Welcome back to another entry here on the Sunrise Asphalt blog! Last month we talked about some New Year’s Resolutions to stick to in 2021 for the best results, some info about slurry seals, and even how to build a road! Sticking with that education bent we’re going to answer some more FAQs we see about asphalt! So ‘Ctrl+F’ for your questions and find a quick hit answer for you!
Where to Buy Recycled Asphalt Near Me
Looking to buy and use only recycled asphalt? Well, good news! Asphalt is one of the most easily recycled construction materials out there! So if you’re looking to use recycled asphalt for your paving needs you can rest easy that chances are, your local paver is going to be using some mix of virgin and recycled asphalt materials in their constructions. If you’re curious what else recycled asphalt can be used for, check back later this month! We’ll have a blog you’ll enjoy.
How Long Does it Take for Asphalt to Dry?
Asphalt will ‘dry’ enough to walk or drive on in about 48-72 hours, depending on the weather. Now to fully cure and harden that’s a different story! Asphalt can take anywhere from 6 months to a year to fully cure all the way through, again depending on weather. But if you’re just curious how long you have to wait before using your new driveway, you should be good to go in a couple of days!
How Long for Driveway Sealers to Dry?
Just get a fresh coat of sealer applied to your driveway? Don’t want to scuff up or ruin the fresh look. We don’t blame you! Getting that wonderful curb appeal is half the reason folks get their driveways sealed (and all the protective benefits of course!). If you just got your driveway sealed stay off it for 24 hours to allow the sealer to full coat and bind to the asphalt.
How Long to Stay Off NEW Asphalt?
Technically we already answered this but to the lay person you might not be aware of all the nuances and jargon. Don’t sweat. Briefly, if you have new asphalt installed you’ll want to give it two to three days for the top layer of it to dry and cure. Generally you can drive on it after 24 hours, just make sure you aren’t turning and twisting your steering wheel. After that you can drive and park on it to your heart’s content, but be aware it will take up to a year to fully cure.
How To Repair Asphalt?
Well, this is a big one! We can’t give you a quick answer here, so if this is what you’re looking for we have an entire blog that covers this! Check out this piece from last November that will cover everything you need to know about how to repair crumbling asphalt!
How Hot is Asphalt?
Hot enough! We joke. Asphalt when it’s fresh from the plant in it’s semi-liquid state is roughly 275-325° Fahrenheit. Usually it’ll cool just so slightly from plant to job site, but only 5 to 25°, nothing too strenuous. When it’s first installed if it cools too much, say to 200-180° it becomes too brittle to pave correctly so it’s important we keep it at that higher temp. After it is paved it will begin to cool quickly.
Now if you’re wondering how hot the asphalt gets on a particularly hot day, in Tucson it can be anywhere from 40 to 60° hotter than the ambient temperature! So be careful out there!
Alright, that will do it from us here at Sunrise Asphalt this time. Hopefully, you found some answers to your questions – and judging by the number of times we see these Q’s in particular it certainly helped some of you! We’ll be back next time with some more perfect pavement pieces and education for you.
