Driveway Sealing Deals
One on the most common questions about driveway sealing is “when is the best time to seal your driveway” I get that on all the time. Some companies in my area recently have recommend that you wait till about mid summer, which I don’t agree with.
Spring is by far the best time for driveway sealing with late May to mid June being the optimal days. They usually meet all the requirements: Tempurature at least 15 degrees, and mutiple days in a row with no rain.
Since I own a driveway sealing website my friends and family assume that I seal my own driveway. The truth is that I pay to have my driveway sealed. Not because I don’t know how to, I don’t do it because it is a pain in the butt to do it yourself and can be expensive.
I have a smaller driveway so it really doesn’t make sense to spend the money to buy the tools required to seal it my self.
I just had my driveway sealed 2 days ago not by a big company but by a small local 2 person business. I took my own advice and paid after the job was done, asked what kind of sealant they were using and where they purchased it. I also inspected a few other jobs that they did on our street. NEVER pay before the job is done.
I had an estimate for $90 from the most popular driveway sealing company in the area, that was a bit too high in my opinion and they were not flexible on the price at all. Huge mistake.
The smaller guys that ended up doing the job did it for $50 using the exact same material and technique. I am extremely pleased with the results. The driveway looks great and cost maybe $10 more than if I tried to do it myself.
My point to all this is that there are deals to be had if you are looking to get your driveway sealed. Now is the perfect time to have it done and the prices that these companies quote you are not set in stone. Get multiple quotes and don’t rush into having your driveway sealed.
Good Luck
Read MoreConcrete Driveway Cost
Are you looking for an alternative to the traditional asphalt driveway?
Maybe you just aren’t ready to go green and start your own green driveway. A great alternative to these is the concrete driveway.
Concrete driveways look great and can last a very long time. But what about the cost?
Concrete Driveway Cost
Right off the bat you can expect to pay more for a concrete driveway than you will for an asphalt one so as long as you know that going in you’ll be less shocked.
In recent years the price of concrete has increased dramatically and as such builders and contractors are passing those costs on to the buyer. On average you can expect to pay about $7 to $9 per square foot to have a professional concrete driveway poured. That is up about $1 a sq foot from a few years ago. It might not sound like a lot but if your driveway is huge that can add up quickly.
What Do You Get For Your Money
Lets take a look at a typical single car driveway that measures 30 feet by 10 feet for a total of 300 square feet. On average you will spend $2500 to have it poured. Obviously the bigger the driveway the more it will cost.
This includes the gravel base the concrete pouring and usually any clean up. You will need to check with your contractor to see how much they charge for tearing up your old driveway and preparing the site for the new concrete one. This can vary widely from state to state and contractor to contractor.
But what if you want stamped concrete or different colors and texture effects? Obviously that will cost a bit more. Up to $15 a square foot more. Colored concrete is about $1-2 per square foot but it’s the stamping and texture effect costs that add up.
Is A Concrete Driveway Worth The Cost?
Well take a look at these images and decide for yourself. Also keep in mind that a properly sealed and maintained concrete driveway can add thousands of dollars to the value of your home.
Grass Driveways
More and more people are looking for alternatitives to the standard Asphalt driveway. I often get asked about grass driveways, how to install them and if they are a good investment.
A grass driveway is basically a lawn where the traditional blacktop driveway would go. They are created using plastic lattice work that is then filled with soil and seed. This grows until the plastic framework is hidden and you are left with a beautiful looking grass driveway.
Benefits of A Grass Driveway
Grass driveways have a few major benefits one being that they reduce the amount of water that runs into the sewer drains, which in turn reduces the amount of pollutants that enter our lakes and rivers.
A blacktop asphalt driveway tends to absorb heat from the sun and then it radiates that heat throughout the day. Resulting in the area around your driveway/walkway to be a few degrees hotter. When every driveway in your neighbourhood does this it makes your whole neighbourhood hotter than it should/could be.
