Have you inspected your parking lot or community roads for sinkholes? If not, now is the time! The constantly changing sub-base conditions during the northeast freeze-thaw cycles play a huge part in sinkholes forming. Additionally, property owners and management use ice control methods such as salt. Over time, salt can deteriorate the walls of the catch basins– causing sinkholes to form. Although sinkholes can’t necessarily be prevented, being proactive with annual inspections can help control them and prevent costly catch basins and roadway failures.

New Year, New Pavement Management Plan

The New Year is the perfect time to start implementing positive routines for both you and your pavement! Parking lots are one of the most expensive elements that property managers are responsible for. Even when a parking lot is new, it will not be long before traffic, heavy trucks and seasonal weather conditions will take its toll on the pavement. A well-maintained parking lot weighs heavily on curb appeal as well as customer safety and satisfaction. With the high costs of petroleum, it is important to protect your investment.

You wouldn’t purchase a brand-new car and then never change the oil, right? Well, maintaining your pavement every 3-4 years is just as important as changing the oil in your car every 3,000 miles.

So, what type of maintenance are we talking about? For starters, we recommend performing an annual site inspection after winter (March-April). It’s important to perform this inspection after winter because during winter months if weather is below freezing, the ground will expand and contract as the ground freezes and thaws, this may cause cracks. The freeze and thaw cycles during winter months can also impact the size of potholes or failed areas. For example, if an area is 4’x 4’ and it goes through a bad winter it may double or triple in size. Once the site inspection is performed, it’s time to budget and create the pavement management plan.

Each parking lot is unique; however, you can expect your maintenance plan to look something like this:

• Crack filling: should be budgeted annually to keep water from entering and damaging pavement
• Sealcoating: Intervals on 2nd year from completion and every 3-4 years
• Patching: Once an area shows sign of failure, have contractor cut and patch.

Start the year off right by getting ahead with your pavement management planning… your parking lot will thank you!

Edison, NJ Milling & Paving Project

One of our last projects of 2021 was a milling & paving project in Edison, NJ. The asphalt parking lots and roadways were cracked and pavement failure was evident. Our team milled the top layer of asphalt, repaired the base layer and installed a new top course. In order to maintain the curb appeal and extend the life of the pavement, we recommended a pavement maintenance plan to the community. By following the maintenance plan (which includes: crackfilling annually and sealcoating every 2-3 years), this community won’t have to worry about milling & paving again for a long time!

We paved the main road of a community in Somerset, NJ and finished the day at over 1,400 tons of asphalt! This community has been diligent with their maintenance and has been continuing to improve their roadways for residents by budgeting to pave a few roads each year. By keeping up with paving, patching, sealcoating and crackfilling, they never have to worry about the safety of their residents because their roadways are always in good condition!

“From what we get, we can make a living; what we give, however, makes a life.” – Arthur Ashe

Eosso Brother’s has been paving the way and sealing relationships for over twenty years. Making connections with customers is something they value, and giving back to their community is something they strive to do. This week, Eosso’s crew worked at the St. Patrick’s Pro-Cathedral in Newark, NJ. The crew completed various repair work in the parking lot as well as applied a fresh coat of sealcoat and linestriping to give the church’s parking lot a face lift, creating a beautiful, safe space for its’ visitors.  

After working closely with the parish manager, Eosso learned about all the hard work and dedication the church puts into Saint John’s Soup Kitchen, located nearby. St. John’s is a well-known soup kitchen, and has been feeding the hungry of Newark, New Jersey for over 30 years. St. John’s also offers several other services in addition to their food pantry, including a women and children’s center and medical services. Reflecting on their desire to help the community, the Eosso team felt obligated to do their part and donate to the Feed the Hungry program at the soup kitchen. Click here to visit St. John’s website to learn more about how you can give back too!

Pavement cracks.  It happens and it can’t be avoided.  You can, however, avoid costly repairs and premature pavement deterioration by fixing cracks and other minor problems as they occur.  By now you probably know the basics, but here is a quick overview!

Mother Nature is quite powerful; the extreme polarities of weather take their toll on all pavement.  Water is one of the biggest direct factors in pavement deterioration.  When water gets into the pavement subgrade, during winter months or other extremely cold periods, it freezes, expands and causes pavement to crack.  When left unrepaired, water also causes the subgrade base to become unstable and prematurely deteriorate beyond repair.

So how does water get inside pavement in the first place?  Overall deterioration due to road salts, heavy trucks, oil spots and sunlight are major factors.  While water will directly cause cracks, the other factors are what allow water to penetrate through the surface layer in the first place.  Sunlight dries out the tar in pavement, allowing small areas for water to seep through.  Other forms of damage allow water to get in and cause damage.  See how this all works?  This is why routine crack filling and sealcoating of pavement keeps it in the best possible condition.

