Concrete & Asphalt Paving Austin, Tx

Asphalt is a mixture of sand, rock, tar and bitumen. This versatile material is used for everything from playgrounds to highways to driveways to parking lots, and with good reason. It’s strong enough to endure the weight of cars and trucks, yet flexible enough to hold up under a variety of weather conditions, and durable enough to last for many years. But asphalt surfaces only last if they’re properly maintained and protected. Fortunately, that requires following just a few basic steps on a regular basis.

• Cleaning: Your asphalt pavement should be kept clean. You can do this by simply sweeping the surface and making sure that any damaging fluids – such as oil or anti-freeze leaked from vehicles, for example – is removed promptly. If your space is small, a broom may work. For larger areas, such as a parking lot, you may want to use a blower and/or a pressure washer.
• Repairs: Make sure to repair cracks and potholes as soon as possible to prevent further damage from occurring. Even small cracks can allow water to seep through the asphalt surface, resulting in more damage to the pavement. If your asphalt surface is small – such as a residential path or driveway, for example – you might be able to repair small cracks yourself with a crack filler available at any home improvement store. But for larger paved surfaces, you should always contact a professional asphalt company to ensure that cracks and potholes are repaired adequately.
• Even out depressions: Asphalt does, on occasion, form depressions in the surface. These areas can collect water and other fluids, which will severely damage the asphalt if not repaired quickly. Contact an asphalt repair company to even out these depressions and restore the asphalt to an even surface.
• Protect the surface with seal coating: Regular applications of seal coating will prevent your asphalt surface from damage caused by hot sun, cold temperatures, water damage, and the stress from heavy vehicle traffic. Not only does seal coating make the asphalt look new, it also extends the lifespan of the surface, which could be a huge cost savings for you.
• Resurfacing, if necessary: If your asphalt is damaged beyond what normal repair procedures can fix, it may need resurfacing. Also referred to as an “overlay,” resurfacing involves applying an additional layer of asphalt over the existing surface. While resurfacing doesn’t work in every situation, it is less costly that replacing the asphalt altogether.

With all the benefits asphalt offers, it’s no wonder that asphalt surfaces are found just about everywhere. With consistent care and maintenance, your asphalt surface should last for many, many years to come.

There’s no denying the many benefits inherent to asphalt paving, including cost-effectiveness, durability, comfort, noise reduction, and sustainability, just to name a few. However, your asphalt parking lot is not immune to wear and tear, and if you live in a region with extreme weather conditions in the summer or winter (or both), or your parking lot gets a high volume of traffic on a daily basis, you could eventually start to see wear and tear.

In some cases, preventive maintenance like sealcoating every 2-3 years can help to stave off damage and extend the life of your asphalt surface. On the other hand, you might start to see cracking related to environmental stresses. If this is the case, you’ll want to consider crack sealing your asphalt parking lot periodically, or as problems arise. Here are a few benefits you’ll enjoy from crack sealing.

Improve Appearance

Cracks in your parking lot can present an unsightly mess that causes visitors to the property to wonder about your commitment to upkeep. In other words, this curb appeal issue could lead to negative first impressions of your property. Filling in cracks shows that you pay attention and you care about the state of your property, even the parking lot. Crack seal looks a lot nicer than gaping rifts in your pavement.

Stop Further Cracking

When a crack begins to form in your asphalt, it’s not going to get better on its own. The best you can hope for is that no further damage will be done, but if you fail to treat cracks, you can bet they’re going to get worse over time. Applying crack seal will help to stop the damage from progressing any further by filling in gaps and making your pavement whole and strong once again.

Stop Moisture Penetration

One of the worst offenders when it comes to damaging asphalt is moisture, and cracks in the pavement allow water to seep in, even to the base and subbase layers. When this happens, your asphalt surface could start to shift and settle, leading to instability and much more severe cracking. Plugging up cracks with crack seal is the best way to avoid this situation.

Extend Life of Asphalt

With proper care and maintenance, asphalt can last for decades. Sealcoating every few years is a given, but when you start to notice cracks, the best thing you can do is seal them properly. This will help to prevent further damage and ensure a long life for your asphalt parking lot.

Asphalt is an extremely durable paving surface that can last for years with proper care and maintenance. It not only holds up well in a variety of weather conditions, but it is also cost-effective, quick to install, and extremely eco-friendly, due to the fact that it is the most commonly recycled material in the U.S. In short, there are a lot of reasons to choose asphalt when paving a driveway, roadway, or parking lot.

That said, asphalt is not indestructible, and over time, it can definitely suffer from wear and tear that causes damage and deterioration. With regular maintenance, including repair, resurfacing, sealcoating, and so on, you can keep your asphalt looking great and functioning at peak capacity for years. However, you shouldn’t be surprised if you eventually start to notice cracks forming. What causes asphalt pavement to crack?

Sun

When the surface of your asphalt is properly protected with sealcoating, the elements, including sun, rain, and snow, should not have a negative impact. However, this protective coating will wear away over time, and this is when the oxidation begins to occur under the assault of the sun. When this happens, the surface of asphalt can dry and become brittle, leading to the formation of cracks, chips, and worsening damage.

Water

When installing asphalt, drainage should be one of your top concerns. Moisture can cause serious problems with your asphalt, especially if water penetrates to the base layer of asphalt and pools. When this occurs, the base can shift, settle, and generally create conditions that destabilize the asphalt and lead to cracking and serious damage.

