01 / Gum
Gum removal
Flattened gum lifted from sidewalks, entries and plazas, so the concrete looks clean again.
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Guide
How to remove gum from sidewalks and plazas.
Those black dots outside the door are old gum, pressed into the concrete one shoe at a time. Here’s how they come off and how to keep them from piling up again.
Why gum is so stubborn.
Fresh gum is soft and easy to spot. Once it is stepped on, though, it spreads into the pores of the concrete, picks up dirt and slowly turns gray and then black. After a few weeks of sun and foot traffic it is less a blob sitting on the surface and more a stain fused to it. That’s how one busy entrance ends up with a constellation of dark spots that never seem to go away.
Light concrete makes the problem look worse. The brighter the walkway, the more each black dot stands out, and the more the whole entry reads as neglected.
Why scraping and rinsing fall short.
Most maintenance teams reach for a putty knife first. Scraping takes off the raised part of the gum and leaves a flat, dark ring behind, and it can gouge softer concrete and pavers. A quick rinse with a garden hose does even less, because water alone won’t loosen something that has fused to the slab.
General sidewalk washing helps, but the gum spots usually survive it. They need to be worked one at a time, with the concrete around each spot cleaned so the walkway comes out even.
How Raincrest lifts it.
Our crews treat gum as its own task during a sidewalk or storefront visit. Each spot is worked off until the concrete underneath shows through, then the whole stretch is washed so you don’t end up with clean circles scattered across a gray walkway. Door thresholds, steps and the base of benches get careful attention, since that’s where gum hides.
The aim is an entry that reads as one clean, even surface from the parking lot. You can see the full service on our gum removal page.
Plazas, seating and transit stops.
Open plazas collect gum in patterns. It gathers where people stand and wait: outside a movie theater, along a seating wall, near a bus shelter or in the line outside a popular lunch spot. Pavers and stamped concrete in these areas need a gentle approach around the joints, and the crew adjusts to protect the finish.
On larger properties, we map the heaviest clusters during the walkthrough so the quote reflects where the work really is, and those areas get their place on the calendar alongside regular concrete and plaza cleaning.
Keeping it from coming back.
Gum will always find its way to the ground, but a few simple habits slow the buildup. Trash cans placed right where people finish eating or reach the door give gum somewhere to go. Daily sweeping by staff picks up fresh pieces before they’re stepped flat. And keeping gum work on the same visit as entry washing means new spots never have time to turn black.
For retail centers, our guide to storefront and entryway schedules shows how gum work fits into a regular entry schedule.
What to expect after the first visit.
The first visit to a long-neglected entrance is the big one, with years of spots coming up together. After that, follow-up visits are lighter, catching newer gum before it sets. Supervisors look over the finished walkways in daylight, so any spot that slipped past in the dark gets picked up.
The whole entrance looks much brighter once the dots are gone. It’s often the single change customers and tenants notice first.
A few useful answers
Quick answers.
Can gum be lifted from pavers and stamped concrete?
Yes. Pavers and stamped surfaces get a gentler approach around the joints, so the gum comes up and the pattern stays intact.
Should our staff scrape gum between visits?
Leave flattened gum for the crew. Scraping tends to leave a dark ring and can scar the surface, while sweeping up fresh pieces each day is a real help.
Does gum work happen at the same time as sidewalk washing?
Yes. It’s usually added to the same visit, so the spots come up and the whole walkway is washed in one trip.
Services
Services this guide covers
Gum comes off best when the walkway around it is washed on the same visit.
02 / Concrete
Concrete, sidewalk and plaza cleaning
Sidewalks, walkways, plazas and courtyards brought back to an even, bright finish.
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