Winter is a very harsh time of year for asphalt pavement maintenance. The extremely cold temperatures, excessive precipitation, salting, and strain from winter tires can cause your asphalt to severely deteriorate and crack under the pressure. Cracks need to be repaired right away or else they can expand and become costlier in the long run. Crack filling. Crack filling is the placement of asphalt emulsion into non-working cracks to reduce water infiltration and to reinforce the adjacent pavement. Non-working cracks are horizontal and/or vertical movements in the crack less than 0.1 inches. Examples of non-working cracks include longitudinal, diagonal and alligator cracks. Now fill the crack with a cold process asphalt repair compound, such as blacktop. Compact the compound with a tamper or a 4x4 wooden post. After compacting, you may need to add more blacktop or compound material and repeat the tamping process to ensure a consistent, level driveway.
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Cracks in an asphalt driveway need to be repaired to prevent rainwater from seeping through and causing further damage. To seal cracks and repair an asphalt driveway:
- Kill and remove any weeds.
- Use a screwdriver to groove out the crack.
- Blow or sweep out any loose debris.
- Fill the crack with one or more coats of asphalt crack filler.
- Use asphalt patch material to fill larger holes.
- Apply asphalt sealer to the entire driveway.
Watch this video to find out more.
Further Information
- Repairing Cracks in a Driveway (video)
- How to Repair and Seal an Asphalt Driveway (video)
- How to Patch a Hole in an Asphalt Driveway (video)
VIDEO TRANSCRIPT
Danny Lipford: Jeremy asks, “What can I do to seal the cracks in my asphalt driveway?”
Danny Lipford: Jeremy asks, “What can I do to seal the cracks in my asphalt driveway?”
The first step in repairing those cracks is to remove any debris or vegetation that you may have already in the crack. Get that out of the way, take a screwdriver and groove out the crack a little bit, and then blast that debris away using a leaf blower. It works great.
Then break out a good quality crack filler, and fill in every crack you can find, and you may have to put a couple coats on in order to completely surface all of the cracks out. Now, with the larger potholes you’ll want to dig it out and put some crushed gravel in, pack it out real well, then use the asphalt patch to surface out and get it nice and even with the top surface of your asphalt driveway.
Then, for the icing on the cake, after everything’s dried, put on a complete coat of asphalt sealer, two coats if you want it to last a long time.
Asphalt Pavement Repair Methods
I couldn’t agree more when you mentioned that the first step in repairing cracks is to remove any debris or vegetation! My neighbors and I are planning to repair the cracks in the asphalt driveway, and one of our problems is the fact that is growing up some vegetation there. We will definitely keep your great tips in mind when searching for help with this.