Spring Clean Your Driveway With These 5 Steps

Spring has arrived, and this is the time of the year when homeowners are focused on their spring cleaning checklists. While you already know to clean the inside of your home, many people tend to neglect the outside. One often-forgotten area that needs a little bit of maintenance every year is your driveway.

Take an hour to give your asphalt driveway some much-needed TLC with this spring cleaning checklist:

1. Sweep debris away. Use a push broom to sweep away any loose debris such as leaves, dirt, and lawn clippings.


2. Wash it off. Even after sweeping with a push broom, dirt and other small particles could still be hiding in the crevices of your driveway. Normally, a garden hose with a high pressure nozzle attachment should take care of it. If not, you can use a power washer to blast the debris away, but you should exercise some caution and not get too close to the pavement with the spray tip. This can cause damage to the surface.


3. Scrub away the stains. If you've got any oil marks on your driveway, take this time to get rid of them. Not only are they unsightly, but oil stains can deteriorate the binding agent in your driveway. To remove them, apply a generous amount of cleaning agent (baking soda, dish soap, or powdered laundry detergent) to the stain and allow it to sit for five minutes. Mix warm water and more cleaning agent in a bucket, and use this solution to scrub the stain with a stiff-bristled brush. Once the stain is completely gone, use a hose to wash away the excess cleaning solution.


4. Patch any potholes. Potholes in your driveway are primarily formed during the winter months. Water from melting snow penetrates the surface of the asphalt, where it then freezes and expands, creating small cracks in your driveway which eventually grow into pot holes. Click here for step-by-step crack patching instructions for your asphalt driveway.


5. Apply seal coat. Asphalt Seal Coat should be applied to provide a uniformed surface color and help protect from future oil and gas spills. You can do this yourself, or hire a professional contractor to do it for you.

If your driveway is riddled with cracks and potholes, it may be time to consider surface maintenance (patching and seal coat), resurfacing, or even a complete repaving. Connecticut homeowners have turned to Roccie's Asphalt Paving for all of their paving needs since 1956. We have provided professional asphalt paving and masonry services to thousands of homes in Fairfield County, Connecticut and Westchester County, New York.

Call us today for a free estimate at 888-88-ROCCIES.

How to Clean Your Asphalt Driveway

Your asphalt driveway is one of the first things that your guests and neighbors see when they pass your house, so it is important to keep it clean in order to leave a good impression. Cleaning your asphalt driveway is a relatively quick process, and since it requires products that you probably already have around the house, it doesn't need to be expensive.

Clean your asphalt driveway every month or two using this five-step process:

1. Sweep away loose debris. Using a push broom, sweep away leaves, grass clippings, dirt, and any other debris which is sitting on top of your driveway.
2. Hose down the surface. Use your garden hose to cover your entire driveway with a stream of water. This will help remove residue which has made its way into the small crevices in your driveway and make removing stains easier.
3. Pretreat oil stains and tire marks. You can use baking soda, dish detergent (such as Dawn), or powdered laundry detergent to remove unsightly marks from your driveway. Whatever your cleaning agent of choice, pour a generous amount onto the blemish and allow it to soak in for a few minutes.
4. Scrub the stain away. Mix warm water and more cleaning product in a large bucket. Using a stiff-bristled hand brush, work the cleaning solution into the asphalt. Scrub using up-and-down, left-to-right, and circular motions until the stain is removed.
5. Rinse your driveway. After scrubbing your driveway, the only thing left to do is rinse it off. Once again, grab your garden hose and use a high-pressure stream of water to completely remove the cleaning product from your driveway.

If your driveway is covered in tarnishes, cracks, and potholes, the best way to enhance its appearance is with a complete repaving. New York and Connecticut homeowners can depend on Roccie's Asphalt to provide a high-quality paving at a reasonable rate. From asphalt driveways to stone masonry, we can do it all! See for yourself by checking out our gallery, or call us for a free quote at 1-888-88-ROCCIES.