Spring Parking Lot Maintenance
Potholes, winter grime, and faded striping in your lot can negatively affect your business. Not only are they eyesores, they can also create a bad first impression for your customers. In extreme cases, you could even be held liable if a car is damaged due to a bad pothole or missing parking lines. The following list of spring lot maintenance chores can help you avoid these problems.
#1: Perform an inspection
The best way to find damage is to walk the entire lot. Start at the far corners and work your way toward the building. You are looking for cracks, pitting, and potholes. These often appear in winter or early spring as temperature fluctuations cause the asphalt to expand and contract. Bring a can of fluorescent marking paint with you so you can circle the damage as you spot it. This serves two purposes – it marks the location of trouble spots for your repair crew, and it also alerts drivers to the hazard.
#2: Repair the holes
Prompt repair is a must if you find large holes or pitting. You should even schedule a repair for fine cracks, since these will otherwise get larger in time. For holes and larger cracks, the asphalt contractor will remove any debris from the area and then they will fill it with asphalt patch. For fine cracks, a special asphalt caulk is used. It's designed to expand and contract with the temperature, which prevents the crack from getting larger.
#3: Resurface or clean
If your lot has a lot of discolored patches or severe damage, you may want to get it resurfaced. In this process, the contractor will lay a couple of inches of fresh asphalt over the old. This results in a lot that looks brand new but costs less than a full replacement. If the lot is in relatively good condition, though, a deep cleaning is all that is needed to get rid of stains and winter grime. A lot cleaner will use a hot steam process to remove the accumulated dirt so the lot looks almost new.
#4: Replace the stripes
After repairing and cleaning, the lot marking will need to be reapplied. How often this is done depends on the amount of traffic and weather exposure your lot receives. Spring is a good time to do this, since you will be doing the rest of your annual lot inspections and maintenance at this time. Your marking crew can come in and lay down the lines after business hours so everything will be dry and safe to drive on by morning.
Visit a company like Pavement Maintenance Solutions Inc to do your pavement repairs.
Share