To protect your commercial property from costly repairs, you must understand the causes of parking lot asphalt damage and learn how to prevent them. By catching pavement wear early, you can avoid the massive headaches of premature replacement and keep your parking lot smooth and inviting for years to come.

Key Takeaways

• Rainwater sits on the surface and leaks down to turn your solid stone foundation into soft mud.

• Delivery trucks and trash haulers will easily crack pavement that was only built for small cars.

• Sunlight bakes the natural oils out of the blacktop and makes it gray and brittle.

• Filling tiny cracks and putting down a fresh coat of sealant keeps small issues from turning into giant disasters.

• If the gravel foundation underneath is totally ruined then patching the top is a waste of money and you will need professional parking lot asphalt paving to get a strong start.

8 Causes of Parking Lot Asphalt Damage

Asphalt looks like a solid sheet of black rock but it is actually a flexible mix. It is made of crushed stones and sand held together by a sticky oil glue called binder. Because it is flexible it reacts to everything around it. Here are the eight main reasons your lot is breaking down.

1. Water Seeping Underneath the Surface

Water is the number one enemy of your parking lot. When your pavement is brand new the surface is sealed tight and rain runs right off into the storm drains. But over time the pavement gets tiny cracks from traffic and weather.

When rain pools on the surface it slowly trickles down through these tiny cracks. It goes straight down into the gravel and dirt layer underneath. This bottom layer is what actually holds up the weight of the cars.

When water gets into that gravel layer it turns the hard dirt into soft mud. Once the ground underneath gets soft it cannot hold any weight. The next time a car drives over that spot the asphalt bends downward and snaps because there is nothing solid below it.

2. Giant Trucks Parking on Thin Spots

Paving crews do not make every spot on your lot the same thickness. The spaces where regular cars park are usually pretty thin because cars are light and this saves the property owner a lot of money during installation.

But then a massive garbage truck or a heavy delivery semi drives over those thin spaces. The extreme weight is simply too much for the thin blacktop.

The heavy tires press down hard on the thin asphalt and cause it to flex too much. If this happens over and over the pavement breaks into a web of tiny cracks that looks like alligator skin. Once your lot looks like this the stone base underneath is broken and the asphalt will start coming up in chunks.

3. The Winter Freeze and Thaw Cycle

In places with cold winters water causes double the damage. During a warm winter day melting snow turns to water and runs deep into any open cracks in your lot.

But at night the temperature drops and that trapped water turns into solid ice. When water freezes it expands and takes up more space. This ice acts like a slow wedge that physically pushes the sides of the crack apart.

When the ice melts the next day it leaves a much bigger gap than before. This cycle happens dozens of times every winter and the asphalt becomes weak and hollow. When heavy tires drive over these hollow spots the surface collapses into a deep pothole.

4. Oil and Gas Leaks from Parked Cars

Look at any busy parking spot and you will see dark greasy stains right in the middle. These are drips of motor oil and transmission fluid and fuel from older cars.

Remember that asphalt is held together by a sticky oil glue. Since motor oil and asphalt glue are made from the same raw material they mix together easily. The dripping oil acts like a liquid chemical solvent that slowly dissolves the glue keeping the stones together.

If you walk up to one of those greasy spots you can easily scrape the rocks away with your shoe. Once the sticky binder dissolves the stones fall loose and rain washes them away to leave a rough crumbling hole.

5. Hot Summer Sun Drying It Out

The summer sun is incredibly strong and your parking lot takes the brunt of it. Continuous sunshine bakes the pavement day after day.

This extreme heat dries out the natural oils that keep your blacktop flexible and bouncy. As these oils disappear the color of your parking lot shifts from a deep black to a dry light gray.

Without those natural oils your asphalt gets very brittle and it cannot bend when cars drive over it. When the weather changes and the ground expands or contracts the dry asphalt cannot stretch so it simply snaps.

6. Tree Roots Pushing Upward

Trees are great for making a property look nice but their roots are incredibly powerful. To stay alive trees send their roots out wide to find water and nutrients.

