asphalt driveway sealer

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Well despite my best efforts I will not have time to apply the Rustoleum Epoxy driveway sealer at my DE home this year and its getting to the end of the season where its warm enough.

My son-inlaw is in the business in CT (Renew Asphalt Maintenance) but too far to drive his truck. But gives me suggestions. He suggests petroleum resin driveway sealer as the best and no environmental issues like with coal tar. Also in the running is asphalt emulsion.

Try to find some contractor who can apply or even has petroleum resin and I come up with none. Same for asphalt emulsion.

Now some use Gilsonite but I hear that is mostly gypsies and they thin it down a lot with whatever is cheapest at the gas station vs mineral spirits.

Looks like if I want it sealed this year it will be coal tar sealer.

Disappointed that more people do not care about the environmental concerns with coal tar and force the contractors to get better products for the environment.

I assume most people just want their driveway sealed vs investigating the product being used.
 
The most important thing is to do it regularly, like every other year or so rather than trying to get the perfect product. I don't do many home projects myself because of a lack of skill for many repairs. But resealing my driveway is one that I do myself since it is mostly labor with close to zero skill required, a couple of 5 gallon buckets is enough for my driveway

The standard home depot stuff I use says it is good for 7 years, or something like that. But I try to do it every other year, or every third year at the most. Like you, I am in a cold northeast location with freezing snow and rain trying to create cracks every winter, and I don't trust the 7 year expected lifespan of the sealer.
 
Most homeowners probably don't even know there are other options besides coal tar. Usually whatever is cheap and fast is what is used.
 
I was meaning to do this project this year, but kept missing it. I haven't even looked to see what my options are. Other than to assume it's too late in the season to bother. So I'll pay attention to this thread.
wink.gif
 
Originally Posted by Donald

Disappointed that more people do not care about the environmental concerns with coal tar and force the contractors to get better products for the environment.

I assume most people just want their driveway sealed vs investigating the product being used.



I haven't read up on it, but what's more ecologically friendly about dumping an epoxy resin on the ground over using coal tar that dries rock hard within an hour or two? Sounds more like a marketing thing to me.

After all, all you are doing is putting a coating on inches thick worth of a petroleum product (asphalt) that is in direct contact with the ground.

FWIW, I prefer coatings like a coal tar emulsion. I had an ~18'x120' portion of my driveway done for $165 a few weeks back. I can't do it myself with 5gal store bought pails for that.
 
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When I had a blacktop driveway in Illinois, I always used nothing but Sakrete Coal Tar Sealer. It worked beautifully. I put it down every year for 2 years. Then every other year. The first application took 7 buckets. The second took 4. From then on it only took 2 to do the entire driveway. I had the nicest driveway on the block. There wasn't a crack in it.
 
Whatever they sell at HD or Lowe's, it's lucky if it lasts 2-3 yrs in New England. And if you shovel frequently only 1-2 yrs. I only have a 10x55 ft driveway....and I can't get any driveway contractor to reseal it for less than $330. So I buy a single $25-$30 bucket of sealer and apply it myself every 1-2 yrs. Whatever the contractors use around here looks more rugged than what I buy. It certainly doesn't dry hard as rock as it takes several days before you can drive over it without leaving tire prints. And if you drive through it wet at any time after it's cured, you leave 'sandy' tire tracks behind. I applied mine a month ago and I still see fresh animal prints on it from the morning dew.
 
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Why not pave the driveway so you don't have to dump a strange chemical on it?!

After all, anything you put over the asphalt is just a short-term band-aid..
 
Originally Posted by spavel6
Why not pave the driveway so you don't have to dump a strange chemical on it?!

After all, anything you put over the asphalt is just a short-term band-aid..

I think we're missing something here... asphalt driveway sealer is put over paved driveways.
 
Originally Posted by supton
Originally Posted by spavel6
Why not pave the driveway so you don't have to dump a strange chemical on it?!

After all, anything you put over the asphalt is just a short-term band-aid..

I think we're missing something here... asphalt driveway sealer is put over paved driveways.




If he is thinking of paving over the asphalt then good luck with that. It's not as simple as that. Consider your clearances to the garage and street.
 
Originally Posted by 69GTX
Whatever they sell at HD or Lowe's, it's lucky if it lasts 2-3 yrs in New England. And if you shovel frequently only 1-2 yrs. I only have a 10x55 ft driveway....and I can't get any driveway contractor to reseal it for less than $330. So I buy a single $25-$30 bucket of sealer and apply it myself every 1-2 yrs. Whatever the contractors use around here looks more rugged than what I buy. It certainly doesn't dry hard as rock as it takes several days before you can drive over it without leaving tire prints. And if you drive through it wet at any time after it's cured, you leave 'sandy' tire tracks behind. I applied mine a month ago and I still see fresh animal prints on it from the morning dew.



