Asphalt drive cracks

[Taterman]

We moved into our house a year and a half ago and it has a 50-60 yard asphalt driveway. There are now cracks in it, one goes straight across and is about 1/4" wide at most. There are also several other cracks in different areas.
I saw some asphalt crack sealer at Rural Kings, but I was wondering if the is a better or easier way to fix them. Or is an asphalt company repairing it the way to go?

 

[hittman]

Concrete company is the way to go.
Id rather have gravel than asphalt and changed to concrete years ago.
You are entering a never ending battle my friend.

 

[Jeepnik]

Is the driveway sloped?

 

[Taterman]

Is the driveway sloped?

Yes, it's on a hill.

 

[arfmel]

. Or is an asphalt company repairing it the way to go?

If you have a local, established company doing asphalt repair and replacement I don’t see any downside to having them look at it and give you a quote.

The repair stuff in a caulk tube is a mess.

 

[turd]

I am by no means an expert on asphalt, but I did some work in roadway design and have been observing asphalt for many years. Asphalt's main problem is it dries and then cracks. If your driveway is in the sun, it will dry faster. If you want to work with it, it may need to have the cracks filled and a sealer applied. And, yes, you will need to reseal from time to time for best performance. JMHO, and I haven't seen your drive and I don't live in Kentucky. I would call a blacktop paving company and ask what they suggest for the level of performance you want.

Like Arfmel said while I was typing.

 

[Jeepnik]

Yes, it's on a hill.

Not much you can do with asphalt on a slope. The ground underneath will continue to move over time. Asphalt will crack. As mentioned concrete or you can use pavers. The key on both of those is proper preparation of the ground.

 

[john4st]

Hot pour sealant over routed cracks is the best longest lasting but more expensive repair. DIY stuff just does not stay flexible during cold temps when the joint wants to open up. One part polyurethane and widening the joint with an abrasive wheel is about only DIY way that's partially effective. Maybe silicone calk if your in moderate climate

 

[s4s4u]

Asphalt is going to crack, period. If you drive on any highway you can see the cracks, as well as the "patches". It is probably worse up north here, but the road crews are filling cracks in the same roads every other year it seems. As long as there isn't separation, I probably wouldn't get to excited about it. I can't see how bad your situ is tho, so FWIW

 

[TheTexasRAT]

Seal it before the pot holes start.

 

[Taterman]

Thanks guys. I guess I'll get an estimate done and hope it's not too high.

 

[Mobuck]

IMHO, most asphalt driveways have neither the proper compaction underneath nor the optimal tar/filler application on top. The businesses doing driveway asphalting usually don't do proper preparation, so the end result looks good for a while and then falls apart. Much worse in a widely variant temperature zone.

 

[mirglip]

When you get cracks in asphalt what happens is water gets under the asphalt around the crack. If you have frost it will expand and push up the asphalt. If you don't have frost but lots of rain, it will break when you drive over it because asphalt is only slightly heavier than water and tends to float when driven over.
Hot pour sealant will solve these issues somewhat (until it doesn't), it will also make the driveway slippery when wet.
If you pave over cracked asphalt it might crack in the same places as the underlayer. Asphalt doesn't last forever. It helps if you have good road base and crown to drain the water off.

 

[gjgalligan]

Not much you can do with asphalt on a slope. The ground underneath will continue to move over time. Asphalt will crack. As mentioned concrete or you can use pavers. The key on both of those is proper preparation of the ground.

Come over and look at my neighbors drive and you can see that when the ground moves the concrete will also break.

 

[Johnnu2]

About 30 yrs ago, I had an anal neighbor with friends in the trades. If I recall correctly, he had them overdo the prep including adding REBAR... It's been 30+ years and absolutely no cracks in that driveway.

J.

 

[txramfan]

Here in Plano, the roads are concrete .
For the last few years, some major roads like Jupiter , the city has put asphalt down on top of the existing concrete. From what I read the asphalt coating prolongs the life of the concrete, or at least they hope it will.

 

[hittman]

Concrete comes with certain guarantees.
1 it’s expensive
2 it will get hard
3 it will crack
4 nobody will steal it

 

[larry8]

Had a asphalt driveway and my kitchen vinyl floor turned orange from the little bits of asphalt that was continuously brought in on the shoes of people. Had to replace the floor then smartened up and had the asphalt removed and put in concrete. That was 20 some years ago and it still looks good.

 

[Fox Mike]

While at the Gathering we had a gentleman come and repair and seal our driveway. Seems about every three years is the average I have been getting without cracks and sealant needed. Here the temperature runs from "Oh my goodness it's hot' to 'freeze the balls off the brass monkey' . (look that saying up if you don't know what it means)

 

[WanderLust]

I have learned that the better repairmen will recommend applying 2 layers of asphalt, 1-1/2" to 2" thick each, to strengthen and minimize issues later.

 

[Jeepnik]

IMHO, most asphalt driveways have neither the proper compaction underneath nor the optimal tar/filler application on top. The businesses doing driveway asphalting usually don't do proper preparation, so the end result looks good for a while and then falls apart. Much worse in a widely variant temperature zone.

Pretty much nailed it. And here's another bit of info.

What most folks think of as asphalt is actually an aggregate (rock, gravel and heaven only knows what else) mixed with asphalt. Asphalt is a very heavy hydrocarbon that is pretty much what's leftover after most of the lighter hydrocarbons are removed in the refining process. Asphalt is graded based on testing known as a penetration test. The less penetration the higher the the number on the grading system

The quality of the asphalt / aggregate product is determined by the quality of the aggregate, using the proper grade of asphalt (and its quality) and the mix ratio. Most producers skimp on all three unless it's a government job where the product has to meet certain testing standards.

All asphalt / aggregate will crack eventually even with good quality materials and proper installation. The asphalt "dries out" and no longer holds the aggregate together. Like roadways its life can be extended by using a slurry coat (sealer) annually. Asphalt slurry if a light asphalt mixed with water and chemicals to keep it "mixed". Asphalt is really pretty labor intensive to maintain compared to concrete or pavers.

You now know more that you will ever need to about "asphalt".

 

[jav]

That’s the best advice call a good company

 

[mirglip]

I have learned that the better repairmen will recommend applying 2 layers of asphalt, 1-1/2" to 2" thick each, to strengthen and minimize issues later.

If you are getting cracks perpendicular to the length of the driveway, it is from expansion and contraction. The second layer might crack in the exact same location.

 

[Joe Chartreuse]

The repair goo works, but you have to brush loose stuff in it for a match. It's actually good because it won't crack there again- expands and contracts with temperature. Don't bother with a simple black-topping as it will crack there again in a season or two. Relaxing the whole driveway is expensive, and concrete will crack as well ( but you can get concrete colored goo).

 

[Taterman]

Thanks for the advice guys.