Judson Burdon

• Overgrown tree roots, oil spills, and the elements can cause cracks in your asphalt.
• Planning to fix driveway cracks yourself? You can do it using different products.
• You can also hire a contractor to fix wider cracks or extensive alligator cracking.

Whether you are a homeowner or a property manager in charge of running an airport or storage facility parking lot, keeping your asphalt driveway or parking lot in good shape is a worthwhile investment. Asphalt is much like our skin - it ages and matures as time passes. Asphalt also requires care and attention, in order to maintain its fresh appearance and life span. Read on to learn tips and best practices on how to care for your blacktop.

Table of Contents

• Why Asphalt Pavements Develop Cracks
• Different Options to Repair Asphalt Cracks

Before a potential customer or tenant steps inside your establishment, the first thing they usually notice is the appearance of your parking area. How well a parking lot is maintained, or how degraded it appears at first sight, speaks volumes regarding your business’s upkeep.

The crew hiring season is coming soon and many business owners struggle to find people who have what it takes to succeed and help the company grow.

“Your brand is what people say when you’re not in the room.”

Did you know that properly maintained asphalt can last up to 30 years?

It’s not easy to improve on an industry-standard machine, nor do companies normally risk tinkering with a product that works. But that’s just what asphalt crack filler machine manufacturer Ryno Worx did.

In asphalt maintenance, anybody can complete simple repairs. DIYers can fill cracks, clean surfaces, sealcoat small properties, and line stripe parking spaces like a professional. 

It's important to remember that you can cover more asphalt maintenance than you might believe. Crack filling, sealcoating, line striping, and other repairs can easily be completed by DIYers. 

The challenge comes in trying to match the look of professional jobs. After all, if your work is lackluster, you may find yourself returning to the same problems over and over. 

The following professional tips can help you execute your next asphalt maintenance project, from preparation and crack repair to sealcoating and line striping. 

Like most maintenance projects, repairing the lines on your parking lot will be less expensive if completed by you. In fact, taking a little time to do the work yourself can save you and your facility as much as 90% per linear foot versus what a contractor would have charged. Unlike other asphalt maintenance jobs such as crack filling and sealcoating, however, line striping properly requires adherence to highly specific measurements mandated by various governing bodies. 

With the sun, rain, ice and traffic constantly assaulting your asphalt surface, cracks developing in the blacktop is an all too common experience for countless property owners and managers – one that can lead to greater damage and even hazardous conditions!

When they do appear, it’s important to repair them as soon as possible to prevent them from worsening and leading to more extensive, and expensive, repairs. Doing so effectively requires the right preparation—otherwise, you'll be wasting your time and your asphalt will continue to deteriorate. 

Here are several useful tips to help you properly prepare a crack for filling: