Asphalt repair products
The repair of asphalt cracks and potholes in the driveway does not always need the pro skills to fulfill the job. Furthermore, there are many of asphalt repair products available in the market. In addition to that, these driveway repair products typically cost a fraction of the price of professionally applied hot asphalt. The consumerreports.com has seven different brands of blacktop patch products tested and significant differences are found.
If you intend to repair by yourself, it is necessary to prepare do-it-yourself blacktop patch, like hot asphalt, consists of small stones (aggregate) coated with a binder. You can do this driveway repair using a tamping tool or any heavy object with a flat bottom, such as the end of a 4×4 post. Alternatively, you can also run back and forth over the spot with your car.
This is the list of seven products tested by consumerreports.com.
• Aquaphalt Permanent Pothole Repair (55-lb.), $42.99
• EZ Street Asphalt Premium Cold Asphalt (50-lb.), $16.56
• Perma-Patch Permanent Pavement Repair Patch (60-lb.), $33.06• QPR High-Performance Permanent Pavement Repair (50-lb.), $11.88
• Quikrete High-Performance Blacktop Repair No. 1701 (50-lb.), $12.29
• Sakrete All Weather Blacktop Patch (60-lb.), $13.49
• Sakrete U.S. Cold Patch Permanent Pothole Repair (50-lb.), $12.55
Asphalt Repair Products for Blacktop Patch
One short comment from the list is the Aquaphalt Permanent Pothole Repair, requires wet its binder (to activate the adhesive) before compaction. This product is the only one among those we tested that comes in a choice of different aggregate sizes (four between 4 and 12 mm). The smaller sizes are best for smooth surfaces or smaller holes; the larger, for wider, deeper holes or base layers. We tested the 6 mm, a roughly average size.
The test done by costumerreports.com used the direct application by created potholes on a stretch of pavement at their Yonkers, New York, headquarters using a series of square wooden forms. Then, following the instructions for each blacktop patch, they filled the forms with the seven products. Next, they drove over them every day, let them weather for a week, and then tested them for resistance to shear—how well they withstood the wheel of a stationary car spinning over the patch, as it would if skidding. Consumerreports.com also tested for resistance to penetration using a rounded probe, trying to simulate a point load such as a caster or the foot of a chair. They did this twice, a month apart, to check whether longer weathering improved durability. One check they were unable to make, given the season, was resistance to freezing and thawing.
Based on their findings and tests, the Aquaphalt, which costs about three times more than the others, was the best performer. It’s easy to use and the top choice of all the materials if the repair involves an edge or having the material built up into a curb. The choice of four different aggregate sizes also allows choosing the best size for your particular driveway repair. Aquaphalt was the most resistant to shear, with just surface discoloration as its coating was removed beneath the car’s turning tire, and it best resisted penetration from a probe. Then the next option based on the test is Sakrete Cold Patch, which was also easy to use, though it was a little less resistant to shear and penetration. It wasn’t as good as the Aquaphalt at edge strength or for use in a built-up curb, but it was far superior to the other five driveway repair products in those applications. The others were much less resistant to deformation under shear and to penetration.
In conclusion, none of these tested materials was as strong as hot asphalt, a truly permanent driveway repair that requires a paving company and which might be a better long-term choice. Still, if you’d like to do some repairs before replacing a driveway altogether, these materials could prolong its life.
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