Let’s answer some of the most common questions asked about pavement cracks:

1. When should pavement be crack filled? Crack filling should be done throughout the life of your pavement and at least once per year to keep your pavement in its best possible condition.
2. What time of year should a parking lot or other pavement be crack filled? Crack filling season begins in April and ends in November. Crack filling can be completed in the winter months as long as it is dry. It is best to crack fill going into the winter months when the cracks in asphalt are as wide as possible. In the colder months cracks expand and in the summer months, cracks contract.
3. How often should pavement be crack filled? Since this is part of routine maintenance, it can be done as often as needed but should ideally be done at least once per year.
4. Can all types of cracks be filled? No.  Only straight line cracks should be filled.  Alligator cracks cannot be filled.
5. Why can’t alligator cracks be filled? When alligator crack areas appear in a parking lot it means that water has penetrated the subgrade layer and that pavement can no longer support the weight of the traffic. It’s a sign of extreme pavement deterioration that requires complete pavement reconstruction to fix.
6. How long does it take the crack filling material to dry? The crack filling material is applied at 300° F but cools to the touch in minutes.  Black silica sand is broadcasted over fresh crack filler to prevent tracking.
7. Will the crack filling material track into my buildings? It can if it is walked on prior to drying.  We use black silica sand over the fresh crack filler to help prevent tracking, but any pavement area being repaired should be made off-limits before any repair work is started.  During hot months crack filler softens. The black silica sand will also help at this stage to prevent tracking.
8. Will sealcoat material stick to crack sealing material? Yes, it will.  The two materials will bond but since the crack sealing material is designed to expand and contract through a wide temperature range, sealcoat can chip away from the crack sealant.  There is a color difference between the two materials, so you can tell if a crack filled area needs to have another layer of sealcoat applied.
9. We had our pavement crack filled and some of the cracks re-opened? This happens due to the freeze-thaw cycles in winter when greater expansion and contraction of pavement is occurring. Cracks may re-open due to excessive expansion and contraction.  The filler is designed to adjust to moderate temperature fluctuations, but it will not always work during extreme weather conditions.  This is why crack filling is a yearly maintenance procedure.
10. How is crack filler applied and how does it work? Crack filler is applied hot (about 300° F) and is squeegeed tightly into crack. When crack filler cools off it expands. It’s designed to be flexible and moves with changes in temperature as pavement expands and contracts.
11. Can pavement that has cracks be resurfaced or will it require complete reconstruction?  Linear cracks in pavement are fine for resurfacing and do not require complete subgrade reconstruction.  We use a paving fabric and sealant under the new asphalt overlay which keeps cracks from causing any problems.  If pavement has alligator cracks, it will need to be completely reconstructed.
12. Does sealcoat hide cracks and crack filler, making pavement look like new?  No, it does not.  You will see crack filler through sealcoat, as the crack filler is designed to expand and contract with temperature changes.  Pavement takes on a dark, vibrant color after sealcoating, but you will still see repaired crack areas through the sealcoat.
13. What is the best thing I can do to prevent cracks in my pavement?  Two things: commit to yearly pavement inspection and maintenance to fix minor cracks and problems before they turn into bigger problems.  Crack filling and sealcoating is the best way to prevent more cracks from forming in pavement.  Second, be diligent about inspecting your pavement so you find small cracks before they turn into bigger ones.

Have any other questions?  Feel free to contact us directly.  Happy crack exploring!

If you manage a residential community or a business you will undoubtedly encounter oils spots on your pavement.  You may even encounter them in your own driveway!  An “oil spot” can come from motor oil, antifreeze or even kitchen oils that have absorbed into pavement.  Here is some good news for you: if you find an oil spot early, you can greatly minimize its damage to your pavement.  Yes, oil spots can and will damage pavement if not removed, leading to the need of a patch.

Here is a step-by-step guide to follow once you notice an oil spot on your pavement:

1. If you find the oil spot within the first three days, try this: combine warm water and dish detergent in a bucket and invest in a soft, durable broom.  Gently use the broom to brush the detergent water over the oil spot, scrubbing gently.  Rinse the detergent away with clean water and allow the spot to dry.
2. If you find the spot after its been there more than 3 or 4 days, sprinkle kitty litter or speedy dry on the oil spot and gently scrub with a soft broom.  Sweep away the kitty litter then wash and rinse as outlined in the step above.
3. Once the spot is clean and dry, take a screwdriver and try to penetrate through the pavement where the spot was (or in some cases still is).  If the screwdriver penetrates the pavement, you’ll definitely need a patch to keep it from further deteriorating and leading to more widespread cracking and damage.
4. If the screwdriver does not penetrate, you’re in luck.  You’ll most likely just need to have an oil spot primer applied followed by a layer of sealcoat.   Oil spot primer works 75% of the time to allow sealcoat to adhere to a spot.  If the sealcoat won’t adhere, you will need to have the spot patched.

