"Andy Dingley" wrote in message
...
On Thursday, 18 October 2012 15:49:16 UTC+1, Mark BR wrote:

Did wonder whether to paint it with gloss paint and sprinkle sand on the
wet
paint!

Black tar paint (bitumen primer, cheap and very useful), then sprinkle dry
sand through a coarse sieve or colander.

When at school, we did the paving slabs around the outdoor pool with sand
and paint, we mixed the sand with some of the paint and applied it, then
once it was dry, put a top coat to seal in any bits of sand that had become
exposed and thus would probably get washed out over time.

It did the job just fine so i guess for the manhole it'll be ideal, and the
cheapest method,