C and R Asphalt Frequently Asked Questions

Answer: Since this type of work is obviously performed outdoors, temperature is a factor in determining when work can be performed. Optimal times for all work would be between April 1 and November 15th. Times are indicated below for each job type:

• Asphalt Patching should be done between March 15th and December 15 with some flexibility pending the weather.

• Crack sealing can be done 12 months a year as long as the pavement is dry.

• Concrete work can be performed during the winter as long as the temperature is not expected to drop much below freezing during the first 24 hours. Under certain conditions, additives may added to deter the concrete from freezing.

Answer: Name a product that is conducive to oxidation and you most likely will find a protective coating on it. This is also true with asphalt. Even though Asphalt pavement has a relatively long life. It is a porous material and does allow for moisture entry if not properly sealed.

• Sunblock – Premium Sealers prevent asphalt surface oxidation by forming a tough, protective skin.

• Weatherproof – Sealcoating shuts out water by sealing away the naturally porous surface of asphalt.

• Restore Appearance – Sealers provide the jet black finish and fresh, new appearance to asphalt. Well-maintained asphalt makes any business or home look more attractive.

• Resist Gas and Oil – Premium sealers protect asphalt from the deteriorating effects of gasoline, oil. De-icers and other harsh chemicals.

• Save Money – Replacing asphalt can be expensive. Spending a few cents per square foot for premium sealcoat protection makes good economic sense.

Answer: The answer is dependent on the current condition of your parking lot or driveway. If your lot has a good base and not showing any significant subbase failures, then the best option is to initiate a sealcoat maintenance program. This would involve filling cracks with a Hot Rubber Crack and Joint Sealer, and sawcuting severely deteriorated areas and replacing with full depth asphalt and sealcoating with 2 coats of a good Cold Tar Emulsion sealer like Sealmaster, and re-striping. The sealer should be reapplied every 2-5 years, depending upon traffic you lot has. Over time, you will find that with the proper maintenance as stated above, the amount of patch work you have to do will go down.

• If your lot is not structurally sound, C & R Asphalt, LLC. will be glad to provide a no-cost pavement evaluation, which is the most foolproof way of getting the necessary information.

• In cases where too thin a layer of asphalt was put over a good sub base, patching and a sound overlay is the most viable option.

• Where water seeping out of the surface is a problem, French drain may need to be installed prior to any overlay.

• Obviously, there can be many factors that come into making decisions on what gives you the best return for your investment. C & R Asphalt, LLC. estimators will be glad to overview you lot and give recommendations for your particular situation and budget. That’s why it is important to deal with a full service company, like C & R Asphalt, LLC., that handles all aspects of pavement repair maintenance.

Answer: Asphalt deterioration is affected by many contributing factors, some of which are listed below:

• WATER . . WATER . . WATER . . – are 3 elements that destroy pavement by getting into cracks in the surface or after oxidation has set in. Once water gets into the surface, nature, through its freezing and thawing process causes more cracks and enlarges the existing cracks.

• Original construction quality – which can lead to deterioration in several ways.

• Oxidation – As stated in another question is this section pertaining to maintenance costs, even on the most sound sub base and overly construction, oxidation is a natural occurance that can only be controlled with sealcoating using a good Cold Tar Emulsion sealer like Nyra.

• Dumpster Trucks destroy Asphalt especially in the area where the trucks lift the dumpsters. The rocking motion creates stress that few asphalt pavements are designed to with stand.

• Cracks. Asphalt is a flexible pavement and cracks are a natural part of the aging process. When left unfilled, these cracks will allow water penetration into the subbase which will prematurely cause potholes and other types of extensive pavement failure.

• Petroleum spills, since asphalt is an oil based material, any oil based product that is spilled upon it will dissolve the cement that bonds the asphalt together and cause premature failures.

Answer: A good average is 20 years. Architects generally design parking lots to last 20-25 years. Unfortunately, designs on paper and actual conditions in the field can vary quite significantly, and since the parking lot tends to be the last item of construction project, and is obviously less structurally important than the building itself, corners can be cut leading to significant decreases in the parking lots useful life. Parking lots and driveways that were constructed in the 70’s seem to have held up better over the years than ones constructed in recent years. For structurally sound pavements that are experiencing isolated failures, a maintenance program of patching, seal coating and striping will prolong the life of the pavement almost indefinitely.

A site inspection is required to assess the remaining useful life of any particular parking lot. C & R Asphalt, LLC.s pavement evaluation study can predict with accuracy how much useful life is left in a particular parking lot. And more importantly what needs to be done to achieve that life.

Answer: The American with Disabilities Act is a federal mandate for handicap parking space requirements at buildings open to the public. This federal legislation was passed in part due to inconsistencies in handicap parking requirements by local jurisdictions. The federal guidelines are as follows:

• Number of accessible parking spaces required for commercial properties, open to the public.


# of Spaces on Lot	Minimum # of Accessible Spaces Required	Of those, the # Required to be Van Accessible
1-25	1	1
26-50	2	1
51-75	3	1
76-100	4	1
101-150	5	1
151-200	6	1
201-300	7	1
301-400	8	1
401-500	9	1
501-1000	2% of total	1 in every 8 accessible spaces
1001 & Over	20 Plus for each 100	1 in every 8 accessible spaces over 1000

Accessible space – 8’ with 5’ hashout on left side, two spaces can share a hashout.

Accessible – Regular handicapped sign – Reserved parking and universal logo in center of each sign. Bottom of sign must be between 4’ and 7’ above pavement surface.

Van Accessible – Same as above, except that the words “VAN ACCESSIBLE” shall be printed below the logo.

Spaces, access aisles, loading zones shall have maximum slope at 2% (1:50) in all directions.

Answer: Some concrete curbs hold paint well while others are chronic peelers. Usually we see one extreme or the other.

Concrete takes 28 days to reach full hardness, and can give off dust for another 6 months after that. Therefore curbs must be allowed to fully cure before paint is applied. Notice that if there are several layers on the curb, generally they all come off at once. Therefore the problem is not with the most painting job, but with the original one.

One solution is to sand blast or water blast all of the paint off the curb back to original concrete. Then we can repaint the entire curb with an oil base paint which will stand the test of time. This is a fairly expensive option.