What is Asphalt Sealcoating? Important Benefits of Asphalt Sealcoating You Shouldn't Ignore

 While asphalt alone is durable, it's not enough for your driveway. Exposure to the sun's damaging rays, oil, snow, and other chemicals will make it crack or brittle over time. When not repaired, it can negatively impact the curb appeal of your driveway. In a worst-case scenario, cracks may lead to potholes that will burn a hole in your pocket. With seal coating, you can add an extra layer of protection to your asphalt surface. When you properly maintain your asphalt by sealing, rest assured that it will extend the life of your driveway.

Let’s face it, nothing lasts forever – and that includes asphalt pavement. But that doesn’t mean you can’t extend the life of your asphalt parking lot (and improve its life-cycle cost) with timely repair and maintenance – and that includes seal coating. To understand the impact pavement sealer can have on the life of your parking lot, it’s first important to understand the nature of asphalt pavement itself. Asphalt – the black stuff that coats the aggregate in the pavement – is a byproduct of the oil refining process. Because it’s oil-based it was excellent waterproofing characteristics, it’s flexible, and it’s sticky so it does a great job of holding together all the aggregate. Please go here to Asphalt Sealcoating and get the best residential & commercial asphalt service.

In addition to providing a smooth and safe riding and parking surface for drivers, hot mix asphalt pavement protects what’s beneath it – the aggregate base and clay or dirt subbase – from getting wet. Because when water finds its way beneath the asphalt pavement layer, it weakens the structure of the pavement – and that’s when real problems begin including potholes, extensive alligator-type cracking, and additional damage that require costly repairs. Unfortunately, asphalt is not perfect. As it ages it begins to deteriorate – from the sun, air, weather, and traffic – and begins to break down. The first sign of this is the nice black color fades to grey, then small “hairline” cracks begin to appear. Timely and proper seal coating applications can prevent or delay this. And compared with other pavement maintenance options such as crack sealing, remove-and-replace repairs, and asphalt overlays, seal coating is the easiest, most inexpensive, and least-disruptive step you can take to protect your pavement.

It Protects It from the Sun: One of the most common images of asphalt in popular culture is that long desert highway with the sun beating down on it. In the image, it's usually cracked and faded as well. And that's exactly what happens to asphalt which isn't protected from the sun. Ultraviolet light can break down a lot of things and the binders and aggregate in asphalt are no exception. Sealcoat helps to provide long-term protection from the harmful parts of the spectrum, making asphalt last longer in the wild.

It Keeps Asphalt Black: We've all seen sun-faded and worn roads over the years. Even if there's no significant damage a lot of homeowners despise the look of faded asphalt. While it's not quite as important for roadways, most of us want our homes to look good. Sealcoating will help asphalt maintain it's aesthetic for a longer period of time. That means that even if your driveway is getting up there in age, it'll still look like asphalt instead of particularly dusty concrete.

Moisture Protection: A lot of us tend to forget how much damage water can do to things. Asphalt is no exception, especially in areas where freezing is normal. Moisture can work its way under the asphalt and the expansion of water as it transforms into ice can cause cracking which disrupts the surface integrity of a large piece of road. Even without freezing, asphalt can be eroded by water during the rainy times of the year. Where there's a complete washout, you can even end up losing the underlying base rock and gravel, causing substantial damage in a short period of time.

Sealcoating Promote Longevity: Asphalt has a limited lifespan. It weathers more quickly than concrete and it's more prone to damage both from the elements and from the cars which pass over it. Sealcoating, when properly applied, can significantly lengthen the lifespan of a project constructed with asphalt. That means the road, driveway, or parking lot will last much longer after it's been sealed than it would otherwise since it helps to prevent damage that would naturally accrue over time.