As a business owner, you know how important your parking lot is to your customers and employees alike. A smooth, even parking lot is vital for visits to your business, deliveries, and parking. If your lot is aging or damaged, it can negatively affect your business and the safety of everyone who visits. But how do you know if you should completely rip out and replace or just repair your parking lot? The experts at HCI Paving Solutions can help you determine the best course of action, but let’s look at some options for damaged asphalt parking lots.
When Asphalt Repairs are best
Certain issues with a parking lot can be repaired, including cracks and ruts. Cracks appear in asphalt due to temperature changes, moisture penetration, or even tree roots growing under the surface. Cracks on the surface of a parking lot are common, but if left untreated, they can widen and deepen into the subsurface. Smaller cracks due to wear and weather can be filled with a liquid crack sealer before resurfacing, which involves pouring a new layer of asphalt over the cracked surface. Traffic and other wear can also cause ruts, or ridges, in asphalt. If your parking lot has significant cracks or other significant damage, it might be time to consider a full parking lot replacement.
When its best to rip out and replace your parking lot
The key to whether or not you should replace your whole parking lot instead of just milling and resurfacing is how deep the problems with your lot go. The subsurface of a parking lot needs to be level and even, so if their integrity is compromised, the entire lot needs to go. Subsurface problems can arise from improper initial installation, when large cracks allow water into the subsurface, or when weather causes the ground to sink or shift. If you have any of these soil stabilization problems with your parking lot, contact HCI Paving Solutions to get a detailed estimate!