It’s important to note that any spot will require a layer of sealcoat, but not all will require patching.  If you catch the problem quickly enough, you can minimize further damage and save money on repairing your pavement.

Why Customer Education Works – An Empowerment-Based Approach to Effective Leadership

Let’s talk about education and why it works.  One factor that sets Eosso Brothers Paving apart from other competitors is our commitment to customer and community education.  We believe it is important to educate people from start to finish and beyond regarding proper pavement maintenance and here are a few reasons why:

Client Trust and Lasting Relationships

Education is part of our commitment to integrity and quality workmanship.  By educating our customers on exactly what they need and don’t need, we have been able to build solid client trust, confidence and long-lasting relationships.  In fact, our very first customer is still a customer for these exact reasons!  Perhaps this is obvious, but it’s important none-the-less: people don’t want to spend money on something they don’t have confidence in and they won’t have confidence in your brand unless you make them feel good about it.

Pavement is not a topic most people are well-versed on, yet it is both a necessity and a huge expense for any residential community or business.  Spending a lot of money on something you don’t understand, especially when it is a necessity and not just a want, is almost always a recipe for disaster.  A thorough education process with clear, direct communication helps us build client comfort and trust while preventing misunderstandings.  The education process helps customers to feel great about their decision.

Leadership-Based Strategy of Empowerment

This is where the wheat is separated from the chafe and a business’ underlying intentions meet the light of day.  Let’s be direct: leaders lead, guide and educate from a position of authenticity and passion for their work while charlatans make money promoting fear based tactics, leaving customers in the dark.  The underlying motivation of an authentic leader is to empower and educate other people, not make them feel afraid or helpless.  How can you be empowered and able to make responsible decisions about your pavement if you have no idea what the process entails?  If you are not empowered, how can you feel good about anything?

We are passionate about our work and want you to feel great about it and your decision to work with us.  We have found this strategy of empowerment through education leads to us not only retaining long-term customers, but also brings us new fully-engaged clients through referrals.  Word of mouth is by far the most effective advertising there is and is also a great compliment of someone’s work!  People don’t lie to their friends: what someone says about your business will definitely be based on both your work and how you made them feel during the process.

Our leadership and passion for our work extends beyond educating our customers: we also educate and train industry professionals and make time to teach and speak at industry events.  You can even find industry magazine articles written by Eosso Brothers.

Feeling Good Leads to Making Good Decisions

Everything comes back to feeling good in one way or another.  The better you feel about something, the better you’ll take care of it.  This can relate to anything in life.  We educate our customers so you can feel good about our work.  If you feel you’ve gotten an awesome product, you’ll undoubtedly want to take care of it.  Ongoing routine maintenance is key to making pavement last, so the better you feel about your investment, the more responsible decisions you’ll make long-term in its care.  The last thing we want is to be back at your property in 8 years completely redoing your pavement when it could have easily lasted two to three times as long.

Whatever your questions, we’ll do our best to answer them and help you feel empowered through the process.

If you are considering new pavement, you undoubtedly have a lot of questions.  What is reconstruction?  What is an overlay?  How do I know what I need and how much can I expect to pay?

These are all excellent questions.  Having the right answers can help you make informed, empowered decisions regarding you pavement.  Let’s take a look at some of the most common questions asked.

1. What is resurfacing and what is reconstruction?  Pavement resurfacing (also known as an overlay, asphalt overlay or pavement overlay) is the process of installing a new layer of asphalt over the existing pavement.  This new layer is generally 1.5 – 2 inch in depth.  Pavement reconstruction is the process of installing both the subgrade asphalt layer as well as the top pavement overlay layer.

2. When should a parking lot or driveway be resurfaced? When the surface has become heavily oxidized but the base (also known as subgrade) remains in stable condition.  The condition of the subgrade can be tested through core-testing when there is any concern or question of what shape it is in.

3. When should pavement be reconstructed?  When there is extensive damage or alligator cracks, it is more effective and cost-efficient to completely reconstruct than to do an overlay.

