Asphalt Do's & Don'ts

10/10/2018

Congratulations on your new driveway!

Asphalt contains liquid tar, which needs time to harden and cure. It takes 24 months for a fully cured driveway.

Until then it will remain pliable and soft. Here are some recommendations to take the best care of your investment.

DON’T park automobiles on it for at least two full days.

DON’T walk on your new drive with high heel shoes, place lawn chairs, bicycle kickstands or any other sharp objects on it. They will create holes and depressions.

DON’T move too fast. To avoid scarring, do not pull out too fast, pull in too quickly, or drive too fast on your asphalt driveway. Do not turn your steering wheel back and forth when your car is not moving!

DON’T drive on the edge. The edges are the weakest part of your driveway due to the lack of side support. Do not drive on the edges, since they will crack and crumble in time. Building up the sides of your driveway with topsoil will support the edges after the grass has grown.

DO use materials to distribute weight. During the initial curing time, do not park in the same spots all the time and do not use jack stands or car ramps unless you put a piece of plywood underneath. Large heavy vehicles can depress and cause ruts in your new driveway! If a camper or other vehicle will be stored for a long period, place a piece of plywood under the tongue jack and tires.

DO water it down with a garden hose. Even when cured, asphalt can sometimes soften in extremely hot weather and harden as temperatures fall. To temporarily water your driveway with a garden hose in order to temporarily harden it. If soapsuds should appear, do not be alarmed! This is a reaction between the diesel fuel found in the asphalt and the Chlorine found in some city water.

25 Comments

Violette Lebrac link

8/31/2017 06:17:29 pm

It's interesting that parking in the same place can make ruts in the asphalt. I'd imagine it would be hard to prevent ruts in busy parking lots. Maybe if a business wanted to get rid of divots in their parking lot, they could find a maintenance service.

Alexandria Martinez link

4/10/2018 07:17:30 pm

Now that my fiance and I are moved into a new home, we want to make sure that we are taking care of our home. We want to look into getting a parking lot paving. To make sure it stays in good condition, we will hose it down in hot weather.

john link

6/6/2018 06:59:34 pm

That makes sense to avoid parking cars on newly paved asphalt. It's malleable when it first sets. Also, make sure to get seal coating to avoid weathering damage.

Mina Edinburgh link

7/12/2018 02:37:01 am

It was really informative when you said that when it comes to newly made asphalt driveways, it is best to avoid walking on it with high heeled shoes as that can cause cracks and depressions. If that was the case, then I will ask my sister to walk around the back of the house if we ever get the front walkway asphalted. This is because she is always wearing stilettos. I want to avoid any damages as much as possible.

Mike Lee link

10/31/2018 12:32:42 pm

My wife and I are planning on installing a driveway at our house. Before reading this article, I had no idea that you should water your asphalt driveway to keep it in good condition. I will have to show this to my wife because I'm sure she did not know this either.

Kate Welling link

11/19/2018 02:33:51 pm

I'm happy that I ran across this article about asphalt do's and don'ts because my husband and I want to get our driveway paved. It makes sense that since asphalt contains liquid tar, which means it needs time to harden and cure. We will be sure to avoid parking our cars on it for two full days after we put the asphalt in. I think a hot tar hose would be the perfect tool to help me out with this job, so I will look into getting one!

Sam Li link

3/19/2019 04:24:36 pm

I love your suggestion about using materials to distribute weight. Asphalt paving should be done only by qualified contractors. If I needed such services, I would contact a paving company that has a strong reputation.

Sarah Smith link

3/25/2019 07:57:19 pm

I really like your advice on what to do after getting an asphalt driveway paved. Personally, I would like to find a paving contractor that will refresh this information for me. That way, I won't accidentally harm a newly paved stretch of asphalt.

Millie Hue link

4/5/2019 01:19:34 am

Thanks for helping me understand that watering the asphalt is a must to keep it from melting when the weather is too hot. I will keep that in mind now that we will be hiring professionals to pave the driveway, and we have chosen asphalt as the material. We just need this to be done now due to our car getting stuck on a muddy part of the driveway one time.

Jenna Hunter link

5/31/2019 06:42:06 pm

I really liked what you said about taking care of your new asphalt. My cousin just got a new asphalt driveway. It would be really helpful if he had a professional help him take care of it.

