Your Guide to Common Asphalt Paving Terms

Do you possess or want to install an asphalt parking area, roadway, or driveway? If so, reasonable care and maintenance keep your asphalt structure beautiful and secure for many years. To help you understand what upkeep, restoration, and maintenance you need, it's essential to comprehend a few asphalt terms. Here's a brief guide from our experts on asphalt paving in Dallas, Fort Worth, TX, to the most familiar and essential terms.

Asphalt

What most individuals think of as asphalt is asphalt concrete. This is a blend made up of three primary components: aggregate, binder, and filler. The aggregate (typically stone) is bonded with the filler (usually sand) using a sticky binding agent. This asphalt concrete is only the topmost layer of a multi-tiered method to make a sturdy base.

Base

The base of asphalt pavement is crucial to securing it remains level and solid and that drainage performs well. The stony base is the foundation upon which all further asphalt layers are distributed. Therefore, it must be designed correctly to sustain the weight and the use to which the pavement will be subjected. Thus, the base may require a few inches of a rigid base to over a foot.

Binder Course

Asphalt is made up of various layers. The binder course is between the ground and the upper surface coating. This layer helps disperse weight from the surface and provides stability and durability.

Crack Filling

A strategy for repairing larger cracks is known as filling. If a crack has already advanced to a point where an easy sealant won't deter further erosion, it is filled with a hot or cold asphalt mixture.

Crack Sealing

Crack sealing involves sealing a crack to stop any further dampness or rubble from making it worse. The crack is cleaned and filled with a sealant material. Sealing is a cost-effective way to manage small cracks less than 3/4 of an inch in width. Crack sealing is the foremost and most minimal effort in prolonging the life of the asphalt.

Milling

Milling pavement is the removal of the highest layer of asphalt. The sub-base is left unchanged, supplying a solid foundation to pour fresh asphalt without additional expenses. The extracted asphalt fragments are recycled into new asphalt. In addition to clearing severely damaged pavement, milling can reduce the elevation of overlaid pavement.

Sealcoating

Sealcoating is a word you'll often hear as your pavement ages. It's a method of restoring asphalt by shrouding it with an emulsion that safeguards it from water and sun damage. In addition, sealcoating refreshes the appearance of asphalt by surrounding the aggregate that begins to show on the exterior as the pavement wears down. Asphalt owners should sealcoat their surface every two to three years.

Where to Discover More

Do you want to know more about any of these terms concerning your asphalt? Begin by meeting with our team of experts on asphalt paving in Dallas, Fort Worth, TX. We will help you comprehend your asphalt restoration and replacement needs. Call us today to learn more.