A new asphalt parking lot is a lovely sight to behold. The dark, smooth color provides an attractive expanse on its own, but it also creates a rich background for your markings, stripes, and other painted elements. Unfortunately, unless you are proactive about your paving repairs and asphalt maintenance, your parking lot can suffer. Your parking lot can become unsightly, and you could find yourself having to replace your pavement long before it reaches the end of its expected life. Although there are several ways to repair cracks in asphalt pavements, it is always better to do all that you can to prevent cracks from developing in the first place.
How to Prevent Asphalt Cracks on Your Retail Parking Lot
Why Should I Worry About Cracks in My Asphalt Parking Lot?
An asphalt pavement rests upon a compacted foundation that must remain stable and strong to provide adequate support. When cracks develop in the pavement, water trickles down through the various layers until it reaches the foundation. The water erodes the foundation, weakening its ability to support the pavement and resulting in additional damage. Alligator cracking, potholes, and other forms of damage can result in costly paving repairs, so it is more economical to do everything in your power to prevent a major crack from developing. Should a crack develop, immediately asking your contractor to provide an appropriate asphalt crack repair can prevent additional cracks or other damage patterns from developing.
How Do I Prevent Cracks in My Asphalt Pavement?
Asphalt pavements have some powerful enemies. The forces that inflict the most damage are the sun, automotive fluids, and water. Asphalt sealcoating can help protect against cracks that develop from exposure to these three forces. A fourth force that can cause asphalt pavements to crack is overloading. This is when you allow traffic of a higher volume or heavier weight than your contractor engineered your lot to support. Unfortunately, there is no simple way to prevent cracks that form from overloading. You will need to be vigilant about enforcing your traffic rules, or you will need to budget appropriately for ongoing asphalt repairs.
Besides Sealcoating, Is There Anything Else I Can Do to Avoid Costly Paving Repairs?
A clean pavement will be less prone to damage, so remove piles of trash or vegetation regularly. You should also clean any fluids leaked onto your pavement, including oil, diesel, brake fluid, gas, and power steering fluid, at least every six months. If you notice a crack that measures more than approximately an eighth of an inch in width, call a reputable contractor to schedule a pavement crack sealing procedure. Crack sealing is the longest-lasting asphalt crack repair method, and it is suitable for most types of cracks. If there are multiple cracks over a wide area that are too narrow for crack sealing, ask your contractor about a chip seal, slurry seal, or fog seal.
Trust Alpha Paving for Assistance
Alpha Paving, a full-service asphalt company based in Round Rock, is famous for exceptional work, superior service, and true professionalism. Our services include parking lot repair, thermoplastic markings, concrete repairs, asphalt repairs, concrete installation, asphalt overlays and paving, pothole repairs, parking lot striping, asphalt milling, parking lot signs, speed bump installation, and road construction. Whether you need a simple pavement crack sealing procedure, a pothole repair, or an extensive parking lot repair, our well-trained, experienced team members are ready to assist you on any or all of your paving projects. If you would like to request a free quote, you can call 512-677-9001, or you can fill out our online form to submit your information.