Taylor Bishop link

6/3/2019 01:09:47 pm

Thanks for helping me learn how you can take care of asphalt. It's good to know that you should water it down with a garden hose. I'm interested to learn if you should do this to the asphalt every day or only every so often.

Ashley link

6/3/2019 01:35:58 pm

I liked that you explained that you need to be careful not to damage your new driveway by walking on it with high heels or biking on it. I would imagine that you would want to preserve your new driveway after spending so much money getting it done. I will keep these tips in mind when I get my driveway replaced.

David Johnson link

6/10/2019 05:30:27 pm

Thanks for explaining that it's important not to park in the same spots all the time or to use jack stands during the initial curing time. In my opinion, it would be important to look into professional asphalt pavers because they will be able to explain any other essential tips you need to know that you may have forgotten earlier or may never had heard before. I'll have to look more into asphalt paving.

delta

6/27/2019 11:02:30 am

you are the only ones who mentioned the "soapsuds" when I hose it down and I thank you for illuminating me about that. You did not do my driveway, but I thank you anyway for the information.

Daphne Gilpin link

7/16/2019 11:56:47 am

Thanks for explaining that cars shouldn't be parked on the asphalt for two days. My husband and I need to have a parking lot for our building paved. Your article helped me know what to expect from working with a commercial paving company.

Dennis Sanchez link

7/24/2019 02:30:27 pm

Wow, I never knew that the tar that is used in asphalt takes up to twenty-four months to become fully cured. I'm going to be having my driveway repaved with asphalt next month and I'm not too familiar with asphalt. I'm going to keep this advice in mind so that I can take good care of my driveway.

Eli Richardson link

8/1/2019 12:34:59 pm

We liked the suggestion of watering the asphalt to cool it down to harden it. My brother needs to start paving his driveway before the fall, and we were looking for tips to do it. We will consider your idea and start looking for the tools we will need. Thanks for the post!

William

8/27/2019 01:27:15 am

My drive seem to have red stains from betelnut cheered in PNG. Ive noticed the stain could not go away after attempts to scrub it off. I'm worried the asphalt my wear out if I use detergents or other chemicals. Can anyone please advise the best without causing any damage to my driveway.

Eileen Benson link

3/3/2020 01:52:25 pm

Thanks for explaining that we shouldn't park a car on a new asphalt driveway until it's been at least two days since the installation. My brother and his wife want to hire a paving contractor to upgrade the dirt driveway of their cottage to an asphalt one. I'll pass along your tips to ensure everything goes smoothly after the paving process!

Bethel Smith link

1/25/2021 05:29:05 pm

My wife and I have made plans to have a lot of different renovations made to our home over the summer. One of our large projects will be to add an asphalt driveway to the carport on the side of our house. I really appreciate your tip about making sure to water the asphalt on hot days. We will be sure to keep an eye on it once we have had someone pave it for us.

2/16/2021 03:19:08 pm

I'm glad you talked about the proper cares an asphalt driveway needs. My wife and I want to sell our home next year, so we want to start doing some renovations. We've heard that installing an asphalt driveway increases the appeal of a house, so we're thinking about installing one. That's why we researched how to keep it in good shape. Thanks for the tips about avoiding parking your car on your new asphalt driveway for at least a couple of days after its installation.

Curtis Butler link

3/8/2021 12:55:01 pm

I had no idea that you could use water to regulate your asphalt's temperature during hot weather. My uncle is thinking about installing a driveway so that he has room to restore his truck this summer, but he is worried that the sunlight may damage the surface since there aren't any nearby trees that can provide shade. Maybe he should find a seal coating service that can help him protect his asphalt.

Adam Golightly link

3/15/2021 06:27:52 pm

My aunt has been thinking about sealing the cracks in her driveway because there are a lot of them. Getting the work done by a professional could allow them to be more effective. Thanks for your tips about how she shouldn't drive too fast on her driveway or on the edge because they can be weak.

Larry Weaver link

3/29/2021 04:29:55 pm

Thanks for the info about asphalt. My friend is thinking of getting asphalt for a construction project. I'll tell my friend to hire a professional when working with concrete.

Derek Swain link

3/31/2021 10:54:08 am

I didn't know that occasionally spraying your asphalt with water can help it harden. My brother would like to get an asphalt driveway installed this summer. He should think about learning how to maintain it before he sets a new driveway up.

Asphalt Do's & Don'ts

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