes dish soap, to kill weeds in your garden.
At first hand, the hack seems an easy and simple remedy to deal with annoying weeds in your garden but Knight says you shouldn’t so it.
But lots of TikTokers have displayed how they mix salt and vinegar in a spray bottle and then aim at the weeds growing between their patio tiles.
And a number of these videos have received hundreds of thousands of views.
However, Knight who is an award-winning landscaper and patio and driveway expert at Marshalls Plc insists it’s the wrong thing to do.
He explained: “On the surface, these hacks look great and are a quick fix to get rid of pesky weeds; of that there is no doubt.
“However, using salt and white vinegar normally reserved for your fish and chip supper or a sneaky bag of your favourite crispy snack could be detrimental to the quality of many of the primary materials used to manufacture driveway and patio products.
“When salt or sodium chloride comes in contact with paving products, it can accelerate the breakdown, especially if the product has a porous mix design.
“Salt gets into cracks, and when it absorbs moisture, the material expands and contracts, leading to cracking and degradation over time.
“We have a lot of rain in the UK, so excessive moisture is inevitable.
“Not only this, but salt contributes to rapid corrosion if any metal elements are involved in your driveway or if you have metal components such as rebar reinforcing bars below the surface.
“This will speed up rust formation if the salts come into direct contact.”
Vinegar can be bought as cheaply as only 35p at Aldi, but Knight said: “Vinegar is acidic, and many paving products, especially limestone, sandstone, or concrete, are susceptible to erosion when exposed to acidic compounds.
“The acid can dissolve the minerals in the stone, weakening its structure and causing it to break down, leading to surface damage over time.
Gardening tips and hacks
“It has also been known to cause discolouration on some natural stone products and leave marks that are difficult to remove.
“Vinegar could also cause etching on some paving materials, which appears as full spots or large visible stained patches that appear slowly over time.
“Salt and vinegar should only be used if you can carefully direct spray straight at the weeds and avoid the paved areas altogether, but to be honest, there are a lot better and cheaper options available.”
Knight recommends an easier solution suggesting using boiled water and pouring it directly onto the weeds.
He also said weeds should be treated when the weather is warm and dry and that preventative measures can be taken such as “polymeric sand to make it harder for the weeds to take hold and prevent them from returning”.
Meanwhile gardening expert Sam Williams, from SGS Engineering also revealed you do not need to use expensive products to get your patio sparkling.
He said: “Ensuring your patio is free from dirt, moss, and mould will not only result in a better finish but will also enhance its appearance over time.”
The expert revealed that the “most effective” patio cleaning hack is to simply combine washing up liquid with warm water.
While a gardening expert on TikTok, who goes by the name of @Lovelello, suggested that homeowners should scrub away the stubborn weeds from their patio using a genius product called wired brush.
And she insists it’s “worth every penny”.
The woman said: “I hate pulling weeds out with my hands. I will not do that no matter how much you want to pay me.
And if you are looking to give your flowerbeds and lawn a spring spruce up without spending any extra money.
Well, the experts at Grow Veg, explain that adding a popular kitchen staple to your soil can help to nourish your plants.
They encouraged green-fingered enthusiasts not to “throw out ingredients that are past their best [before date].”
Instead, they explained that some items can be used in the garden to “boost growth”.
3
