Recycled asphalt for a driveway

[andyvh1959]

Asphalt Recycling FAQ | Asphalt Contractor in Greater Grand Rapids, MI

A-1 Asphalt Inc. is an asphalt recycling contractor in Wayland serving Greater Grand Rapids, MI. View our FAQ page on asphalt recycling.

www.a1asphaltinc.com

This is something I'd consider for my old crumbling asphalt driveway. Has anyone used it for their driveway with good results? My driveway has very old asphalt that was applied over a rough but solid 4" thick concrete driveway. Near as I can tell, when the house was built in 1973 they poured a concrete driveway about 75' long from the then gravel road to the end of the driveway. Then the county came through and put in a concrete road, curb/gutter, which was also then a truck route, still is. So I think the original owners had the concrete covered with asphalt to raised it up to the new street surface.

When I prepped the site for my detached shop I had to cut through some old asphalt and then 4" of concrete to prep for forms and pouring the slab. I've been in the house since 2002 and the asphalt driveway was grey and old then, and been crumbling ever since. Looks like having the old asphalt scraped off, and then used to mix with recycled asphalt and applied over the old concrete could be a cost effective alternative.

 

[JohnX14]

It seems you have asphalt over crumbling conctrete and you want to put the recycled asphalt on top? At best, it is a band-aid. Do it and let it last for however it will, possibly pass it on to the next person, or do it right and dig it out. Nobody wants to dig it out because it's the most costly solution. placing new recycled asphalt may be the best solution, for now...If so, do it

 

[alwaysFlOoReD]

The way I read it he is removing the existing asphalt and then mixing it with new and laying it back down. Crumbling concrete would seem to be an ok base if it isn't sliding away downhill. I'm not anywhere close to an expert though....

 

[zendriver]

I thought most all of it is recycled.

That's what they use on road resurfacing. Doesn't make any sense otherwise. They mill off the surface, it has to so somewhere, might as well mix it with new binder and lay it back down.

 

[JuncleJohn]

I would get quotes on all of your options Including tear out and replace. Then think about how long you plan on living there. How long does asphalt hold up in your area? Also, doesn’t it have to be re-sealed every year or two?

I know it’s pricey, but I prefer concrete.

John

 

[andyvh1959]

To claify, the current 2" to 3" of decades old asphalt is laid over 4" thick stable concrete underneath. Everywhere that the old asphalt has cumbled off is concrete underneath. When we scraped back some of the asphalt whenI preped the area for my shop, the concrete underneath was very sold but very rough looking, like it was never finish flaoted and troweled. Maybe that was the issue, back in 1975 the concrete contractor left a solid but very rough driveway that likely looked for ****. The asphalt was laid on top to produce a smooth finish

When the front discharge mxier came down the driveway to deliver the concrete for my new slab, it was just after numerous days of fall rain. The cement truck did nothing to the old driveway, no damage, no sinking, so I assume the concrete underneath is sold and stable. So my plan would be to have the asphalt contractor scrape off the old asphalt and regirnd it into a fresh layer of asphalt. I'm noit looking to tear out the entire asphalt and concrete driveway and start over on the subsoil.

I plan to sell this house in about five years. By that time if I reseal the new asphalt topper it should look like a new asphalt Many neighbors around here have asphalt driveways and they hold up well. So mine, with a very solid base underneath shouls do well.

 

[Bondo]

Ayuh,.... What yer proposing works the same as new hot mix asphalt installed by a paver, 'n crew,...
At best, you might get a credit for the old material, or not,....
There's virtually no difference in the final product,....
When it comes outa the hot mix plant, you can't tell the difference, it's the same as new hot mix, using virgin stone, 'n asphalt,.....

I spent 30 years in the biz,......

To make the new driveway last longer, I suggest you add the step they skipped the last time,.....
Once the concrete is stripped clean, power-wash it, then on paving day, have Tack-coat sprayed on the concrete, just before the paving starts,....
That's how we paved asphalt over concrete bridges to lock the asphalt, to the concrete,.....

 

[andyvh1959]

Thank you! That's exactly the professional knowledge I was looking for. Is two inches too thin for a top layer bonded over concrete? Any specific cleaner to power wash the old concrete, some sort of etch/wash? But something that won't kill the grass. Would I need to rent or hire some sort of scrubber for the concrete, or just rent a professional grade hot water power washer?

 

[Junkman]

The millings aren't used because they contain too much dirt, and mixing them into the new asphalt requires more binder than using virgin stone. For this reason, they don't use the millings. Adding extra asphalt liquid to the mix is too costly. When I had my driveway done 30 years ago, the contractor told me that he would pay the asphalt plant extra to add additional asphalt liquid to the mix, because it made it easier to lay it down with his paving machine. I was also told that the mix that they use for road work is different from what is used in driveways, but I have never been able to get a reliable confirmation of this.

 

[reader2580]

I thought most all of it is recycled.

That's what they use on road resurfacing. Doesn't make any sense otherwise. They mill off the surface, it has to so somewhere, might as well mix it with new binder and lay it back down.

A lot of millings are removed rather than made into new asphalt. The city I live in “paved” a bunch of gravel streets with millings from repaving a state highway in 2006. The street in front of my house is asphalt millings.

 

[MichaelP]

I don't know if the recycled asphalt they used for my driveway last time was not hot enough, but it started crumbling right after the work was done. They had to come again and redo the whole driveway. The result was better, but not much.

I don't know if it was due to use of poor quality of the recycled asphalt, insufficient temperature or poor workmanship. Being a total amateur in this field, I suspect it might be because of insufficient amount of binder (bitumen) in the mix. I wonder what Bondo thinks.

