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When it comes to resurfacing a driveway, even die-hard do-it-yourselfers lean toward hiring someone else to do the job. Thanks to a new sealing product, it's now fairly easy to seal your cracked, eroded driveway yourself. |
Why resurface your driveway in the first place? It's better to take care of long cracks and eroded spots early, especially if you have cold winters. Otherwise, water will seep into the damaged sections, freeze, and expand, and these problems will get worse. |
Driveway resurfacing materials can be applied when outdoor conditions will be dry and above 60° F for at least 48 hours. Before anything can go on the driveway, some things have to come off: dirt and debris, algae, and weeds. Start with the weeds. |
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Next, loosen the debris that has collected in wider cracks using a wire brush. |
Then, it's time for the big sweep. You could use a broom, but a leaf blower like the ultra-quiet
Echo PB-460LN does a great job of cleaning out the cracks, then clearing everything off the surface quickly. |
To get rid of algae or other growths on your driveway, pour a gallon of household bleach into four gallons of water, and apply the bleach and water mixture with a scrub brush. Heavy scrubbing is really not necessary. The solution should sit for about 10 minutes, then rinsed with fresh water.
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While you have the hose out, use the nozzle to flush out any material in the cracks that the broom or blower left behind.
One final cleaning with a pressure washer will ensure a clean surface, and a longer-lasting new driveway. |
Once the surface is clean and the algae's gone, you'll have to deal with damaged areas like cracks, erosion, sunken areas, and the like. Narrower cracks, up to a half-inch wide or so, can be most easily filled using a liquid elastomeric filler like this one. Cut the tapered nozzle to about 1/4" wide. |
The idea here is to move backward, away from the tip, slightly overfilling the crack. You may have to speed up or slow down, depending on how deep or wide the crack becomes.
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Once the filler is in place, take a two-inch putty knife and flatten the bead, spreading the material over the adjacent surface. |
Eroded areas need to be filled using a paste-like trowel grade filler. It's easier and less messy to use a wide putty knife to apply this material to the surface. Switch to a trowel to smooth the filler and blend the edges.
Trowel grade filler also works well on sunken areas and on larger cracks, up to 1" wide.
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If you have an oil stain or other area that might cause problems for the sealer, wash the area with a degreaser, then spread a bonding agent and sealer on top of it. |
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| You're finally ready to apply the sealer! We used a resurfacer by DuPont. It's a combination of asphalt with polymers that insures that the sealer will stick well to the old surface, remain flexible, resist cracking, and stay resistant to gas and oil spills. It has sand added, which provides better traction on the driveway. |
The resurfacer needs to be mixed thoroughly before using. You could do this by hand, but a paddle mixer and a cordless electric drill is much faster, easier, and less messy. |
Begin applying the resurfacer with a four-inch-wide paintbrush. Apply the material around the edge of the driveway, being careful not to touch the bordering surfaces of the driveway. |
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