One 5gal bucket does your 10'x55' driveway? Contractors in the Buffalo area vary quite a bit on price too. This year was was a good $40-50 cheaper than what I paid 3yrs ago. I have to re-do mine about every 2yrs.

I realize my driveway is larger and perhaps we're comparing different materials, but the contractors use about 8-10 full 5gal buckets on mine and it's good to drive on in 24hrs. No tracking onto the concrete up by the house at all. At that point, only pockets where the material has pooled will still be soft.
 
This is a basic description of hot mix asphalt. Your mix may vary.


Aggregate
Asphalt Cement
Crystalline Silica (Quartz)
Hydrogen Sulfide
Additives
 
Originally Posted by JTK
Originally Posted by 69GTX
Whatever they sell at HD or Lowe's, it's lucky if it lasts 2-3 yrs in New England. And if you shovel frequently only 1-2 yrs. I only have a 10x55 ft driveway....and I can't get any driveway contractor to reseal it for less than $330. So I buy a single $25-$30 bucket of sealer and apply it myself every 1-2 yrs. Whatever the contractors use around here looks more rugged than what I buy. It certainly doesn't dry hard as rock as it takes several days before you can drive over it without leaving tire prints. And if you drive through it wet at any time after it's cured, you leave 'sandy' tire tracks behind. I applied mine a month ago and I still see fresh animal prints on it from the morning dew.



One 5gal bucket does your 10'x55' driveway? Contractors in the Buffalo area vary quite a bit on price too. This year was was a good $40-50 cheaper than what I paid 3yrs ago. I have to re-do mine about every 2yrs.

I realize my driveway is larger and perhaps we're comparing different materials, but the contractors use about 8-10 full 5gal buckets on mine and it's good to drive on in 24hrs. No tracking onto the concrete up by the house at all. At that point, only pockets where the material has pooled will still be soft.


Yeah, less than 1 bucket of HD/Lowe's stuff on mine. And it can be spread quite thin in order not to pool it These require a slightly moist surface or they will not spread....like using molasses. NO doubt whatever the contractors use it's a higher grade and will last longer. Their finished product looks better too. I can possibly drive on mine in 24 hrs but have never dared try that. It dries to foot traffic in 3-6 hrs on a hot day. But again, get it wet and walk and drive on it, and the sand that's part of the mix leeches out....always.
 
Originally Posted by JTK
Originally Posted by Donald

Disappointed that more people do not care about the environmental concerns with coal tar and force the contractors to get better products for the environment.

I assume most people just want their driveway sealed vs investigating the product being used.



I haven't read up on it, but what's more ecologically friendly about dumping an epoxy resin on the ground over using coal tar that dries rock hard within an hour or two? Sounds more like a marketing thing to me.

After all, all you are doing is putting a coating on inches thick worth of a petroleum product (asphalt) that is in direct contact with the ground.

FWIW, I prefer coatings like a coal tar emulsion. I had an ~18'x120' portion of my driveway done for $165 a few weeks back. I can't do it myself with 5gal store bought pails for that.


Here is what they say about coal tar (banned in some states/localities)

There is a hidden and longer term health issue with certain types of driveway sealant - they break down over time from cars being driven on them and from weathering. If the driveway sealant is made from coal tar, this break down can release chemicals called polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). These chemicals are carcinogenic and are already in the environment as part of air pollution. However the additional amount from driveway sealant can produce local contamination that can be a health concern. The United States Geological Survey (USGS) has shown that the dust on parking lots and driveways sealed with coal tar-based products can be high in PAHs. Of further concern is their finding that this contamination can extend into nearby homes and create high levels of carcinogenic PAHs in house dust. Fortunately, asphalt-based driveway sealant is an alternative to coal tar products. It coats well and does not contain PAHs making the asphalt product safer and better for the environment.
 
Coal Tar based driveway sealants have been banned in Minnesota since 2014.

I am responsible for the maintenance and upkeep of over 700 ponds that have been installed for water quality purposes over the last 30+ years. The Coal tar sealants result in accumulations of PAH's in the sediment that is deposited in these ponds. The concentrations of PAH's in the pond sediments are high enough that the sediment has to be landfilled. Not landfill covered or capped and sealed on site - disposed of in a landfill that has been lined and is rated for these materials. Disposal costs are over 20 times as high as for non-contaminated sediments. It is a huge issue in maintaining these systems that is a cost that will have to paid - by you, the taxpayer.

