What Are the Pros and Cons of Asphalt Sealcoating?
If you have or are considering an asphalt pavement, you may have heard that you need to give it a little maintenance to make sure that it has a long and attractive life. You probably have no problem understanding the need for crack repairs or periodic cleanings, but there is one maintenance procedure that has given you cause for pause: asphalt sealcoating. Although your paving contractor advised you that you should sealcoat your pavement regularly, you are not certain whether its advantages outweigh its disadvantages.
What Is Sealcoating?
Seal coating is a product that contractors apply as a liquid to a prepared asphalt pavement. The liquid sealcoating bonds with the asphalt as the sealant dries.
What Are the Benefits of Asphalt Sealcoating?
Asphalt sealcoating in Treasure Coast has become extremely common due to the benefits of sealcoating parking lots and other asphalt pavements.
1. Much like the sunscreens people use when they go to the beach, sealcoats are highly effective at blocking UV rays. Exposure to UV rays dries out an asphalt pavement and makes it brittle, and brittle asphalt is easier to crack.
2. Asphalt paving lot sealcoating helps protect the pavement from the automotive fluids that vehicles will inevitably leak when they drive across or park in your lot. Most automotive fluids are petroleum-based products. So is asphalt, and therein lies the problem. Petroleum distillates try to recombine when they come into contact with each other, and this interaction breaks down the binding agent that is the glue holding your pavement together. The spots where the automotive fluids have leaked onto your parking lot get soft and deteriorate rapidly, and potholes form. Sealcoating parking lots will give you more time to remove vehicle fluids before they can damage your asphalt.
3. The UV rays from the sun do more than just dry out asphalt. They also cause the color of an asphalt pavement to fade from an attractive, luxurious dark color to an ugly gray or brown color. Since seal coating is extremely effective at blocking UV rays, it can prevent or mitigate the fading, but it can also restore the pavement’s original color if fading has already occurred.
4. Sealcoats make asphalt pavements even more resistant to water. Water penetration is a common cause of foundation destabilization that can lead to alligator cracking, potholes, and surface depressions.
5. Seal coating can conceal hairline cracks and other minor imperfections on the surface of an asphalt pavement. As a result, the pavement appears much smoother and more attractive.
6. Asphalt sealcoating in Treasure Coast is relatively inexpensive, but it can often double the life of an asphalt parking lot. Furthermore, because asphalt paving lot sealcoating is so effective at preventing severe damage, it increases the odds that your pavement will be suitable for resurfacing instead of requiring a complete reconstruction.
What Are the Disadvantages of Asphalt Sealcoating?
Sealcoating parking lots can be a cost-effective way to simultaneously protect and beautify your asphalt pavement, but there are some minor disadvantages.
1. Seal coating will wear away after about two years, so it is not a one-time procedure. To get the proper results, you will need to have new sealant applied just as the old sealant is reaching the end of its life.
2. When sealcoating parking lots, contractors need clients to make sure that there are no vehicles parked in the work area. This can be an inconvenience, especially if your business operates around the clock. However, experienced sealcoating companies know how to minimize the inconvenience. For example, it is often possible to sealcoat the parking lot in stages by dividing the pavement into sections, then closing and completing one section before moving to the next.
3. Reputable sealcoating companies will not apply a sealant to a pavement that needs critical repairs, including significant cracks, potholes, or alligator cracking. Whether you consider this an advantage or a disadvantage, you will need to make sure that critical repairs are completed before the start of the sealcoating procedure.
Asphalt Care Services is a Treasure Coast asphalt maintenance company that specializes in helping clients get the best outcomes for their pavements. We offer a variety of repair and maintenance services, including sealcoating, parking lot striping, asphalt repairs, thermoplastic line striping, residential asphalt paving, bumper block installation, parking lot maintenance, speed bump installation, and traffic signage. We have earned an exceptional reputation by consistently providing our clients with exemplary service and superior results. We serve most Treasure Coast locations, including Stuart, Port St. Lucie, Okeechobee, Hobe Sound, Boca Raton, Sebastian, West Palm Beach, Indian River, and Vero Beach. Contact us today to request a free quote with no strings attached. You can fill out our online form, email [email protected], or call 772-888-2840.
