Proper maintenance can help keep your carpark useable and safe for years
There are multiple reasons why carpark owners should maintain their parking spaces regularly. Doing so improves safety for both employees and customers, which reduces liability. Proper maintenance also improves curb appeal, maximises parking lot space and makes the carpark surface last longer.
8 practical maintenance tips for carpark owners
Here are some simple ideas from the team here at Northern Highways Bitumen that you can do to keep your carpark safe and looking attractive. Some of these things are easy and low cost, to ensure that you do not spend a fortune on massive repairs that can be avoided. Read along and enjoy the benefit from following these quick maintenance tips:
- Ensure that your carpark is safe.
- Perform regular visual inspections.
- Sweep your lot regularly.
- Remove oil drippings immediately.
- Check the drains.
- Fill the cracks and seal them.
- Use sealcoating when necessary.
- Reroute vehicular and foot traffic.
1. Ensure that your carpark is safe
As carpark owner you should ensure its safety. Carparks can be a liability if they are not appropriately maintained. So, you can be held accountable for any accidents that occur in them. For example, someone trips in a pothole and breaks their leg, or a car hits a pedestrian because the lighting is poor. Maintaining a carpark properly means:
- ensuring that lighting is adequate.
- driving directions are painted clearly on the ground.
- the surface is clean and safe for everyone.
All these can help minimise any liability that you may face if someone is injured whilst driving or walking in your carpark.
2. Perform regular visual inspections
Routine visual inspections can help save you from spending money on major repairs that could have been prevented. It is recommended that you walk your parking lot at least once each month to perform a visual inspection. Look for cracks in the asphalt, standing water and pools of petrol or oil. Make sure you write these problems down so that you won’t miss anything that needs to be fixed.
3. Sweep your carpark regularly
Cleaning your parking lot frequently is one of the cheapest ways to increase its longevity. Sweeping is probably the easiest thing that you can do. Doing it regularly will remove the dirt and debris that easily accumulate. In addition, it gets rid of large sticks, rocks and other debris that can clog drains, and create standing water which weakens the surface of the carpark over time and seeps into the substrate, causing further deterioration. Sweeping regularly also allows you to uncover problems that are just starting.
4. Remove oil drippings immediately
Oil and petrol dripping from leaky engines can cause permanent damage to your carpark. These harmful materials eat away at the glue or tack coat that holds concrete and asphalt together, which leads to rapid deterioration. So, you should remove these as soon as you notice them. It is recommended that you pressure wash your carpark a couple of times each year to get rid of these drippings.
5. Check the drains
Make sure you check the drains by opening them and looking for blockages and accumulation of debris, especially during the rainy months. If you see pools of rainwater, it may mean that your drainage system is blocked. This can cause long-term problems if you don’t fix it immediately.
6. Fill and seal cracks
Over time, your carpark will inevitably develop cracks as a result of heavy use and weather conditions. Although small cracks do not necessarily mean that the surface is doomed, they need to be handled immediately. It is far easier to fill and seal small cracks than fix a large one.
When water starts seeping into even the tiniest cracks, the asphalt will continue to deteriorate. You can prevent this by using an asphalt sealant. However, some sealants contain toxic polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). They are known to cause cancer and developmental concerns in kids. So, make sure that the pavement sealant you use are PAH-free and environmentally friendly.
7. Use sealcoating when necessary
As a porous material, asphalt naturally absorbs water. When this happens, it expands and begins to crack or crumble. You can prevent this by sealcoating the surface of your carpark so that it does not absorb water. However, car driving over, people walking, the sun and rain cause the sealcoat to wear down. That is why sealcoating should be reapplied as needed.
If you’re unsure when to reapply, sprinkle some water on your asphalt surface. The water beads-up if the sealcoating is working. If it doesn’t and instead seeps into the surface, it is time to reapply sealcoating.
If this is done correctly, your sealcoating should last from three to five years before you need to reapply it. This will not only protect your carpark from deteriorating, but it will make your lot look brand new.
8. Reroute vehicular and foot traffic
If you apply sealcoating, you will need to reroute the traffic to spread the wear. You can do this by reorienting parking spaces and traffic and pedestrian lanes. You can also add potted plants and shade trees to help protect the surface from the sun.
Entrust your asphalt surfacing and sealing to the expert
When your business is on the line, DIY may not cut it. Instead, let a professional handle your bitumen and asphalt surfacing and sealing. Northern Highways Bitumen is the go-to company of residential, industrial, commercial and government clients throughout Australia’s east coast.
We are experts in road construction and surfacing solutions, including 2-coat seal or asphalt carpark and driveway surfaces, and pothole, gutter and kerb repairs. You can also come to us for emulsion seals, dust seals, spray seals, 2 in 1 emulsion seals, hot mix asphalt and road base supplies.
We provide durable and low-maintenance driveway, pavement and road surfaces. Talk to our specialists today at 1300 858 751. You can also email us at sales@northernhighwaysbitumen.com.au or send us a quick message using our click here to send us an online form and we will contact you back as soon as possible.
