If you pay attention to what local parking lots, streets, and golf cart paths are paved with, you will find that most of them are asphalt pavements. Compared to other choices, asphalt pavements deliver the best combination of cost, durability, aesthetics, and safety. However, to have a long, safe, attractive life, asphalt pavements need a certain amount of routine maintenance. Unfortunately, even with a proactive maintenance plan, there is a chance that your Birmingham pavement may need some occasional asphalt repairs to counteract the effects of the weather, traffic, and age.
Why Are Asphalt Repairs Important?
Timely asphalt repair in Birmingham AL is critical to prevent additional damage, resolve safety hazards, and prolong the life of the pavement. The most destructive enemy of an asphalt pavement is water. In the Birmingham area, the relative humidity normally averages more than 70% nine months out of the year. Even more significantly, during a typical year, the area receives almost 57 inches of rain, which is spread over about 118 days. If there are open cracks in the pavement, water will enter, then gravity will pull it deeper into the structure of the pavement. Once the water reaches the base layers that give the pavement its strength and flexibility, the water plucks out particles from the base, making the foundation weaker and less stable. Lacking proper support, the pavement begins to sag in the spots where air pockets have formed between the foundation and the pavement. Existing cracks expand in all three dimensions, potholes form and spawn more cracks, and areas of alligatored asphalt develop. If potholes and alligator cracking go without repair, more water enters, further weakening and destabilizing the foundation. The damage expands and worsens, and the entire pavement can be severely compromised within a relatively short time. It is not uncommon for a pavement that does not receive proper asphalt repair & patching to suffer irreparable damage in less than 10 years, requiring the complete reconstruction of the pavement.
What Are Asphalt Repairs?
Different asphalt repair companies can have slightly different definitions of what constitutes a Birmingham asphalt repair. However, an asphalt repair company normally defines patches as repairs, crack repairs as asphalt maintenance, and asphalt resurfacing as a paving operation. Under this definition, you could say that asphalt repairs are restorative procedures to mend damage that cannot be addressed with asphalt crack sealing, crack filling, or resurfacing. The most common type of asphalt repair in Birmingham AL is patching, but asphalt milling can repair a few types of issues.
When Might an Asphalt Repair Company Use Milling for a Pavement Repair?
A milling machine can remove bumps or dips to make the surface of the pavement more even and eliminate depressions that collect water. Milling can also be a fast, cost-effective way to correct uneven transitions between connecting pavements. In some cases, milling can repair surfaces that have been damaged by a fire or accident, and it may be able to address ruts and other irregularities.
What Is Asphalt Patching?
Although an asphalt repair company can make a temporary repair with techniques known as cold patching, throw-and-go, skin patching, or throw-and-roll, most people prefer a longer-lasting repair method. Therefore, the temporary repairs are normally used only in emergencies, and the temporary repair will then be replaced later with either a full-depth patch or a partial-depth patch. Both of these patching methods are remove-and-replace techniques that use hot mix asphalt for the patch.
- Full-depth patching involves marking out a square or rectangle slightly larger than the damage, then removing all of the asphalt courses within the markings to expose the base layers. Contractors typically remove the pavement by sawing it out, but they sometimes use a milling machine if the area is extremely large. After removing the pavement, contractors can repair or strengthen the base layers. Next, they will install and compact multiple courses of asphalt to make the patch even with the surrounding pavement. The edges of the patch are normally sealed to make sure that water cannot sneak underneath. Although this is usually the most expensive asphalt repair & patching option, it is the only method that allows the contractor to test, strengthen, or repair the base. Furthermore, full-depth patches are considered permanent repairs.
- Partial-depth patches are almost identical to full-depth patches. The only significant difference is that the asphalt repair company will only remove the asphalt courses that contain damage rather than all of them. Because this method does not expose the base layers, contractors cannot perform any work on the foundation. Although partial-depth patches are less expensive than full-depth patches, contractors often consider them a semipermanent repair that may require a replacement in a few years. However, depending on the situation, some partial-depth patches can be a permanent repair.
If you need a high-quality asphalt repair in Birmingham, contact the pros at The Surface Masters. We are an experienced, honest, and well-respected company with an exemplary reputation for professionalism, customer service, and craftsmanship. In addition to asphalt repairs, we offer asphalt paving, crack sealing, milling and reclamation, pavement markings, sealcoating, and concrete and curbing services. To request a free quote, you can submit our online form, or you can call our office at 470-557-8985.
