Paving In Wisconsin... An Art As Much As An Occupation
“People will ask me when the best time is to use Asphalt when paving, and the best answer I can provide is ‘it depends on the situation.’ Being in Wisconsin means we have to contend with frost and varying soil conditions as a result of the deposits glaciers made 10,000 years ago.” Randy Howland, Project Manager, Wolf Paving.
Flexibility Helps
Asphalt, for example, is a surface that flexes with frost and can be maintained fairly easily. In perfect conditions, asphalt is less expensive than concrete. It absorbs heat from the sun so it helps snow melt quickly and salt used to melt snow will not harm it, where it can hurt concrete.
With asphalt, cracks are easier to mend, protecting the integrity of the surface. Coupled with resealing it, asphalt can be touched up cosmetically fairly easily every three to four years. As long as you keep the water out from under the pavement, your surface will hold up and there will be fewer cracks that will accelerate the surfaces decline.
“The problem in Dane County, however, is that soil conditions can vary a great deal. Soil heavy in clay content does not drain well and can potentially be a paving killer whether it’s asphalt or concrete. Water that is held in the base of any paving material will cause it to break down and crack. When we prepare to reconstruct a paved area in asphalt, we routinely add eight to ten inches of gravel to specifically help drainage and keep the water away from the paving material. This also helps guard against extreme conditions that can be caused by frost/freezing conditions,” Howland says.
Asphalt has another good news/bad news aspect in that while it can be driven on in only 2-3 days after it’s installed, it absorbs heat and in the summer can be harmed by heavy loads in a small area such as kickstands (from motorcycles) or a small wheel on a heavy boat trailer. Although, this is only an issue when there are multiple, consecutive days of 90 degrees
or more.
Can Be Put Over Anything
Concrete, for the most part, can be put over anything. Most municipalities consider it a permanent fixture which affects
property taxes and can limit its placement within your property in terms of distance from your lot line.
It is much more rigid than asphalt and as a result, can crack more often and have larger, more disfiguring cracks. It is more expensive to patch and maintain when cracks occur.
As with asphalt, having good drainage is important and when installing concrete, a healthy gravel sub base is important for drainage and to protect the health of the concrete. Concrete takes about seven days to cure before a vehicle can be driven on it.
Paving Realities
“Every paving situation is unique because intended use, placement of the paved area and drainage issues can all play a role in decision making,” Howland adds. “It’s important to remember that a good solid base is as important as the thickness of the asphalt.”
In addition, you have to take into account what municipality you are in and what their requirements will be with a particular project. For example, in Sun Prairie, if a homeowner intends to repave an asphalt driveway of 2,000 sq ft., it will probably be more cost efficient going with concrete as opposed to repaving the asphalt. This is because the city requires you to install a drive way apron, as well as the sidewalk in concrete, whether there is a sidewalk presently on your side of the street or not. In this situation, rather than paying for separate asphalt AND concrete preparation and paving crews to do their jobs at your home, it is more cost effective to do the entire job in concrete. The savings in labor will more than pay for any differences in the materials used.