4. How long should newly resurfaced pavement last? That depends on many factors as no two paving projects are identical.  Factors that determine pavement lifespan include weather patterns, the harshness of winter (freeze-thaw cycles), how many heavy trucks use the pavement in question, the thickness of the new asphalt layer, the exact condition of the subgrade prior to resurfacing and how well the new surface is taken care of through routine maintenance.  An average pavement overlay lifespan can be from 8-15 years, depending on the above factors.
5. How long should completely reconstructed pavement last?  This again is dependent on many factors as outlines above for resurfacing.  On average, however, with proper routine maintenance a newly reconstructed parking lot or road can last from 15-25 years.
6. How long before traffic is permitted on a newly resurfaced lot? At least a day.  Rubber tire traffic will not damage new asphalt but care should be taken to avoid sharp turns, such as turning the wheels on an unmoving vehicle.
7. Why is edge milling prior to resurfacing important? Proper drainage conditions are extremely important to consider when resurfacing your pavement.  How well does your parking lot drain now?  How will this be affected by a new layer of asphalt?  As a general rule an asphalt parking lot should have a minimum slope of 1% for water to drain properly. This translates to roughly 1″ of fall for every 10 feet of pavement.This is why edge milling is important: by milling the edges of existing asphalt below the level of adjacent concrete, the new asphalt can be installed at the same level as the concrete, preventing water from becoming trapped between the asphalt and concrete.  Without edge milling, the new layer of asphalt will sit one and half to two inches higher than the adjacent concrete, increasing water damage to your pavement while also causing a trip or fall hazard for people.
8. Why can’t a parking lot or driveway be resurfaced or reconstructed during the winter months? Resurfacing in cold weather leads to cold “seams” which can contribute to premature deterioration and failure. The general rule of thumb is to pave when temperatures are 50° F and rising.
9. What can we do to maintain our new pavement asphalt after completion? It is important to implement a pavement maintenance plan and start budgeting for maintenance as soon as new pavement is completed. Due to New Jersey’s freeze and thaw cycles some cracks may appear after each winter. Yearly crack filling and routine sealcoating beginning after the 2nd year will keep your pavement in the best possible condition.
10. Can you resurface over cracked pavement? Yes, sometimes.  Linear cracks (cracks that form nearly straight lines) can be filled with a  hot rubberized sealant.  We can also use paving fabric over cracks before resurfacing. Alligator cracks require much more extensive work to fix; if a small area has alligator cracking, it can be fixed prior to resurfacing.  If the entire lot has alligator cracking, complete pavement reconstruction (not just resurfacing) is probably needed.
11. What happens to utility valves (manholes, water and gas boxes)? We install 2” cast iron risers to make sure utility valves are even with new overlay.
12. How thick is a pavement overlay? Many engineers specify between 1.5 – 2 inches thick: Eosso Brothers experience has shown that for New Jersey pavement needs, 1.5 inches is too thin.  We recommend installing pavement 2 – 2.5 inches thick, compacted to 2 inches, for the best results.
13. We called 3 contractors for estimates and all the estimates are different: why is this? When you or your community is ready for pavement work, it is important to have specifications drawn up from either an Engineering firm or a reputable paving contractor. Have all contractors bid apples to apples: quotes can vary greatly if your contractors are not bidding on the same work specifications.  This is why it is important to educate yourself about the process (and why Eosso Brothers goes the extra mile in community education and planning); so you can make the most informed decision possible about your needs.
14. Do I really need to completely reconstruct my parking lot or can I just overlay it? A resurface will only be as good as the underlying asphalt core surface. If 25-35% or more of the total parking lot area is in need of substantial removal due to subgrade or other problems, it is generally more economical, and more effective, to completely reconstruct the parking lot.
15. What should I look at yearly for maintenance? Have your catch basins, retention basins and drains inspected and cleaned yearly.  Have cracks filled once a year.  These two simple yearly maintenance procedures can greatly extend the life of your pavement.
16. How will you go about paving our community if there is not a lot of parking? Eosso Brothers Paving creates a detailed color mapping system for each project that explains work being completed daily and where cars need to park. It is important for the manager to have a notice distributed to the community 1 month prior to start of work explaining tentative work dates. When parking is extremely limited, paving can be done over multiple days so as to have adequate parking available for everyone.
17. Our reserve study is not in line with our estimates, why is that? Since September 11, 2001 petroleum prices have increased substantially. Petroleum is in asphalt and diesel fuel is used in all of our trucks. Have your engineer keep an eye on yearly costs and revise your reserve study as needed; this is an important part of your overall pavement management plan.
18. What can I expect to pay for my paving project?  This depends on your individual project’s needs including size and scope of work.  Contact us directly for a customized quote.

If you have any other questions, feel free to contact us directly.  Knowledge is power!