How to Improve Your Parking Lot Drainage
Have pools of water in your parking lot after every storm? Learn how to improve your parking lot ...
With a few simple steps and asphalt repair products, you can bring your blacktop back into shape, and, more importantly, prevent further damage. Begin by checking the weather – ideally you'll have two sunny days in a row, and temperatures not dipping below 50°F. Once you've picked your day, pick out an old outfit (crack filler and sealer permanently stain clothing and shoes.)
There are four steps to repairing your driveway.
Step #1: Clean the Surface
- Sweep or pressure wash to remove all grit and debris. A wire brush is also a great tool for removing debris. If you do pressure-wash, make sure to allow time for your driveway to dry before crackfilling.
- Clear all weeds, sand and loose gravel from the edges and any cracks or holes. If you don't kill the weeds in cracks, they'll sprout up again. Use vinegar to kill weeds effectively and in an eco-friendly way.
- Remove all fuel stains from your blacktop with a degreaser. Sealer won't sit well on top of oil or gas.
Step #2: Fill Cracks and Potholes
Do not skip this step! Asphalt sealcoat can repel the elements, but it needs to be applied on a sound surface, and that means filling in cracks and holes. It's a simple process.
Crack Repair Materials:
- Crack fill liquid sealer (for cracks half an inch wide or smaller) OR
- Rubberized crack filler (for cracks more than half an inch wide) with a crack fill melter to melt and apply the crackseal.
Pothole Patching Materials
- Cold asphalt patch for large holes
- Gravel
- Sand
- Plywood (large enough to cover the area)
- Oil (for the bottom side of the plywood to stop sticking)
- Car
Step #3: Repair Driveway Damage
Crack Filling
If you're using cold liquid crackfiller, shake it to ensure it is thoroughly mixed, and then fill the crack flush with the top of the asphalt surface. You don't want to overlap too much or the seals will show through the sealer.
If you are using the hot rubberized crackfiller, heat your melter or kettle and insert the brick of crackfiller. If you are using Asphalt Kingdom's Crack Fill, you can use a direct-fire kettle or an oil-jacketed melter. Cheaper crack fill can only be used in an oil-jacketed machine.
Once the product is melted, apply it at a walking pace over all your cracks a half-inch wide or smaller. * NOTE! If the crack is wider than a half inch, or if it is deep, you should first top up the crack with a mix of gravel and sand packed firmly in the crack. Fill to within a half inch of the asphalt surface, and then fill the rest with hot pour crackfiller.
Allow time to cure for a few hours before sealing.
Pothole Filling
You should have already cleaned the edges of the pothole during your cleaning session in step one, but if you haven't, make sure you do that. Then cut open the bag of asphalt patch, and pour it into the pothole. Our cold patch asphalt repair product will fill a hole one inch deep by four feet in diameter.
First apply and force the fill product into all the voids, making sure it is tightly packed. Then add more so it’s slightly mounded above the surface of the blacktop. Now cover the area with the plywood, oiled side down. Drive over the wood with your car to firmly tamp down the crack filler/asphalt patch.
Asphalt Kingdom’s 12.5 gallon applicator is the best hot pour crack filling system on the market. It's capable of filling 25 feet of cracks in just 15 seconds!
Step #4: Seal, Protect, and Beautify
The next step in the process is to seal the patched and filled surface, providing a layer of protection from the elements and greatly increasing your home's curb appeal.
- First, tape off the driveway, sidewalk, house walls, or anything else that borders your driveway that you do not want to get sealer on.
- You can save time by having someone move with a stiff piece of cardboard, holding it against things you are trying to protect while sealcoating.
- Next, stir the asphalt sealer until the consistency resembles a thick soup.
- If you are using an asphalt sprayer to spray the driveway, begin by trimming the driveway using a finer spray tip. Once all the edges are done, switch to a wider tip, and begin spraying from the right to the left.
- If you are spraying by hand, pour a one-foot-wide puddle of sealer across the top of the driveway. Use your asphalt squeegee to spread the sealer in a push-and-pull motion, working until the sealcoat is between three to four feet wide, evenly dispersed. Repeat the process, moving down the driveway.
- If you are using sand, now is the time to sprinkle it over the driveway in a light and even coating. This improves traction.
Important Tip: Use two thin coats instead of one thick coat, allowing the first coat to dry for several hours before applying the second one.
Tape off the area with caution tape and allow it to dry for at least four hours before you walk on it and at least eight hours before you drive on it. Letting the area dry overnight is best.
Choose a Spray System if...
- You have a large driveway (more than six cars fit)
- You have neighbors who would also like to seal their driveways
- You are short on time. A sprayer is four times as fast as sealing by hand
Choose a Squeegee if...
- You are only planning to seal your own driveway
- You are concerned about budget
- The area to be sealed is small
SHOP RELATED PRODUCTS
After all your hard work, it's important to maintain your driveway going forward.
- Watch for hairline cracks. These can be addressed with sealer if you catch them early enough.
- Inspect your pavement for puddling after a rainstorm. These depressions are the most vulnerable to damage as water sits and possibly freezes. Top up any depressions with cold patch. Tamp it down with oiled plywood. Allow the patch to cure, then sealcoat the driveway to seal it in.
- Keep an eye out for weeds growing out of cracks in the asphalt surface. These are a sign that your cracks need to be cleaned and filled to prevent damage going forward.
