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Crack seal Process

It is important to the longevity of your asphalt surfaces to maintain and repair asphalt cracking before it becomes a major issue. Cracks are a natural occurrence to asphalt and is caused by the climate and the aging process of asphalt. The cracks become an open door to water invasion to the base and sub-base level of your parking lot and can contribute to rapid failure.

Asphalt Cracking Causes

• UV Rays — The sun plays a big role in asphalt cracking and deterioration. An asphalt surface will bake in the sun and a process called oxidation occurs removing oils from the wear surface. This causes asphalt to become dry and brittle and less flexible to withstand the traffic flow and freeze thaw cycles. As a result cracks begin to form and if unmaintained they can quickly cause failure.

• Traffic Flow — Asphalt is designed to be flexible and allows for some give for constant traffic flow. The weight of the vehicles and traffic flow patterns can contribute to asphalt cracking. It is imperative to maintain structure strength of the sub-base soil supporting the asphalt surfaces. If asphalt cracks are not addressed immediately, water can infiltrate the supporting sub-soils causing damage and in turn creating more cracking and asphalt deterioration.

• Freeze Thaw Cycles —The freeze thaw cycles play a major roll in the deterioration occurrence in asphalt surfaces. When temperature cycles fluctuate rapidly it causes the asphalt to expand and contract too quickly resulting is smaller hairline cracks or thermal cracking. Another reaction to these cycles is in spring time when the surface temps warm up and melts the snow and ice, unmaintained cracks allow this moisture to invade the base and sub-base soils. This moisture becomes trapped between the asphalt course above and the still frozen sub-soils below. When constant traffic flow is occurring weakens the sub-soils and thus creates aggressive asphalt cracking.