How To Maintain Your Newly Paved Driveway
Having your driveway paved is an expensive update for your home, so the last thing you want is for your beautiful driveway to crack or fall apart sooner than it was supposed to. In order to prevent this from happening to you, you need to perform some maintenance on your driveway. See below for driveway maintenance instructions, as well as helpful tips to lengthen the life of your paved driveway.
Keep It Clean
You'll need to keep your driveway clean to help prevent a breakdown of your asphalt. This means blowing or sweeping leaves and grass clippings from your driveway. Grass clippings left on the driveway can eventually embed themselves into even the smallest crack, causing grass and weeds to eventually grow there. You also need to keep your driveway free of stains. Grease, oil, and other stains can breakdown your asphalt causing it to crack or breakdown. Clean up spills immediately by using an absorbent material such as kitty litter or by spraying them away.
Protect The Edges
The edges of your driveway usually have the thinnest amount of asphalt. This means it's more susceptible to cracking and breaking. Try your best not to drive or park your vehicles on the edges of your driveway. You also want to be sure to use an edger on your driveway to keep weeds and grass from inhibiting your driveway at the edges. Try not to use any weed killer on the edges, as the chemicals in the weed killer may cause the asphalt to break down.
Use Sealer
Your new driveway needs to be sealed. The paving company that paved your driveway may come back to do this job for you (at a cost), but you can also do it yourself. Purchase enough sealer for your entire driveway (ask a hardware store associate for help if you need it). You'll also need a long-handled squeegee. Be sure to wear old clothing and shoes when doing this job. Watch the weather before doing this task, as you want dry and warm weather to allow time for the sealer to dry and cure. Clean the entire driveway and remove any stains. Then beginning at the top of the driveway, pour some of the sealer out of the bucket. Spread it out evenly using the long-handled squeegee. Repeat this process moving down your driveway, spreading the sealer evenly. Once finished, use rope and flags to block off the entrance of your driveway to prevent anyone from driving on it. You'll need the driveway to dry and cure. Read the manufacturer's directions for an exact curing time.
Maintaining your driveway should be done in order to lengthen the life of your asphalt driveway. Contact a company like New England Paving to learn more.