These roots often grow directly under the gravel base of your parking lot because it holds moisture. As the tree grows the roots get thicker and thicker and they slowly push upward against the stone base and the asphalt above them.

This creates big jagged bumps and long ridges in your parking lot. Not only does this look bad but it also blocks rainwater from reaching the drains and creates dangerous tripping hazards that can get you sued.

7. Bad Prep Work During Installation

Sometimes a parking lot is doomed to fail before the workers even finish paving it. A parking lot is only as strong as the gravel foundation beneath it.

Before laying down the hot asphalt the paving crew must put down a thick layer of gravel and pack it down tight with heavy steamrollers. If they do not pack the gravel down enough or if they make the layer too thin to save money the ground will shift later.

It does not matter how nice or thick the top layer of asphalt looks. If the gravel underneath can slide around the surface will sink and break apart in just a few years.

8. Weeds and Grass Growing in Cracks

If you do not sweep your parking lot wind will blow dirt and leaves and seeds into the tiny cracks. When it rains those seeds find the perfect spot to grow.

Soon weeds and grass start sprouting right out of your pavement. As these plants grow their roots push deep into the asphalt and force the cracks to open wider.

Dirt also traps moisture inside the cracks and keeps the asphalt wet for days. This constant dampness rots the surrounding asphalt glue and speeds up the overall breakdown of your pavement.

How to Prevent Parking Lot Asphalt Damage

Stopping damage before it starts is always cheaper than rebuilding a ruined lot. Here is how you can keep your pavement looking great and lasting longer.

• Put thick concrete pads under your trash dumpsters: Keep heavy garbage trucks off your thin car parking spots. Have a contractor pour strong concrete pads where your dumpsters sit. Concrete handles heavy and stationary loads much better than asphalt and it will not sink.

• Keep your storm drains clear of debris: Sweep away leaves and trash and dirt from your drain grates regularly. If your drains get clogged rainwater will back up and flood your parking lot to soak the ground underneath. If you notice any low spots where water always puddles have a crew level them out.

• Fill open cracks before winter arrives: Walk your parking lot every fall and look for cracks. Use a rubberized crack filler to seal up any gaps before the freezing weather hits. This stops winter water from getting inside and freezing and turning those small cracks into big potholes.

• Apply a fresh layer of sealcoat every few years: Hire a professional crew to spray a protective sealcoat over your entire lot every two or three years. Sealcoating acts like sunscreen for your pavement by blocking harsh rays and locking in the oils that keep the blacktop flexible. It also stops oil leaks from eating away at the asphalt glue.

• Clean up car oil leaks right away: Do not let greasy oil puddles sit on your pavement. If you spot a fresh oil stain throw down some cat litter or sand immediately. Let it sit to soak up the grease and then sweep it up before the chemicals can dissolve the asphalt binder.

• Install plastic root barriers near trees: When you plant new trees choose types that have deep roots instead of shallow and wide ones. For existing trees have a contractor install deep plastic root barriers in the soil between the trees and your pavement. This forces the roots to grow straight down instead of sideways.

• Sweep your parking lot once a month: Regular sweeping gets rid of the dirt and seeds and trash that collect on your pavement. This stops weeds from growing inside the cracks and keeps your drainage systems working well. It also makes it much easier for you to spot new cracks early when they are still cheap and easy to patch.

• Choose a paving contractor who does good work: Do not just choose the cheapest bid when you need to repave. Make sure your contractor uses heavy rollers to pack the gravel base as tight as possible. A strong and thick foundation is the only way to ensure your new parking lot lasts for decades.

Conclusion

Taking care of your parking lot is all about catching small problems before they turn into giant and expensive headaches. A little bit of regular sweeping and crack filling and sealcoating will save you thousands of dollars down the road.

If your pavement is already old and crumbling and beyond repair then patching it will not work anymore. In those cases investing in professional parking lot asphalt paving is the best way to get a clean and safe and durable entrance that welcomes customers to your property for years to come.