With spring right around the corner, a new season begins for residential driveway sealcoating & other asphalt maintenance services. Most Northeast asphalt maintenance services (sealcoating, crack filling, lot marking & asphalt repairs) occur during the months of April – November. This is due to the cold weather and temperature sensitive materials.

With this short window of opportunity, coupled with potential rain and various other delays throughout the April – November months, it is incumbent that organizations operate in an efficient, ethical, result driven, safe & methodical execution in their business practices.

Sadly in today’s market, it is a very real and common practice in this industry for nefarious individuals and companies to:

Travel state-to-state running scams or using diluted / material not suitable for environment or health.
Operate locally under different LLCs due to poor service ratings and other fraudulent activities.
“Pass on the savings” by taking serious shortcuts that only provide a short term solution, usually long enough until the invoice is paid.

The not-so-appealing process of extensively cleaning, crack filling, prepping, and then sealcoating your own residential driveway, might lead you down the road of searching for a qualified residential driveway sealcoating contractor. To take the weight off of your shoulders, it is critical that you take the correct steps to research and develop a sound working relationship with the contractor you ultimately choose.

Before you are left with a giant headache and a dent in your wallet, we have outlined a few critical details to help make heads or tails of the good, the bad and the ugly.

Step #1: Research

How did you hear about the company?

How you initially heard or found out about the company plays a big role in the outcome of the project. If a random stranger comes knocking at your door claiming that they have “extra material left over from another job around the corner” and they are pushing you to make a quick decision…this is major red flag and 99% chance a scam and you’ll regret the decision a few weeks down the road.

Reputable contractors will sometimes offer services if they are working in the area, however, they understand that it is a “no pressure” situation and a professional contractor will know with accuracy, how much material they need to complete a job. Rarely, will they have left over material.

If you noticed a yard sign or work being done across the street and can physically see the quality results and are able to verify via word-of-mouth with the neighbor as to level of performance and overall experience, odds are that you’ll end up with the same high quality results as your neighbor received.

Ask for References

Ask the contractor for a list of 3 – 5 jobs that they have completed in/or around the area. This will give you an opportunity to go and personally check out the quality of their work.

Online Presence

With the advent of Google and other search / social mediums, it is important to take into consideration the overall “package” of the company you are considering. A good company brand starts from the top down. It depicts a positive and result driven culture. If a company is disheveled with their branding, marketing and overall message, then odds are, that same message will show up at your home or property.

Things to look for / consider:

Functional & mobile responsive website
Updated contact information
Performance reviews on the higher side of ratings
Educational resources available – demonstrating knowledge in industry

Reviews

Reviews can be a tricky or misleading point of reference as some mediums allow users to write their own reviews which gives their business a higher ranking than is actually presented. A quick google search of the company name + the review platform “River City Sealcoating + Yelp” should yield the reviews needed to gather and assimilate an overall rating of the company. If the contrast of star reviews is significantly different, usually that’s a sign of review manipulation.

Yelp

Contractors hate it, consumers love it. Yelp is the most stringent with their review guidelines and have measures in place to prevent manipulation (IP verification, algorithm to detect reviews posted by users who never visited contractors Yelp page etc. Yelp wants contractors to pay for advertising and oftentimes will flag reviews as “Not recommended” and claim it is due to their “review algorithm”. The said reviews are quarentined into another “Not recommended” section on the page and are not included in their overall rating…pish posh. Overall, it is one of the better barometers of review platforms to get an idea of who you are researching.

Google

The one we’ve all come to love. It is one of the most popular search engines, however, it is the easiest to manipulate. Outside companies can be hired to post fake reviews. Friends and family members are asked to post reviews, both of which ultimately juice up the star ratings. Anyone with a gmail account can leave a review.

Facebook

Another good source to get a pulse on a business. Another easy way to manipulate by hiring outside companies to post reviews and asking friends and family to review businesses to increase ratings.

Angie’s List

Not the most popular. This platform is primarily used among contractors, as it is more of a lead generator service that costs money per lead / job request. This primarily is catered towards homeowners looking for service professionals in their area. It is still a good resource to check out and make sure everything adds up.

BBB

A great resource that’s been around for quite a while. You are able to read reviews or complaints left by consumers who were unsatisfied with their chosen contractor. Do a quick search on here to ensure that there are no pending complaints with your potential contractor.

Step #2 Qualifying Your Contractor

This is your chance to conduct an interview with the potential driveway sealcoating contractor. The approach below should help determine if a company will be the best fit to give you the high quality results that last.

Project Walkthrough

This is the first step and should be completed with each residential sealcoat contractor that you are considering. Each representative will have their own way of walking you through the process; addressing potential areas of concern and a better understanding of what is entailed with your sealcoating project.

It is important that they take the time to explain the project in detail, without making you feel rushed or confused. Did this person give you the time and respect you deserve? Leave you with a good feeling? A full understanding of all aspects of the project? In the event you are not ready for a physical walkthrough, it is important that the contractor provides a detailed proposal and project layout including square footage, cracks that will be treated and any other issues needing attention – prior to the project beginning.

Equipment

If the equipment used by the contractor is low in quality and doesn’t properly clean, prep and seal the driveway surface, there’s a very high chance for the crackfill, sealcoat & asphalt to prematurely fail with peeling, flaking and other signs of pavement distress.

Cleaning

Surface cleaning and preparation is the first and most critical step to ensure quality and consistent results. High powered walk behind blowers, gas powered crack cleaning, brooms and steel wire brushes should be used in conjunction to clean the surface, cracks and edges of driveway. This allows the removal of all debris. Dirt and other material settles deep in the pores of the asphalt surface and will cause premature failure and flaking of the sealcoat material on top of the areas not properly cleaned.