 

[ATC]

I don't know if the recycled asphalt they used for my driveway last time was not hot enough, but it started crumbling right after the work was done. They had to come again and redo the whole driveway. The result was better, but not much.

I don't know if it was due to use of poor quality of the recycled asphalt, insufficient temperature or poor workmanship. Being a total amateur in this field, I suspect it might be because of insufficient amount of binder (bitumen) in the mix. I wonder what Bondo thinks.

Sounds like maybe not enough binder (tar?) and not hot enough.

I've seen several houses where the seller will have a cheap "paved" driveway installed before listing the house...then 3 months after it sells, the driveway is gray and crumbling.

Here's one. This was done less than 2 years ago:

 

[reader2580]

Sounds like maybe not enough binder (tar?) and not hot enough.

I've seen several houses where the seller will have a cheap "paved" driveway installed before listing the house...then 3 months after it sells, the driveway is gray and crumbling.

Here's one. This was done less than 2 years ago:

That picture looks like it might be asphalt millings well compacted versus asphalt pavement.

 

[Bondo]

Thank you! That's exactly the professional knowledge I was looking for. Is two inches too thin for a top layer bonded over concrete? Any specific cleaner to power wash the old concrete, some sort of etch/wash? But something that won't kill the grass. Would I need to rent or hire some sort of scrubber for the concrete, or just rent a professional grade hot water power washer?

Ayuh,.... If the hot mix is put down at 2.5", compacted to 2", you should have a 30+ year driveway,.....

Plain ole power washing to get all the dust, sand, 'n grit off it is good, so the Tack-coat bonds to the concrete good,.... the heat of the hot mix causes the tack-coat to stick together,.....

Proper compaction is the key to a good hot-mix asphalt driveway,.....
Without proper compaction, hot-mix asphalt is just black sticky stones, til it cools,....

Another key to a long life for a hot-mix driveways life, is to make sure the edges are hand tamped to 'bout a 45* angle,.... after it's set, back-fill the shoulder up to an even grade to the lawn, which further supports the edges,....

 

[Bondo]

The millings aren't used because they contain too much dirt, and mixing them into the new asphalt requires more binder than using virgin stone. For this reason, they don't use the millings. Adding extra asphalt liquid to the mix is too costly. When I had my driveway done 30 years ago, the contractor told me that he would pay the asphalt plant extra to add additional asphalt liquid to the mix, because it made it easier to lay it down with his paving machine. I was also told that the mix that they use for road work is different from what is used in driveways, but I have never been able to get a reliable confirmation of this.

Ayuh,....... That guy was lying to you, just telling you what he thought you wanted to hear,....

Years ago, NYS used a system developed by, I think, Ill. that a train of equipment, that ground up the top 2" of an interstate, conveyed the millings back to a hot-mix plant, added abit of bitumen, then into a paver, laying it back down, rolling it in, 'n reopening the hy-way in barely an hours time,.....
Those interstates lasted as long as the same roads put in with the usual hot-mix paving,....

 

[Bondo]

A lot of millings are removed rather than made into new asphalt. The city I live in “paved” a bunch of gravel streets with millings from repaving a state highway in 2006. The street in front of my house is asphalt millings.

Ayuh,...... That's a great way of using millings,..... better than stone, but not as good as hot-mix blacktop,........

We built a few parking lots, 'n driveways like that,....
The key to a good job, was good Compaction there too,....

 

[Bondo]

I don't know if the recycled asphalt they used for my driveway last time was not hot enough, but it started crumbling right after the work was done. They had to come again and redo the whole driveway. The result was better, but not much.

I don't know if it was due to use of poor quality of the recycled asphalt, insufficient temperature or poor workmanship. Being a total amateur in this field, I suspect it might be because of insufficient amount of binder (bitumen) in the mix. I wonder what Bondo thinks.

Ayuh,..... Donno, but probably a combination of those factors,....

As I've said, compaction is very important, cold mix, leads to poor compaction,....

 

[Bondo]

Sounds like maybe not enough binder (tar?) and not hot enough.

I've seen several houses where the seller will have a cheap "paved" driveway installed before listing the house...then 3 months after it sells, the driveway is gray and crumbling.

Here's one. This was done less than 2 years ago:

Ayuh,.... It's hard to tell, but that looks like sprayed oil, 'n stone,....
Or, in was installed really thin, 'n poor compaction, due to it being so thin,....

 

[andyvh1959]

A wealth of real usable info in this thread. Info I'll discuss with the Asphalt contractor so they know the expectations.

 

[zendriver]

A lot of millings are removed rather than made into new asphalt. The city I live in “paved” a bunch of gravel streets with millings from repaving a state highway in 2006. The street in front of my house is asphalt millings.

People don't get paved streets and the cost to re-pave highways goes up, using more pricey "virgin" aggregates.

Taxpayers get screwed double.

 

[reader2580]

People don't get paved streets and the cost to re-pave highways goes up, using more pricey "virgin" aggregates.

Taxpayers get screwed double.

My street would still be gravel if the millings had not been installed.

 

[ATC]

Ayuh,.... It's hard to tell, but that looks like sprayed oil, 'n stone,....
Or, in was installed really thin, 'n poor compaction, due to it being so thin,....

Yeah, I dunno. I did see a paver and a roller there. The driveway is just after a blind corner, which I came around and was surprised by the dump truck & trailer parked halfway in the road while they were installing it.

 

[kmcc927]

Just remember if you asphalt over concrete ALL joints\cracks will telegraph through after the first winter. Plan on crack sealing to keep water out. A reputable seal coat contractor will include crack sealing.