Crack Sealing in Wichita, KS

Crack sealing is the least expensive maintenance you can do for asphalt, and in Wichita it may be the most important. An open crack lets rain and snowmelt into the gravel base. Through a freeze season that averages from late October into April, that water freezes, expands and widens the crack, and in spring the wet base softens under traffic. Sealing cracks before winter breaks that cycle.

Crack sealing versus crack filling

The terms are often used loosely. Crack filling usually means placing material in wider, more stable cracks that move little. Crack sealing usually means using a flexible, hot-applied rubberized sealant in cracks that open and close with temperature changes. Many jobs use both. Kansas pavement moves a lot between a January cold snap and a July heat wave, so flexibility matters.

How the work is done

• Cracks are blown out with compressed air to remove dirt, weeds and loose material
• Narrow working cracks can be routed to create a clean channel for sealant
• Hot sealant is applied into the crack and finished slightly over the surface
• Wide cracks may need backer material or a different repair

The sealant bonds only to clean, dry asphalt, so the cleaning step decides how long it lasts.

Which cracks can be sealed

Single cracks, longitudinal cracks along paving joints, and cracks along the edge of a garage slab or curb are good candidates. Alligator cracking, where cracks connect into small blocks, usually means the base has failed. Sealing those areas only slows the damage; they need patching. We separate the two when we look at your pavement.

Timing

SealMaster lists base failure, moisture intrusion and freeze-thaw cycles among the main causes of cracking and stresses sealing cracks while they are still small. The best window is late summer and fall, when cracks are open and dry before winter. Cool, dry days in spring work as well. Sealant should go into dry cracks, so we schedule after rain has had time to drain.

Crack sealing before sealcoating

If you are planning a sealcoat, cracks should be sealed first. Sealcoat is a thin coating and will not bridge a crack; it simply sinks in and the crack reappears. Sealing cracks first gives the sealcoat a continuous surface.

For parking lots

Commercial lots often have long joints between paving passes and cracks around inlets and curbs. Sealing them on a regular cycle is far less disruptive than patching failed areas later, and it can usually be done with only part of the lot closed at a time.