It amazes me to read this stuff is still sold and readily available. It is bad news - not necessarily for the homeowner, but when it wears off and runs down the street and storm sewer...
 
Originally Posted by PimTac
Originally Posted by supton
Originally Posted by spavel6
Why not pave the driveway so you don't have to dump a strange chemical on it?!

After all, anything you put over the asphalt is just a short-term band-aid..

I think we're missing something here... asphalt driveway sealer is put over paved driveways.




If he is thinking of paving over the asphalt then good luck with that. It's not as simple as that. Consider your clearances to the garage and street.






No, the OP is talking about applying a thin layer of sealer to an already paved driveway. The sealer to prevent water from getting to cracks and expanding, causing more damage to the driving surface. Probably helps slow down outgassing from the asphalt also.

There might be a problem with semantics here, I think of "asphalt" as what they pave roads with, but that is bitumen mixed with crushed stone in reality. Maybe the right term is "asphalt concrete"?
 
Keep in mind that a lot of things and products that are in everyday use as well as being consumed is "bad" for the environment. People are bad for the environment, but unless we want to kill off folks, the planet will have to live with us and the things we need. Yes, some things not as bad as other things, but most everything is "bad" in some way or another. It is a matter of degrees.
 
Originally Posted by supton
Originally Posted by PimTac
Originally Posted by supton
Originally Posted by spavel6
Why not pave the driveway so you don't have to dump a strange chemical on it?!

After all, anything you put over the asphalt is just a short-term band-aid..

I think we're missing something here... asphalt driveway sealer is put over paved driveways.




If he is thinking of paving over the asphalt then good luck with that. It's not as simple as that. Consider your clearances to the garage and street.






No, the OP is talking about applying a thin layer of sealer to an already paved driveway. The sealer to prevent water from getting to cracks and expanding, causing more damage to the driving surface. Probably helps slow down outgassing from the asphalt also.

There might be a problem with semantics here, I think of "asphalt" as what they pave roads with, but that is bitumen mixed with crushed stone in reality. Maybe the right term is "asphalt concrete"?


Right a sealer over the existing asphalt drive.

When I get rich I will rip out the asphalt and have real stone pavers installed. (Not concrete look-a-likes).
 
Originally Posted by SeaJay
Keep in mind that a lot of things and products that are in everyday use as well as being consumed is "bad" for the environment. People are bad for the environment, but unless we want to kill off folks, the planet will have to live with us and the things we need. Yes, some things not as bad as other things, but most everything is "bad" in some way or another. It is a matter of degrees.

This 100% ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

All of this fits directly into the whole, "man is bad" scheme of things so many environmentalists enjoy pouncing on today. Just as soon as they can come up with ANY supposed "evidence" that supports their never ending worries and theories. The fact that some liberal lefty state banned something, is usually focused front and center in most of their arguments against such products. Be it guns or driveway sealer, along with most everything else in between. It's all become a never ending saga.

Today it's all but impossible to pick a product off the shelf, that has been in the public use for decades or longer, that doesn't have printed on it somewhere, the state of California Proposition 65 Warning, that has "found" it to be a carcinogen in some way, shape, or form.

The constant "cry wolf" dilution of these seemingly never ending claims on most everything we buy is wearing very thin with most people. To the point most no longer find them relevant. And many simply ignore them. That, coupled with all of the fishing expedition law suits that have basically turned into television infomercials such as, "Is Talcum Powder Causing Your Cancer?". Or weed killer, or bathroom cleaner, or whatever.

It's not that some of these claims are outright total lies. It's the fact their actual use contributes little to nothing in the overall scheme of things. The fact some suburbanite coats 75 feet of asphalt driveway every 5 years, with a coating that's been on the market for well over half a century, does not automatically translate into every dog, cat, sparrow, squirrel, or 4 year old with a coaster wagon, being thrust into immediate physical health peril, just as soon as it dries and gets washed with the first rain storm.

What is actually funny, is the fact Coal Tar has been on the World Health Organization Model List of Essential Medicines for years. And is used to treat many skin diseases by direct application. And in many cases it will be only a matter of time before the replacement product all of these greenies suggest as being so much more, "environmentally friendly", is found to be just as bad or worse.

Besides, new "studies" are coming out all but daily that contradict old one's. Now they're finding eating red meat isn't the big, bad killer we have believed it was for decades.
 
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