A Guide to Concrete and Asphalt Cracks
When running a company, you want the pavement on your lot to display a pristine appearance, providing a good first impression on your customers. Many business owners rely on concrete and asphalt for their roads because they can handle significant amounts of weight and are durable and long-lasting. However, they can become damaged over time, indicated by cracked surfaces. Quality asphalt and
concrete work minimize these occurrences, but here's what you should know about them.
Concrete
Each type of crack that appears in concrete will have distinguishing features. The most common kinds of openings are:
- Hairline: These narrow and shallow gaps can be problematic if left unaddressed since they collect dirt and water, widening over time.
- Shrinkage: Due to these crevices' minimal size, they may not be visible to the naked eye, but they extend beneath the surface.
- Settlement: These big and extensive openings will have one section of the concrete appearing lower than the other.
- Structural: Distinguished by cracks wider than a credit card, these openings can run through the entire slab, requiring concrete work to repair or replace the material.
Asphalt
With asphalt pavement, there are more types of crevices than concrete. Edge cracking develops on the outside perimeters of the pavement. Farther away from them are transverse and longitudinal cracks, which appear near the centerline of the pavement joints—the former runs perpendicular to the line, whereas the latter is parallel to it.
Slippage openings are crescent-shaped and appear to have deep, open gaps. In contrast, reflection types are straight and can form a grid across the pavement surface, mirroring the cracking on the sublayer. To distinguish block fissures, look for openings resembling large rectangular or square patterns on the surface. Finally, fatigue cracking appears irregularly shaped, like an alligator's skin.
Causes & Prevention
The primary culprit behind most pavement cracks is improper installation. During the process, a contractor should understand that excess water in the mix causes the material to shrink during hardening when the liquid evaporates, leading to cracks. Rapid concrete drying, lack of control joints, and a loose subgrade also result in fissures. A professional can prevent these issues by compacting the subgrade, using the correct water-to-cement ratio, installing joints, and curing the concrete slab adequately.
On the other hand, asphalt crevices are due to deficient or old mixes, lack of lateral support, underlayment settling, damaged or weak sub-grade, and poor drainage. Excessive traffic and heavy loads can also contribute to surface cracking. Preventing the pavement from breaking requires a professional to prepare the base, ensure proper drainage, and use the correct asphalt mix.
