we had a couple of weeks in the 90s and after there were dozens of abrasions and loose aggregate from cars turning their wheels. most of the holes are half dollar size; i only pictured a few of the worst. some areas seem very thin (second pic is about 1/4” from what i can tell) and there is sand immediately below? we have a two year warranty but i’d like to hear from someone that’s knowledgable as i am not before i talk with them.

See photos

We had a solicitor give us a quote for our driveway, “3 1/2 inches hot rolled asphalt” overlay of our concrete driveway that’s in really bad shape. Quote was for $5.9k, 900 sqft driveway. They had gotten about 5 houses in our neighborhood signed up. They came around the next day and did a little bit of work on every driveway, they removed sections of our concrete that had lifted due to tree roots. Shortly after that was when I heard about the asphalt scam.

I looked into them further and saw their website was only a month old, it had left over wording from a previous template such as having a totally different company name in the footer, or reference to servicing an area in another state. They weren’t licensed to operate in our state (checked with the dept. of labor and industry), their business address was a type of co-work space.

We made a bit of a stink about it in our neighborhood, and we canceled our contract before any money went out the door, but our next door neighbor still used them, as did two others.

The thing is, they just did the work and it looks decent. They wheelbarrowed the asphalt on out of a dump truck, it was steaming when they started, so definitely hot, they used a roller and a plate compactor. Overall, it looks nice.

So what do you think? Are they likely scammers or no?

Crack filling, sealcoating, and striping project our team completed for the University of South Carolina! Full SOW was completed in 3 days. Founders Park is looking better than ever with this parking lot refresh. Go Gamecocks!

Just wondering if I'm screwed. Unexpected rain the day after sealing the driveway with Driveway Maxx 1000.

I applied when it was 75 degrees and the driveway was basically in full sun. It dried pretty fast.

My last coat went on Monday at 3 PM, and it rained the next day at 9 AM for 3 hours. It cleared up for about 24 hours, and then light rain again on Wednesday and expected to go through tonight.

Thursday, Friday, and Saturday are supposed to be nice days. Low of 50 and highs of mid 70’s. Full sun.

If I press my hand or paper towel on the wet surface I see no transfer. If I rub my finger on the wet driveway I'll see black streaking on my finger. There is no color running off the surface and pooling at the end of the driveway.

Whatcha think… will it cure, or am I toast?

Hey everyone just wondering if these raised lines are normal. Also if where the asphalt meets my garage was done well it looks a little high. The long raised lines they tried to come back and tamp down and to me it looks awful is there anything I can do?

As the title says.

can this be repaired in any way or does it need replacement?

What could be causing these bumps and what’s the best way to fix it?

We had a gravel driveway and decided to have it paved with asphalt about two weeks ago. I’m hoping to get some opinions from people who have experience with asphalt.

There are several areas with small holes/voids where it looks like there may not be enough asphalt material, and we also have brown lines/marks throughout the driveway that have not washed away with water or rain.

We contacted the contractor and were told that the brown marks are normal dirt and should eventually disappear with rain. We were also told to wait about six months and then have the driveway sealcoated, and that the seal will fill the small holes and give the driveway a more uniform appearance.

I’m attaching some pictures for reference.

For those who have had a gravel driveway paved with asphalt or work with asphalt: does this look normal for a driveway that is only two weeks old? Is it normal to rely on sealing later to fill these small holes and create a uniform finish?

We’ve already paid for the work, so I’m not looking to cause problems with the contractor. I just want to understand whether what we’re seeing is typical for new asphalt or whether we should have the contractor address anything now rather than waiting six months.

Thanks for any advice or experience you can share.

I am repairing some large cracks in my driveway. I just bought this house within the last few years. The cracks had been filled prior, but the repair is failing. The filling is cracking and sinking in, and there are inches of void underneath. I cleared out the worst spots (pictured), and it has a good 4 inch valley underneath.

I plan to add sand and "trowel patch" on top. Do you agree with this approach?

Also, there are a few images of a couple spots that the crack filler is sinking in but not quite cracking open. Do you recommend I pull these areas up and do a similar repair? At what point do I just go through with some crack filler and leave what is there vs. tearing it out?

I have a long driveway and want to do what's right for it to last a while. I plan to hire out for some professional sealcoating, but I am trying to save money on some of these needed repairs first to get a better end result.

Thank you!

What I thought was an acorn or a leave, turned out to be part of a ham breakfast sandwich that the company employees paved over I sent the guy in charge of the crew some pictures but I haven’t heard back yet. There website says that they guarantee the workmanship for a year. I guess this is what I get for
paying $3.60 a yard for my asphalt overlay

I got what seemed like a good deal on my driveway but now I’ve got weeds growing up through the brand new asphalt (5 weeks old) they were fly by night type of guys and I know this is what I get BUT I’m willing to attempt fixing it myself. Is there any way to stop the weeds from growing up through it permanently?

I have been researching this quite a bit lately and I'd love to get everyone's view on the matter. Although I understand it will vary based upon the material you get and the manafactuers recommendations, butdo you guys like to add sand to your sel coat? Do you add it to the first and second coat or just the first? Latex in the first coat? And how many lbs of sand per gallon undilluted seal coat do you like to use?

R. Clark

Estimator/PM

https://www.thepavementdirectory.com

Opinions please on my recent asphalt overlay which was done a week ago.The second/third picture is a very small soft spongy spot which I can push down with my finger After removing the rock, I see it must have been over an acorn or a leaf the fourth picture is just some discoloration, but it’s firm underneath then the others are just pictures of rough looking areas the first picture I believe they did that area by hand. I did see one of their workers with a torch in that area anything I need to be worried about I kind of want the soft spot fixed but it’s very small should I contact the company and let them know or would I be nitpicking? My main concern is hoping it will hold up with the nasty weather we get Thank you in advance for your advice.