With sun damage, repairs and sealcoating may be able to correct the problem and extend the usable life of your asphalt. When you’re dealing with water damage, chances are you’ll eventually have to replace asphalt in order to regain stability. This is why it’s so important to install proper drainage or opt for permeable asphalt if water is a concern.

Fatigue

Fatigue cracking, also known as crocodile cracking (due to the textured pattern of interlaced cracks), is generally related to overloading, although improper installation and environmental factors could also play a role. If the surface base or subbase is not adequate to support traffic load, the asphalt will eventually fail and the result will be fatigue cracking.

If it goes untreated, potholes and other serious damage can occur. Ideally, preparations for asphalt installation will take load forecasting and environmental conditions into account in order to prevent fatigue cracking, but if it occurs, speedy remediation is a must to salvage the surface.

You might choose asphalt as your surface material of choice for any number of reasons, from its durability and plasticity, to the fact that it aids in noise prevention. Even though asphalt is extremely resilient, holding up to traffic and extreme weather conditions with aplomb, it will eventually begin to deteriorate over time due to aging and wear and tear.

The good news is that you can extend the usable life of your asphalt roadway, parking lot, or driveway in several ways. Here are just a few different strategies to help you get the most from your asphalt and prevent deterioration.

Proper Installation

Installing an asphalt surface is not as easy as dumping asphalt on dirt and hoping it all works out. The base layer must be properly compacted, the asphalt must be properly mixed, applied, and smoothed, and there are a number of other factors that could affect installation. This is why it’s always best to hire trained and experienced professionals to install your asphalt. When the job is done right from the get-go, you’re going to avoid a lot of early and unnecessary deterioration.

Weather Considerations

Asphalt holds up well under a variety of weather conditions, including extreme heat, cold, and inclement weather. However, it will deteriorate over time if you don’t take steps to combat weather concerns. This could begin with laying down porous asphalt, especially if rain and flooding are common issues in your region.

You also want to make sure you pay attention to the state of your asphalt paving. If you notice minor chips and cracks before seasonal weather like rain or snow sets in, don’t wave it off until conditions dry out. This could result in much more serious damage as the elements find a foothold to attack your asphalt. Instead, undertake repairs immediately and consider whether it’s time for a seal coating or other preventive maintenance.

Scheduled Maintenance

It’s easy to fall into the trap of waiting for something to go wrong before you take action, but this reactionary approach to your asphalt is likely to result in unexpected hassle and expense. Before you end up with a pothole that could swallow a Lincoln whole, you might want to consider the benefits of scheduled maintenance.

With regular inspection, maintenance, and repairs, you should be able to stave off deterioration for years, ensuring that your asphalt serves you well. While you might pay a little for this ongoing service, you’re going to save a lot over major repairs or early replacement.

Whether your asphalt drive is looking a little janky and could use some repairs or your business parking lot is in need of a total overhaul, you may find yourself in the market for an asphalt contractor. If you don’t know a lot about asphalt yourself, you might not even know what to look for. The good news is, you’re not the first person to seek this professional service. Here are just a few tips for finding the perfect asphalt contractor for your needs.

1. Local experience

Asphalt is a robust and reliable surfacing materials that can last 20 or more years when properly installed and maintained. However, this may require the services of a contractor that is familiar with local concerns, including traffic, weather conditions, and so on. Out-of-town contractors or chain operations could suck you in with bargain prices, but subpar work and nickel-and-diming for maintenance and repairs could end up biting you in the end.

2. Expertise

It’s kind of a catch-22 that you want a service provider with experience, but they have to get jobs to gain experience. Fortunately, this isn’t your problem. As a consumer, you want a service provider that can deliver the best product at the best price, and when it comes to asphalt contractors, this means having the training and experience necessary to ensure your job is done right the first time.

3. Satisfied customers

Going about finding a reputable, reliable, and experienced asphalt contractor is made easier by seeing what satisfied customers have to say. Asking for trusted referrals is great if you know someone who has had asphalt work done, but in lieu of that you can certainly read consumer reviews or even contact prospective hires to ask for references.

4. Availability

Whether you live in a region that has seasonal constraints on outdoor work (i.e. harsh winter weather conditions) or there simply aren’t a lot of asphalt contractors in your area, you don’t want to wait until the last minute to schedule work or you could find yourself waiting for spring thaw as your asphalt deteriorates further.

5. Forethought

Asphalt installation is not a one-and-done proposition. In order to get the most from your asphalt pavement, you’re going to need a regular schedule of maintenance and repairs. A good asphalt contractor will have a plan in place to ensure that you see the greatest longevity from your asphalt surfaces.

No matter how high-quality your materials are nor how perfectly your surface was applied, the fact of the matter is: all surfaces—be they concrete or asphalt—have an expiration date. Fortunately, for asphalt, there is a way to extend this date for a very long time.

Over time, surfaces inevitably take quite a beating. The constant flow of heavy traffic, destructive vehicle leakages, and harsh climates will eventually take their toll and cause your surface to deteriorate. Fortunately, there are, indeed, measures you can take to protect the integrity of your surface and prolong its lifespan considerably. Most helpful among those measures is sealcoating.

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