Homeowners in Atlanta, GA often look at their driveway and notice a patch that looks like a giant black speed bump. Sometimes a hole opens right back up six months after a property owner paid to get it fixed. Majestic Asphalt Company sees it all the time across neighborhoods from Buckhead down to the southside. Asphalt patching is important work, but if contractors cut corners or hire the wrong crew, property owners are just burning cash.
Here is what you need to know before you let anyone touch your driveway with a shovel or a bucket of cold mix.
Using Cold Patch on High-Traffic Areas
Homeowners often look at the bag of cold-patch asphalt available from the big box store. Cold patch has its place for a quick, temporary fix in the middle of a freezing winter snap. But if you use cold patch for a permanent driveway repair in our brutal Atlanta, GA summer heat, the material is going to turn back into mush. The heavy clay soil we have around Atlanta shifts constantly when it gets wet and dries out, and cold mix just does not have the structural integrity to handle vehicle weight once temperatures climb.
Skipping the Tack Coat
Majestic Asphalt Company walks up to driveways all the time where a contractor just dumped hot mix straight into a hole, tamped it down with the back of a shovel, and called it a day. Without a proper tack coat—which is the sticky liquid asphalt emulsion sprayed on the edges—the new patch will not bond to the old surface. Water gets right down that seam during our heavy Georgia thunderstorms, freezes, expands, and pops that patch right out.
At Majestic Asphalt Company, we spend half our time on prep work because proper preparation is what keeps Asphalt Patching in place for years in Atlanta, GA.
Ignoring the Real Drainage Issue
Water is the ultimate enemy of asphalt. If you have got a depression in your driveway pooling water every time it rains, simply filling that low spot with a skim coat of asphalt will not solve the root problem. You have to figure out why the water is sitting there in the first place. Sometimes the sub-base has washed out completely under the pavement.
- Look for soft spots around the edges of the damage
- Check where your gutters drain onto the pavement
- Make sure the grade actually slopes away from your garage
Falling for Door-Knocker Scams
If a guy in an unmarked pickup truck knocks on your door claiming he just finished a paving job down the street and has extra hot mix left over, close the door. That is the oldest trick in the book. They will slap down a half-inch of garbage material, take your cash, and disappear before the afternoon sun melts it. Legitimate local contractors in Atlanta, GA are busy, they do not wander neighborhoods looking for cash deals, and they give you a written estimate with a real company name.
Not Compacting Properly
You cannot just pack down asphalt with a heavy pair of work boots and expect it to hold up to an SUV. Proper compaction requires a mechanical plate compactor or a small roller, depending on the size of the repair. If the aggregate is not locked tightly together, air pockets remain, and the pavement breaks down under the first heavy truck that drives over it.
Property owners in Atlanta, GA should take their time, vet whoever they hire, and make sure contractors are cutting out a clean, square box around the damaged area rather than just feathering new asphalt over crumbling edges. Majestic Asphalt Company provides Asphalt Patching services for homes in Atlanta, GA.