In article , Charlie Morgan says...

On Wed, 06 Sep 2006 16:42:56 -0500, Richard J Kinch wrote:

Banty writes:

One penetrates; the other tends to sit on top and can get slippery.
I'd like the former and not the latter.

Better to understand them in terms of the technology than the purported
effects. And then demand specifics about how much material is going to
be applied. Don't let them wave hands about how good something is.

Your technical choices are between (1) asphalt-tar-in-water emulsion
with clay and sand fillers, (2) hot tar with no water, and (3) other
non-asphaltic stuff (acrylic or rubber) in a water emulsion and possibly
sand/clay filler.

They're all more or less paint. Nothing is going to "penetrate" and
renew the dried-out asphaltic concrete. The only way it could be
"slippery" is if you put so much on that you have a thick enough coating
to produce a flat surface.

Best performance and economy is hot tar, but this requires the most
equipment and other fixed overhead. Applying emulsions is basically
nothing more than painting.

All of the coatings are woefully uneconomical in getting material in
place for dollars. You are better off saving your money for repaving
with new thick asphalt at $$/ton than applying a paper-thin coating of
the same asphaltic substances at $$$$/ton. The illusion of value comes
from the cosmetics of having a fresh coat of cheap paint, at least for a
few days or weeks. Some people just want to believe a mere paint job
will extend the life more than trivially.

Where Richard Kinch lives, what he says is more or less true as far as sealing
being worthwhile to increase the longivity of asphalt. He lives in Florida,
where they don't get many deep freezes. In New England, however, seal coating
dramatically lengthens the life of asphalt pavement. And you know what else? A
smooth dark black driveway makes your whole house worth more money, and makes it
easier to sell.

His arguments about the cost of the material vs. repaving is just plain
laughable.

Don't worry, I know better. And I've already encountered this character in
misc.consumers.house.

I'm in upstate New York. And I do believe in maintenance.

Cheers,
Banty