Asphalt Crack Sealing: The Why, When, And How
Small cracks are easy to ignore, and many people are unaware that these are fixable long before they turn into serious safety hazards. Asphalt crack sealing is a fairly quick and simple process that stops those creeping crevices from expanding into deep cracks that turn into potholes and fractures. Our team prefers to do asphalt crack repair work when the problems are so small that they are nearly undetectable, which can extend your pavement’s life span.
How Do You Know If You Need to Do Asphalt Crack Repair?
Once you begin to notice visible cracks on the pavement, it’s likely time to arrange for asphalt crack sealer services. We do inspections before we start crack repair in Austin, and we generally recommend sealing ones that are around 1/8” or bigger.
We also recommend doing asphalt crack repair in the spring, summer and fall seasons. Using a crack seal now stops water from getting inside existing lines where it can freeze during the winter weather.
When Is Crack Sealing No Longer the Best Option?
If you’ve ever had to replace a windshield because of lengthening cracks, then you have a good idea of what can happen if you let these small crevices spread. Eventually, tiny cracks can go too far and connect with other ones. When this happens at a deeper level in the pavement, then we might need to do patching as the preferred method of asphalt crack repair.
Using a crack seal might also not be your best choice for fixing alligator cracks and fractures that indicate problems with the base layers of the pavement. Asphalt crack sealer is meant to work mostly on the top layer of the pavement. If you have different levels of damage on your property, then we can use a crack seal after we finish patching for a complete repair job.
What Kind of Prep Work Is Necessary?
Cleaning and routine are both important steps that our crew uses when we do crack repairs in Austin. Routing involves using special tools to widen a narrow crack to make it big enough for our asphalt crack sealer to fill in.
Cleaning simply involves using a vacuum, blower or brush to remove debris that exists within the crack. Making sure that the crack has smooth and clean sides ensures that the crack seal will fully adhere to it for lasting results.
How Long Does Austin Crack Sealing Take to Complete?
One of the reasons why you might be tempted to put off crack repair is the desire to avoid downtime on your lot or driveway. The amount of time it takes to do crack repair work depends upon how many areas you need to seal along with whether or not we do patching, too.
Usually, we’ll section off larger areas into smaller ones to allow for people to still walk and drive on the property. Once we do the crack repair, we’ll let you know when traffic can resume using the area. Typically, the area will be ready for traffic within a couple of days.
Prevent Deeper Damage With Prompt Austin Crack Repair
JSC Asphalt, LLC offers inspections and crack repair in Austin that are beneficial for your overall parking lot maintenance plan. If the pavement has more damage, we can also do other forms of asphalt repair before adding protective sealcoating. After the Austin asphalt crack sealing, we can redo parking lot striping and determine if speed bumps or traffic signs are a possible solution for improving your lot. Power washing is also a great way to prevent small cracks by spraying away corrosive debris. Give us a call today at 512-653-6526 or request more info using our online form, and we’ll set you up with a free quote for crack repair.