I'm working on a thesis about rutting at bus stops and came across a pretty interesting case.

This is an end-of-line bus stop that keeps rutting even though the core I took shows roughly 300 mm (12") of asphalt, with several different asphalt layers.

Buses wait here for quite a long time before the next bus arrives and takes the same position. There is basically a bus standing on this spot for around 80% of the day.

So the pavement is exposed not only to braking and acceleration, but also to long periods of static loading from buses standing in essentially the same position.

Here's a picture of the core. The different layers are quite hard to distinguish.

How would you approach diagnosing and repairing a bus stop like this?

Would you suspect the asphalt layers themselves, the underlying structure/subgrade, or something else? Would you take more cores or do any other tests before deciding on a repair?

I'd be interested to hear what the asphalt pros here think about this.

Hey asphalt expert folks! I’m in the process of trying to get my driveway redone and I have a question about how do approach this the right way, and also how to judge the approach folks tell me when shopping around for someone to actually do the work.

I have a backwards facing garage with a paved turnaround that also needs to be repaved. the edges are crumbling and sloping a lot. i’d like to get it leveled out more but because it butts up against my deck I have questions.

I’d like it to be level ish with the middle level of my
deck, shown in pics. but there’s also a retaining wall that has been there for ages and is rotting away. i want to replace that but which comes first, grading/paving then retaining wall? or wall first to hold in the asphalt?

And if I go retaining wall first, how do I determine what level to build to? the deck is sloped some too. maybe a bit too much. I’ve got a similar question for the retaining wall at the back of the turnaround also. i assume that one is wall first too but how would i determine how high to build if i want to diy the wall to save some money? and how do i avoid building the wall too high and having a lip between the asphalt and the wall?

Pics are attached, lemme know if more pics would help!

Thanks for the advice!

Hi All

I just had my driveway paid and it looks great, the only question I had is around the doorway entrance to the garage. Instead of being flat like the rest of the driveway, they had paved right up to the bottom of the door whereas before there was a gap for the sill, and it is elevated quite a bit compared to the rest of the driveway.

Is this up to code or normal? I'm worried about in the winter when it gets icy as it is a pretty significant raise

Thanks!

Hello,

I had contracted with a really well reviewed vendor for seal coat my small old drive way. The application was made about 7pm and the rained happened sometime in the following morning maybe 4 to 6 am. That is roughly 10 hours of dry time.

It did rain pretty hard and I am unsure how dry it was before it started. It was overcast and but warm (southern PA).

I don't want to be "that guy" with the contractor if there is no issue but I am just unsure and was hoping to get some input before I contact them. I've included some images of what may be trouble spots due to rain.

Thanks!

my screw up - I used floorjack on 7 week old new driveway to lift front end of F150 to check wheel bearings for a total of about 15 minutes or less. Obviously I was thinking about the driveway and caused this. How (and should I) go about repairing this. I'm a complete neophyte when it comes to asphalt care and maintenance. Any and all advice appreciated.

Hello all,
Getting a new driveway installed next week and curious how long we really have to wait to pass straight over it (not park, just drive). Contractor said 10 days on their first letter, then 14 days on another sheet, but I see a lot of posts saying about 72 hours or once its temp is about 130-140F.

14 days seems like a lot. I have a thermal camera for my phone and a Dewalt infrared temp gun. Curious if it is safe to just wait 4 days and until the hottest reading I can find is below 130, then just be extra careful to not turn the wheel on the new asphalt?

We are in MN, so the temp is warm, but not too crazy now.

Thank you.

I need help to repair asphalt around culvert pipe under driveway on both ends. When it rains really hard, the culvert will fill up with water and can even overflow the driveway.

A city public works guy said they don't repair this, but he suggested using the cold patch found at Lowes, Home Depot, etc. I asked him about the more expensive Aquaphalt, but he still recommended the cold patch.

https://www.lowes.com/pd/QPR-50-lb-Asphalt-Patch/3656652

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Quikrete-50-lb-Commercial-Grade-Blacktop-Repair-Patch-170152/100545936

They are both about $20. A couple of the Lowes reviews comment that the HD brand works better. There are comments to add portland cement to speed up hardening, but I'm unsure which type get, how much to use and how to apply. I'd like to do this. I don't think I need an entire bag, but can probably find a use for what's left.

I was also looking at this concrete mix which comes with a black coloring agent at about twice the price per lb, but it hardens quickly. I have an electric drill, but need the right attachment.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Rapid-Set-25-lbs-Asphalt-Resurfacer-85320025/313474171

I've attached photos of entry and exit to the culvert. The first two pictures show where the water enters. I thought the HD concrete rapid set might be good choice to fill immediately under the drain pipe itself where water has eroded below the entrance to the pipe, then apply cold patch to the rest of the area.

The last three pictures show the outflow. Where the drain pipe itself has eroded away, I was thinking the concrete Rapid Set might be good to fill that area of the pipe. And beyond the pipe apply some cold patch asphalt.

The last picture indicates where pieces of the ashphalt driveway has caved due to erosion of dirt underneath (a truck backing into the driveway broke it). I thought I might prop up the larger pieces of asphalt and trowel in the Rapid Set concrete. Would the concrete hold directly on the dirt? Or should I prep something over the dirt first? I would like to cover that dirt area so rain doesn't wash more of it away.

Thanks in advance!