7 Mistakes Homeowners Make When Sealcoating Their Driveway

Do you have a driveway? Driveways are one of the most expensive parts of your home. Depending on your driveway’s square footage, it can cost $5,000 to $15,000 to replace it. Sealcoating your driveway is great preventive maintenance and will help lengthen the life of your asphalt driveway. However, over the past 15 years, we have seen some homeowners make some choices which they later regret.

1. Sealcoating your Driveway Too Often.

We agree that there is nothing nicer looking than a driveway with a fresh coat of sealer. However, your driveway is not considered a high traffic surface and adequately apply coating should last 2-3 years even with the harsh winters in the Chicago area. Sealcoating your driveway every year will eventually cause the coating to build up, and the underlying sealcoating will start to flake off or peel.

2. Not Making Repairs before Sealcoating

Sealcoating is designed to protect the underlying asphalt from the elements. Sealcoating helps slow down asphalt from oxidizing, which causes asphalt to become brittle. The coating will also fill in hairline cracks. Puddling, alligator cracking and larger cracks are not fixed by sealcoating, and these are issues that should be addressed before sealcoating.

3. DIY Sealcoating

We get it, you want to save money and sealcoating looks easy. However, your driveway is one of the most expensive single items on your home and expensive to replace. In addition, the quality of coatings you find at the big box stores is not the same as what most contractors use.  Also, we have years of knowledge and know what issues to look for and how to fix them to ensure your driveway will last longer.

4. Hiring the Cheapest Contractor

While it’s always a good idea to get multiple estimates, the cheapest is not always the best. Driveway Sealcoating Contractors basically buy their materials from the same or similar suppliers. Therefore, our costs are only marginally different. So when you have three estimates and one is 25% less, this should be a red flag to you.

5. Sealcoating Contractors Without Insurance

One of the reasons an estimate might be 25% lower is because the contractor does not carry insurance and workers comp insurance. So the chance of something going wrong is slight, but when they do, it’s always good to have a contractor with insurance.

6. Checking Reference and Reading Reviews about the Sealcoating Contractor

Regardless it’s a driveway, roof or a major renovation; you will want to ask your contractor for references. Also, search for the company on Google and read past customers’ reviews. One bad review shouldn’t disqualify a contractor because we all make mistakes, but multiple bad reviews should make you pause before you hiring said contractor.  

7. Schedule concerns

Being an asphalt contractor in Aurora, weather causes some problems when it comes to scheduling. If we had it our way, we would love it to be sunny and 80 all year round, but that isn’t the case. Good contractors will communicate a window of when the work will be completed, and they will let you know a few days in advance on when the plan on being at your home. Perfect schedules become a nightmare when rain pops up. If you have parties or events scheduled at your house, please communicate this upfront so schedules can be adjusted.