Material Distribution

Different companies utilize different equipment and methods to transport the materials and equipment to their job sites. Most sealcoating tanks are on tow behind trailer units and pulled behind a pickup truck with all equipment in the back of the bed.

The sizes of tanks used to hold the material vary from 5 gallon buckets purchased at big box stores (not recommended), homemade plastic totes with trash pumps (not recommended), to the proper 300 / 500 / 1000+ gallon cylinder tanks powered by hydraulic agitation. This agitation allows for full sweeping motion of the inside paddles to properly mix the material and ensure a consistent blend.

Knowing the equipment being utilized on your project will give you a better sense of what kind of organization you are considering.

Sealer Mix Design

No mix design was created equal. It is one of the most important factors that go into a quality project. Where the contractor sources their material, what is added to the material after it leaves the plant are all important questions that help formulate a better picture of what’s being applied on your driveway.

There are primarily three types of pavement sealers. They are commonly known as refined tar-based (coal tar based), asphalt-based, and petroleum-based. All three have their advantages, but are typically chosen by the contractors’ preference unless otherwise specified.

Not all pavement seal coatings are created equal. For example, refined tar-based sealer offers the best protection against water penetration and chemical resistance. Asphalt-based sealer typically offers poor protection against environmental chemical and harsher climates (salt water). Petroleum-based sealer offers protection against water and chemicals somewhere between the other two sealers. Another difference between coatings is in terms of wear. Again, refined tar-based sealer offers the best wear characteristics (typically 3–5 years) while asphalt-based sealer may last 1–3 years. Petroleum-based sealer falls between refined tar and asphalt.

With the base sealer established, sand and other additives can and should be used in conjunction to the base mix design to help build a stronger product.

Sand improves: durability, skid resistance, decreased sun glare and helps improves appearance of minor deformities.

Latex additives improves: sand suspension in the material to help better fill surface deformities, oil and gas resistance, adhesion of sealer to pavement, aesthetics with a darker colored material.

Secret Sauces

The use of any additional material or processes that help aid the design of a stronger, more visually appealing end product should be taken into consideration as well. After years of industry experience, we’ve formulated a proprietary seal coat mix design that no other contractor has in the country. We pride ourselves with a mix design that’s proving to be stronger, longer lasting and creating a visibly noticeable difference between our end results and our competitors.

Before the final decision is made on the contractor of choice, make sure you have a clear understanding of what is being applied on your driveway.

Step #3: Application Methods

Crack Filling Applications

It is impossible to construct a pavement that does not develop cracks after a certain amount of service time. Cracks need to be treated promptly because they create openings for moisture to penetrate the pavement layers. Moisture or water can cause severe damage when trapped in the crack as it will freeze during the colder months, then expand during the warmer months, also known as the “Freeze / Thaw” cycle, which is detrimental to the life of asphalt.

This shrinking and expansion causes the foundation and other levels of asphalt to rise up and down, which eventually leads to the formation of potholes and other failures. Neglecting pavement cracking usually leads to accelerated deterioration of the pavement, resulting in significant problems such as potholes or base failures, which cause the serviceability of the pavement to decline.

Making sure the right steps are performed prior to crack filling as well as the quality of crack fill material being used. This should be discussed and understood prior to the project.

Cold Crack Fill

Very quick application process. Crack Fill material usually comes out of bucket or jug of some sort. Very short term solution, very brittle when cured and will reopen at the first sign of pavement flexing near the crack or surrounding areas. Most driveway sealcoating contractors use this material as it is a very quick, low cost service solution without the equipment needed to apply hot application. Due to poor quality results experienced with the product, we do not recommend this method.

Hot Crack Fill

Much longer prep and application process due to the time needed to heat the crack fill material and meticulous application methods needed to ensure a uniform and clean appearance. Material cures to a flexible, gum like flexibility that is designed to seal cracks from the bottom up, while remaining malleable enough to move with the flexing of pavement. This is the correct and longest term solution to the treatment of surface cracking.

Sealcoating Applications

Each contractor will have their own method of applying the material to the surface of your driveway and it’s important you know which is being utilized. Most larger commercial paving & sealcoating companies opt to spray due to very quick application process and ability to complete multiple projects throughout the day needed to keep up with their high overhead costs of equipment and personnel. A keep attention to detail is needed when approaching a home driveway vs a large, open parking lot.

Spraying

Usually left for large, open parking lots with little chance over overspray. Very quick application method where contractors need to work fast due to the restrictive size of driveway coupled with pressure of material flow.

Contractors usually start with cutting in the edges of driveway with a brush to attempt to mitigate overspray, however, due to the quick movements needed, there is usually a stark difference between the brushed driveway edges and sprayed area in middle. As the material cures over time, streaky lines will appear where the lack of uniform overlapping methods took place.

The applicators height, hose length & and material pressure flow all play into the quality of application. With so many different variables, driveway sealcoating is best left to a hand applied application.

Hand Application

Applying the material by fine horse hair brushes is a longer but much cleaner, neater and uniform application process. Material is applied via a hose to the driveway in “beads” or “runs” and then moved via large brushes to distribute finishing strokes This application ensures an even application rate of material. A uniform application thickness ensures that the material cures correctly in all places throughout the driveway, leading to a much more aesthetic and longer lasting maintenance measure.

In Conclusion

By combining the information above with your gut feeling intuition about a company and their services should help you make a more educated decision when looking to contract out your residential driveway sealcoating services.

If you’ve made it this far and have another 3:47 to spare, you can get an idea as to how the sealcoating process should flow.