Driveways in Cleveland, OH often look gray, tired, and dried out after a rough Lake Erie winter. Asphalt takes a beating around here. Between the heavy freeze-thaw cycles in places like Parma and Lakewood, plus the brutal summer UV rays, that liquid binder holding your pavement together breaks down fast. Asphalt Sealcoating is your best defense, but you have to do it right. Here is the breakdown of how to handle Asphalt Sealcoating, what you can tackle on a Saturday, and when you really need to bring in a crew from All Star Asphalt Inc.
Before You Roll: Preparation and Timing
You cannot just slap sealer onto a dirty driveway and hope for the best. Preparation is eighty percent of the job. If you skip cleaning out the cracks or leaving oil spots untreated, the sealer is just going to peel right off in six months.
- Check the forecast: You need a solid two-day stretch of weather where temperatures stay above 50 degrees with zero rain in sight.
- Scrub oil stains with a heavy-duty degreaser and a stiff brush so the sealer actually bonds to the aggregate.
- Pull weeds out of the edges and hit the whole surface with a leaf blower or pressure washer. Just make sure it dries completely before you start.
- Fill any cracks wider than a quarter-inch with a good rubberized crack filler. Leave the massive alligator-cracked areas alone for now, because surface sealer will not fix structural base failures.
During the Project: DIY vs. Pro
Can you seal your own driveway? Sure, if you have a free weekend and do not mind aching knees. You can head down to the local supply yard, pick up a few buckets of coal tar or asphalt emulsion sealer, and use a squeegee brush to spread it out. Start at the high points and work your way down, making sure you do not leave thick puddles that will take days to cure.
That said, there is a distinct difference between what a homeowner can do with a five-gallon bucket and what All Star Asphalt Inc does with commercial spray rigs. If your driveway is a simple, flat two-car setup in Strongsville, rolling it on yourself is a fine weekend project. But if you have a steep slope, a massive circular drive, or pavement that has not been touched in a decade, doing it by hand becomes very difficult very quickly. All Star Asphalt Inc uses professional-grade spray systems that atomize the sealer evenly, filling every microscopic void that a push broom misses.
After the Coat: Curing and Upkeep
Once the driveway is coated, your job is not quite finished. You have to keep traffic off of it. Block the entrance with chairs or caution tape and keep cars off for at least 48 hours. Walk soft on it during the first week. If you turn your power steering wheels hard while parked on fresh sealer on a hot July afternoon, you are going to leave permanent tire gouges. Give it a full week to fully cure before parking heavy trucks or boats on it. Keep up with this routine every two to three years, and your pavement will easily outlast the neighbors who ignore theirs. For homes and businesses in Cleveland, All Star Asphalt Inc provides Asphalt Sealcoating services.