A grass driveway soaks up the suns rays and uses it, much less heat gets released back into the area around it reducing the average temperature around the outside of your home.
Another benefit to owning a grass driveway is that there is no need to have it sealed with harsh chemicals every year.
Drawbacks of Having a Grass Driveway
Unfortunately at the time of me writing this there are quite a few disadvantages of having a grass driveway installed. The first is cost. A grass driveway including the framework, soil, seeds and labour can cost up to 5 X the cost of a traditional asphalt driveway.
Next is the maintenance, like a normal lawn you are going to need to cut, water and weed the grass on a regular basis.
Most suppliers and contractors that install these grass driveways recommend that you do not park your vehicle on the turf for many days at a time. Since the car will be blocking the sun and rain your grass will start to turn yellow and eventually die. They also recommend that you not drive in and out of your driveway more than 4-5 times a day.
Finally there is the issue of snow/ice removal in the winter time. The product manufactures say that you can snow blow and shovel a grass driveway just as you would an asphalt driveway. I some how doubt that you will get the same results without damaging the grass underneath.
*Note – Some cities and states do not allow grass driveways to be built in residential areas. Call your local town office to find out if they are permitted in your area.
Is Green The Way To Go?
I think that if you can afford to have a grass driveway installed and you don’t mind the extra maintenance then green is a good option for you. It really makes a statement, just don’t park your SUV on it 
Asphalt Driveway Sealing Scams
With Spring quickly approching the number of homeowners that will be scammed by fake driveway sealing companies this year will be huge.
As a former driveway sealer I know about some of the scams that these con artists like to pull. I got to hear all about them when I went door to door asking people if they would like their driveways sealed.
Most slammed the door in my face while others took the time to tell me how the last person that came around offering to seal their driveway took their money and never finished the job. As you can imagine I had to work extra hard to win their business.
There are essentially 2 kinds of scams that the fraudulent driveway sealers would use.
Up Front Payment Scam
When someone offers to seal your driveway they usually don’t have the equipment with them at that moment. Some of the material required is heavy and not that easy to bring to every house on a street. So if you agree to have your driveway sealed, they are going to make an appointment with you. At that time they will ask for the money right away, usually cash is requested and they might offer a cash discount if you do. (Most professional sealers will not offer cash discounts, only mulitple driveway discounts or something like that)
Just as you might suspect, the “Driveway Sealer” doesn’t show up and you are out the cash.
Motor Oil Sealant
This one is less common but is used in a lot of residential areas. Basically the person or company sealing your driveway uses used motor oil instead of the proper professional grade sealant. This is applied either using a sprayer or rolled on and looks pretty good at first. Until it rains at least, then most of it washes away. Leaving your driveway in a mess with patchy areas and oil stains everywhere. It can even stain your sidewalk and curbs.
Protecting Against Driveway Scams
Your best defense against these types of scams is to stick with a repuitable company that is well trusted. In my area The Driveway Guys are one such company that has earned a great reputation by doing a quality job at a resonable price. You can visit them at Drivewayguys.ca
If you insist on having your driveway sealed by a smaller or lesser known sealer make sure that you do not pay until the job is complete and always pay by cheque. It is at least somewhat traceable if you do get ripped off.
Read MoreDriveway Sealing Videos
It’s one thing to read about how to seal your driveway, weather you do it yourself or have it done professionally, and another entiretly to watch it being done.
Here are a few good driveway sealing videos that I found. Some are done by businesses that specialize in sealing driveways and others are from just your average “Do it yourselfer”.
Home Depot Project of the month with Danny Lipford – Great Video
Funny and Informative Driveway Sealing Video
Watching this driveway sealing video will make you want to hire a professional sealing company.
Some Driveway Sealing Companies us the spray method as seen here.
Here is a nice video demonstration Smart Seal Products, shows how to clean and seal your Asphalt driveway and other kinds of driveway surfaces. Good video, bad music
Hopefully those videos will give you some more insight as to what is required to seal your driveway and also how to seal your driveway.
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