Concrete paving is a very durable type of paving. In fact it can outlast asphalt paving for twice it’s lifespan. That’s fifty years of having the same pavement and not needing to completely replace it. This of course can only be possible if you properly do concrete pavement maintenance.
The Best Tips for Proper Concrete Pavement Maintenance
Concrete pavement maintenance may sound simple, however, you might be doing things the wrong way. This will lower the lifespan of your concrete pavement instead of extending it. This includes sealing your pavement several weeks or months off of schedule, waiting for a rainstorm to happen before doing repairs and many more. So to help you out, we’ve put together a list of tips you can follow to make sure you’re getting the most out of your concrete pavement.
Keep an Eye Out For Cracks and Areas Prone To Cracks
The biggest problem that a concrete pavement will face is the presence of cracks and potholes. One of the best ways to prevent them from getting out of hand is to make sure that you catch them early. Once you find a crack or pothole, don’t wait for it to get bigger. Make sure that you fix it right away. It isn’t just the cracks themselves that you should be wary of though.
Keeping your eye on crack prone areas is also something you should do. These are areas where heavy vehicles will be driving, or parking over. This also includes the edges of your pavement as these are the most vulnerable areas that can have cracks.
Avoid Concrete Pavement Maintenance After a Rainshower
One of the worst enemies of any type of pavement is water. Of course, sometimes it is sometimes unavoidable that rain will drench your pavement every once in a while. Despite this being an inevitable occurrence, what you shouldn’t be doing is conducting maintenance after a rain shower.
Any repairs that you do on your pavement could end up trapping water underneath your repairs. This will cause a number of problems that will shorten the lifespan of your concrete pavement.
Clean Your Pavement Frequently
Needless to say, frequent cleaning of your pavement can be a tedious thing to do. Despite this however, you should always make sure that your pavement is clean from dirt as much as possible. This is because the debris on your pavement could be the cause of your next big problem. This includes dirt patches, heavy objects, and oil stains that end up on your pavement.
Make Sure That You Seal The Pavement On Schedule
In the past, we’ve emphasized how important it is to seal your pavement. This is because of how a proper sealant will make sure to extend the lifespan of your pavement by several years. This is even more important on concrete pavements as frequent sealing will make sure to extend it’s lifespan by several decades instead of just a few years when compared to an asphalt pavement. However, sealant is only useful up to a certain point and it will eventually need to be reapplied.
Reapplying sealant on time will make sure that there isn’t a window of time where your pavement is left vulnerable to the elements. This makes sure that you spend less time fixing potholes and cracks in the future.