Asphalt Overlays & Resurfacing in Ames, IA

Asphalt overlays and resurfacing put a fresh layer of hot-mix asphalt, usually 1.5 to 2 inches, over an existing surface. Done on the right driveway or lot, it gives you a new-looking, watertight surface for less than tearing out and rebuilding. HomeGuide notes that an overlay typically saves 20 to 30 percent compared with full replacement and lists resurfacing at about $3 to $7 per square foot. Done on the wrong one, it is wasted money, because cracks in a failed base reflect straight up through the new layer.

Good candidates

• Surface is gray, rough or raveling, with loose stone on top
• Cracks are mostly straight and separate, not linked in a web
• The driveway or lot is still flat and does not move under a car
• Water drains off; it does not pond in the same low spot every rain

Poor candidates

• Alligator cracking across large areas
• Sunken sections or frost heaves
• Edges broken away into the lawn
• A surface already built up by earlier overlays to the height of the garage slab

Preparing the old surface

An overlay is only as good as what it is bonded to. Before paving we cut out and rebuild any small areas where the base has failed, fill and seal cracks, clean the surface and spray a tack coat so the new layer sticks. Where the new surface meets the garage slab, a sidewalk or the approach, we mill or saw a notch so the overlay tapers in flush instead of leaving a lip that catches snow shovels and plow blades.

Height and drainage

Each overlay raises the surface. On an older Ames driveway that has been overlaid once or twice already, there may not be room for another layer without water running toward the garage door or the surface sitting above the sidewalk. If the grade will not work, we say so and price a removal instead.

Permits

The City of Ames treats routine maintenance and partial repairs as exempt from its driveway permit, while replacement or reconstruction needs one. If an overlay project grows into replacing the driveway or the approach, the $100 permit and the concrete approach requirement apply, and we tell you before the work is scheduled.

Timing

A thin overlay loses heat faster than a thick base course, so it needs warm ground and calm weather to compact. In the Ames area that means late spring through early fall. A new overlay should cure for a few months before its first sealcoat.