One of the biggest problems that any home or business owner will face are asphalt pavement cracks. These cracks cause a major headache for any motorist driving over them as well as for the owner. Not only will these shorten the lifespan of your asphalt driveway but they will also cause problems for vehicles driving over them. But what exactly can you do about these asphalt pavement cracks?
What You Need To Know About Asphalt Pavement Cracks
The most important step to making sure that you minimize the damage caused by these cracks is to understand them and create a plan to counter the causes. Asphalt pavement cracks don’t just appear out of nowhere and neither do they happen for no reason. So we’ll be exploring a few causes of these cracks and what you can do to prevent them.
Extreme Weather
One of the most prevalent causes of asphalt pavement cracks is the weather in your area. Extreme heat could cause your asphalt to soften and make it easier for both cracks and depressions to appear, while extreme cold will cause it to become brittle. If you live in an area with either extreme heat or extreme cold, then you’re going to want to take several precautions like making use of specialized seal coatings to keep your asphalt fresh and damage free.
Rain and Water
Water is your pavement’s worst enemy. This is due to how water can slowly corrode it and cause asphalt pavement cracks to appear. Water that seeps into pre-existing cracks can expand and contract depending on the weather and it will damage the asphalt while causing those cracks to grow.
Old Age
Asphalt typically has a lifespan of twenty to twenty five years before needing to be replaced. If your asphalt pavement has lasted for this long without showing problems, then you’ve done a great job of maintaining it. However, you should understand that everything has an expiration date. That includes your asphalt pavement. So if it’s pushing twenty or more years then it might be time to consider a brand new driveway.
Solutions To Asphalt Pavement Cracks
Now that you know that you know the main causes of asphalt pavement cracks, the next step is to know what you can do to make sure that you can fix it. These solutions come in two forms: preventive measures to ensure that you minimize the number of cracks and reactive measures that you tend to do when you find a crack or two already on your pavement.
Preventive Measures
Preventive measures make sure that your asphalt pavement stays crack free. These can include solutions like regularly using seal coating and making sure that you hired the right professional paving contractor that doesn’t compromise on quality.
Reactive Measures
These measures ensure that you can take on these asphalt pavement cracks head on. These can include filling in the cracks or even replacing your entire asphalt driveway.
One thing you should know however, is that prevention is better than reaction as it can save you hundreds of dollars in repair costs in the future. The best preventive measure is making sure that you have the right professional paving contractor do the paving for you. Contact us today for a consultation regarding your pavement!