Crack Filling in Allentown, PA

Crack filling seals open cracks in asphalt so water cannot get through them into the base. In Allentown, where the average January low sits near 22 degrees and snow melts and refreezes all winter, every unsealed crack is a path for water to reach the stone below, freeze, expand and pry the crack wider. By spring, a hairline crack can be a pothole.

Why it pays off

SealMaster cites studies finding that each dollar spent on crack sealing saves about six dollars in later pavement repairs, and lists base failure, moisture, freeze-thaw and heavy traffic as the common causes of cracking. It puts crack sealing at roughly $0.35 to $1.00 per linear foot depending on materials and method; HomeGuide lists $0.50 to $3 per linear foot for residential crack filling.

What we fill and what we do not

Single cracks and joints, including the seam where a driveway meets the garage slab or sidewalk, are good candidates. Alligator cracking, where cracks connect into a pattern across an area, usually means the base under that section has failed. Filling those cracks may buy a season, but the lasting fix is to cut the area out and patch it. We tell you which is which.

How it is done

• Cracks cleaned out with wire brushes and compressed air or a heat lance
• Vegetation and loose material removed
• Wide cracks packed with backer material where needed
• Hot-applied rubberized filler poured into the crack and struck off flush
• Sealcoat applied over it later if a sealcoat is planned

When to do it

Late summer and early fall are ideal: cracks are open wider than in midsummer heat, and the filler seals them before the first hard freeze. Spring works too, once the pavement is dry. If you plan to sealcoat, crack filling comes first, so they are often done together.

Driveways in the Lehigh Valley

On home driveways, the most common cracks run along the edges, across the middle where two paving passes met, and at the joint with the garage slab. Those are all good candidates for filling. A typical residential driveway can be cleaned and filled in an hour or two. If you plan to sealcoat, crack filling should be done first, and the two together are the most affordable maintenance you can do for a driveway.

For lots

Commercial lots with a lot of linear footage are usually priced per foot. A yearly or every-other-year crack filling pass keeps truck lanes and drive aisles from breaking up and pushes back the date of a costly overlay.