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Kiln dried sand vs setting sand

Updated: 21 October 2026

Two bags can sit in the same amazon.co.uk search and share the word setting. One is kiln-dried silica that stays loose. The other is meant to harden after you wet it. Watering the wrong one empties the joint or stains the blocks. Choose loose sand when you need a flexible joint you can top up. Choose a curing sand only when the width and depth match and you can keep rain off until it has hardened. Prices are the shelf prices in the [joint sand comparison](/hub/flooring-tools-and-accessories/joint-sand), captured on 19 October 2026. The wider buying order, including bag size, is on the [buying guide](/hub/flooring-tools-and-accessories/joint-sand/sub/joint-sand-buying-guide). A purchase through our links can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.

Two bags can sit in the same amazon.co.uk search and share the word setting. One is kiln-dried silica that stays loose. The other is meant to harden after you wet it.

Our top picks

Sika Sika setting sand, buff, 20 kg

Best overall

Sika Sika setting sand, buff, 20 kg
8.4/10about £21.99
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Laeto Laeto kiln dried sand, 20 kg

Best value

Laeto Laeto kiln dried sand, 20 kg
8.2/10about £16.14
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Dansand Dansand No Grow polymeric, dark grey, 20 kg

Alternative

Dansand Dansand No Grow polymeric, dark grey, 20 kg
8.0/10about £32.72
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On this page
  1. 1.What stays loose
  2. 2.What is meant to cure
  3. 3.The mistakes that make either one fail
  4. 4.Which one, with a condition

What stays loose

Loose kiln-dried jointing sand flows when it is dry, locks blocks by friction, and does not cure. You do not wet it to activate it. In this set that is Laeto at £16.14, 4.1 from 520 reviews, and UHL at £13.50, 5.0 from two reviews. Laeto’s bullets talk about locking pavers. Reviewers say it does not set. There is no millimetre width. A coverage line says 20 m². UHL is about £0.71 per kilo against Laeto’s £0.81, but the review file is one written note, and the dimensions line says 1 × 1 × 1 cm. Dansand No Grow is brushed in like kiln-dried sand. It is not the curing side of this fork. A review of the 20 kg bag likes that it does not dry hard.

What is meant to cure

Sika setting sand, buff, 20 kg, is £21.99, with 4.2 from 2,591 reviews. It is specified for joints of 2–5 mm, at least 25 mm deep, and light vehicles. Sweep the excess off, then soak, not with a pressure washer. Do not lay it at 5°C or below or if rain is imminent. Silicone, or Liquid, Paste, is not this product. The title is setting sand. Dansand’s polymeric dark grey 20 kg bag is £32.72, 4.0 from 96 reviews, sold as firm-setting. One review says it set after the tile face was cleared. Others say the joint emptied after six weeks or never set. This file does not print a millimetre width. Sika FastFix, the compound in a tub, is not these bags.
Sika Sika setting sand, buff, 20 kg

Testsieger

Sika Sika setting sand, buff, 20 kg
8.4/10about £21.99
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The mistakes that make either one fail

A hose on Laeto or UHL does not create a hard joint. It carries the fines out. The locking sentence is why people do it. Leaving curing sand on the face, then spraying, is the stain. Sika’s how-to puts the sweep before the soak. If rain arrives before the cure, clear the slurry and start on a dry day. Do not thin a polymer or setting sand with kiln-dried sand. Pavingexpert says not to cut polymer sand with ordinary sand, because you change the binder dose. Do not cap a Sika joint with leftover Laeto. Sika’s limits are width, depth, temperature and rain, not the slope on its own.

Which one, with a condition

Use loose kiln-dried sand where you will top up after rain. In this set that points at Laeto if you want a review file that says the sand stays loose, not at the locking bullet. Use Sika when the joints are 2–5 mm and deep enough, you can sweep and mist, and you can keep rain and traffic off while it cures. That is the condition. Do not treat the polymeric bag as the same choice in a darker colour. The reviews are split, the price is the highest here, and the width is missing. Dansand’s mineral sands stay on the brush-in side even when a bullet says they are an alternative to a self-setting compound. The steps are on how to brush sand into block paving. Who should skip each bag is on best jointing sand for block paving.

Common questions

Will kiln-dried sand go hard if I water it?
No. Laeto and UHL are loose sands. Reviewers of the Laeto bag say it does not set, despite bullets that talk about locking. Water washes it out of the joint. Brush it in on a dry day and leave it dry. If you wanted a hard finish, you needed a sand that states a water cure, and you still have to meet that sand’s joint size and weather limits.
When is loose sand the correct joint?
When the pavement is flexible concrete block paving and you want a cement-free joint you can top up. The usual width in the trade notes is about 2–5 mm, excluding the chamfer. Loose sand is the wrong buy when you need resistance to washout and you can actually complete a cure, or when the gaps are wide flag joints that need a compound.
When is Sika the correct joint?
When the joints are 2–5 mm and at least about 25 mm deep, the traffic is the light vehicle use Sika states, and you can sweep the face, soak without a pressure washer, and keep rain off. Do not use it below 5°C or in imminent rain. Full cure is up to 28 days. Skip it for a same-day loose top-up.
Is Dansand polymeric the same as Sika?
No. Both are sold with a firm or setting claim, but Sika states 2–5 mm, a depth, and a 28-day cure, with 2,591 reviews in this file. The polymeric bag is £32.72, 4.0 from 96 reviews, with no millimetre width in the file, and the reviews disagree on whether it set. A split file is not a second Sika.
What happens if rain hits setting sand before it cures?
You risk washing the unset sand out, or leaving a film that marks the blocks. Sika tells you not to apply if rain is imminent. If the shower arrives mid-job, stop, cover what you can, and expect to clear a failed bay rather than mist it again in the wet. Loose sand has the opposite problem: rain empties it slowly, and the repair is a dry top-up, not a cure.
Can I mix kiln-dried sand into setting sand to save money?
No. Cutting a setting or polymer sand with ordinary kiln-dried sand changes the mix, and paving guidance says not to thin polymer sand that way. Sika also says not to pre-fill the joint with other sand. Use the curing bag on its own, on joints that match it, or stay with loose sand for the whole job.

Related pages

Joint sand and weeds

Joint sand

Best joint sand for paving: Sika sets, Laeto loose

Kiln dried sand for block paving: measure, then bag

How to brush sand into block paving, dry then cure

Sources

Public UK sources and amazon.co.uk listings, checked on 19 October 2026. Shelf prices and star lines are the figures in the display file.

  1. Pavingexpert dry sand jointing (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  2. Pavingexpert loose fill (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  3. Interpave concrete block paving (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  4. Tobermore block paving installation guide (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  5. Holcim UK kiln-dried sand sheet, July 2025 (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  6. Sika UK setting sand how-to (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  7. HSE indg463 silica dust (retrieved 19 October 2026)
  8. Dansand joint filling sand product sheet (retrieved 19 October 2026)