The winter can wreak havoc on your asphalt parking lot. The constant freezing and thawing can cause a myriad of Common Asphalt Defects. This is why it is so important to inspect your parking lot come spring and address any issues before they worsen.
Common Asphalt Defects: Cracking
- Alligator Cracking: Alligator cracking is a load associated structural failure that can be caused by weakness in the surface, base or sub grade; poor drainage; a surface or base that is too thin; or all three.
- Block Cracking: unlike alligator cracking, block cracking is not load-associated. Instead, block cracking is caused by shrinkage of the asphalt pavement due to an inability of asphalt binder to expand and contract with temperature cycles.
- Longitudinal Cracking: Running parallel to the pavement’s centerline, longitudinal cracks are the result of pavement fatigue, reflective cracking, and/or poor joint construction.
- Transverse Cracking: Running perpendicular to the pavement’s centerline, transverse cracks are the result of reflective cracks from an underlying layer, daily temperature cycles, or poor construction.
- Edge Cracking: Running along the inside of the pavement surface, within one or two feet, edge crack are the most common type of asphalt defects. Edge cracks result from an underlying base material that has settled and weakened.
- Joint Reflection Cracking: When a flexible pavement overlay is placed over a rigid pavement, like asphalt over concrete, cracks can appear. These are known as joint reflection cracks and they occur directly over the underlying rigid pavement joints.
- Slippage Cracking: Appearing as crescent-shaped cracks, slippage cracks occur where the new material has slipped over the underlying course.
Common Asphalt Defects: Pot Holes and More
- Pot Holes: We have all seen a pot hole before. It is a small, bowl-shaped depression in the asphalt that penetrates deep down into the base. They are the result of moisture infiltration.
- Depressions: Also known as birdbaths, depressions are indentations in the asphalt and are most noticeable after it rains.
- Rutting: These are channelized depressions in the wheel tracks caused by insufficient pavement thickness; lack of compaction of the asphalt, stone base or soil; weak asphalt mixes; or moisture infiltration.
- Shoving: Also known as wash boarding, shoving is the formation of ripples in the pavement.
- Upheaval: Upheaval is a localized upward movement in a pavement due to swelling of the subgrade.
Asphalt Repair from Reliable Contracting in Baltimore, Maryland
Reliable Contracting Company, a full-service commercial asphalt paving contractor in Baltimore, Maryland, can handle all of your asphalt repair needs, including asphalt patching, crack filling, and more. Reliable is your complete, single-source solution for you’re all of your Maryland asphalt paving needs.
If you have any questions about Common Asphalt Defects & Asphalt Repair or if you have a construction project that you need completed right the first time, please contact Reliable Contracting by calling 410-987-0313 or visit our website. You can also follow us on Facebook and Twitter!
Source:
13 Pavement Defects and Failures You Should Know! PavemanPro.com