Paving Equipment

When using paving equipment to pave your driveway, there are tips you can use to help you eliminate common problems that often occur. There is always the chance that segregation of the material can happen at any stage of the process. If, for example, the heavy equipment at the quarry does not stockpile the material correctly, it could cause problems. If the self-releasing cold feed bins are not used properly, segregation can occur, just as it can after the asphalt is mixed if it is not loaded on the truck properly.

It is only natural that some segregation will occur in the truck on the way to the paving site. This is because of thermal segregation and this will make the asphalt more difficult to compact. It will also affect the mat density of the driveway, even if you use a heavy commercial paving spreader. Ultimately, this will affect the length of time the driveway will last. It does seem a bit unfair that the paving crew is still expected to perform an expert job when there may be problems with the asphalt.

There are ways to minimize the amount of segregation that can occur when you have trained crews working on each step of the process. They also need to use all the equipment properly that they need for paving. If the crews used the three dump method at the quarry when loading the trucks, this will cut down on the segregation. This involves dumping one load at each end and then dumping a load in the middle. At the job site, the crews can control the hopper recycling to reduce large buildups of segregated asphalt. It is also important to keep the hopper full. The correct spread auger length will ensure that the proper amount of asphalt is applied to the screed end.