TPLG Logo

ASPHALT PAVEMENT CRACK SEALING & ROUTE & SEAL

STOP POTHOLES IN THEIR TRACKS...SEAL THE CRACKS!


Progression of a pavement crack.

STAGE 1

image of asphalt hairline crack

Minor Crack Forms

STAGE 2

image of asphalt pavement crack

Water Worsens Crack

STAGE 3

image of large asphalt pavement crack

Chunks Start Popping

STAGE  4

image of an elongated pothole

Potholes Prosper

Water is the most destructive element to asphalt.



As part of a pavement maintenance system, parking lot crack sealing can significantly reduce pavement deterioration by preventing water penetration into the base and sub base layers.


Crack sealing will not improve the pavement immediately, however, the benefits manifest the following years when it becomes quite obvious that the asphalt has not deteriorated any further.


At a time when the labour force is decreasing, along with the funds to support road maintenance, crack sealing remains the most beneficial and economical maintenance procedure.  The overall success of pavement maintenance programs that include crack sealing, along with the low cost, make it a highly desired procedure by successful property managers and owners.  Crack sealing provides the most cost-effective use of dollars over time compared to other pavement maintenance procedures.

Crack sealing is a proven procedure that works. This is the reason our governments fund crack sealing programs every year on our roads, simply because IT WORKS and IT'S COST EFFECTIVE!

asphalt crack filled with water

HOW CRACK SEALING WORKS

OUR PROCESS

Crack sealing begins with surveying the areas to be crack sealed. Once an area is deemed to be a good candidate for crack sealing, the cracks are then cleaned out with an asphalt pavement router, cleaning the crack and creating a reservoir for the sealer.  


The sealer is then heated inside a kettle to a temperature of 185°C (365°F).  Once the sealer is melted, it is then neatly injected into the crack.  The crack sealer then cools and contracts flush with the pavement, hardening almost instantly back into its rubber form.  It is ready to drive on in a couple minutes.  This process is also referred to as route and seal.

hairline crack in asphalt pavement

ASPHALT PAVEMENT CRACK DEVELOPS FROM FREEZE/THAW OR OTHER FORCES 

image of a crack routed and cleaned

CRACK GETS ROUTED WITH CARBIDE BLADES TO CLEAN THEM OUT & CREATE A RESERVOIR

image of an asphalt pavement crack sealed with hot rubberized crack sealer

HOT SEALER IS NEATLY INJECTED INTO CRACK FLUSH WITH PAVEMENT

WHAT KIND OF CRACKS CAN BE SEALED

CRACKS THAT CAN'T BE SEALED

asphalt pavement with alligator cracking

ALIGATOR CRACKING / SPIDER CRACKING


Pavement selection is very often overlooked in determining the success or failure of a crack sealing program.  If the road has alligator cracking, poor sub base drainage or structural damage, crack sealing will not solve the problem.  In these cases the damage is too severe. If you try to save pavement with too much cracking, you will be disappointed with your efforts.  In which case, repaving is the only alternative.


BE WEIRY OF COMPANIES WHO CLAIM THEY CAN REMEDY THESE AREAS WITH CRACK SEALER.  THIS WILL ONLY  LEAD TO DISSAPOINTMENT AND MORE EXPENSE.

CRACKS THAT CAN BE SEALED

asphalt pavement with block cracks and transverse cracks

TRANSVERSE CRACKING / BLOCK CRACKING


The best candidates for crack sealing is asphalt that is beginning to form cracks. You undoubtedly can extend the life of this asphalt.  More sealant is not always better.  The new sealants are not designed to be "road glue." They are very sticky and have tremendous bonding power but they are not made to "hold the road together." Crack sealing has one objective: to prevent water from getting below.  Sealing buys you time and saves you money by delaying the expense of major reconstructive pavement work.

+1 416 638 3110