Asphalt is usually used for making road surfaces and parking lots. It should be laid down in compact layers. Today, this highly resilient material that is a mineral aggregate covers 94% of the paved roads in the U.S.
Asphalt that is properly constructed and maintained can last up to 20 to 30 years. Factors such as heavy traffic, oil and gas spills, sub-base failure, expansion, water damage, droughts, heavy rains, contraction, etc. contribute to eroding and breaking up your parking surfaces. While seal coating can double the life of your asphalt repairing your asphalt and concrete is important too.
Cracks need to be repaired as soon as possible. Cracks in pavement need specialized sealant materials for repair. No matter what the temperature is, moisture locked in the cracks may cause crucial damage to your pavement. These cracks break up the pavement quickly and also corrode sub-base over time.
Sealcoating protects your asphalt. The asphalt on your driveway tends to deteriorate faster because of exposure to the sun, heavy traffic, oil spills, etc. The sealcoating process involves applying asphalt or coal tar emulsion on asphalt. This protects the asphalt from deteriorating elements.
Your property should be sealcoated every 3 or 4 years or when it starts to look dry.
Sealcoating gives the asphalt surface a uniform black color. When you examine the surface, you may still see areas with crack filling or patching. Contrarily, worn-out asphalt that is previously sealcoated has a much smoother appearance.
Every condition varies because of the weather. But you should stay off the asphalt for at least 24 to 48 hours. You will have to allow the sealcoating to take some time so it properly cures and it doesn’t track onto adjoining areas or scuff. Rainy days will make the product even take a longer time to cure.
Sealcoating should only be done on the ground when the temperature is at least 50 and rising. When the temperature is colder than this, the sealcoating will not properly adhere to the asphalt surface.