Commercial Asphalt Sealant VS. Retail Asphalt Sealant

Summer in Truckee has an average high temperature of 75° with the winters averaging a low of 20°, which means that your driveway withstands an average temperature change of 55° and that is just the average without factoring in the highest, high versus the lowest, low. 

Drastic changes in temperatures like this can cause the asphalt on your driveway to contract and build tension, which then leads to an increased chance of corrosion and cracking.

This is why we suggest you work with Elements on maintaining your driveway as we are one of the only contractors in the Truckee/Tahoe area to use a product called SteelGuard 60, which is the most protective, “green” alternative, commercially available seal coating products.

But why choose a commercial asphalt sealant over a store-bought asphalt sealant? We spoke with the crew over at RaynGuard about this product and here are some key points to consider.

Designed For The Local Environment

SteelGuard mix design includes a refined blend of asphalts and aggregates that are specially selected based on our local conditions. S/G has been designed to meet challenging environmental conditions such as up in the high Sierras. Bucketed material does not cater to this. The same material is made for the deserts of Nevada/Arizona as it is for the Tahoe area. This “blanketed” approach means their coating could be susceptible to harsh elements.

High-Performance Asphalt

Raynguard carefully selects their asphalts and requires their vendors to meet certain specifications that are over and beyond a normal sealcoat manufacturer. This ensures we provide the best-performing sealcoat in the industry. By comparison, these large hardware store buckets often seek out the cheapest asphalt to meet profit margins. In addition, asphalt loadings are kept low in bucketed material. Again, to protect the bottom line.

Wear Abrasion

S/G contains 4.5 pounds of crushed aggregate per gallon. Store-bought, bucketed material cannot have this level of aggregate content. This is primarily due to suspension issues while the material sits in the pail. Less aggregate means less wear abrasion(traction).

Sand vs Aggregate

Similar to wear abrasion above, S/G contains angular aggregate to assist in friction and wear abrasion. It also allows our material to “nest” amongst the underlying asphalt surface. Over-the-counter materials often contain sand. Sand is round and is susceptible to “rolling out” after time or under tire pressure.

Large “Filler” Content

Store-bought pails often contain large amounts of fillers such as clays. These clays offer no improvement in performance. Rather they assist in keeping the product suspended in the pail for an extended period of time.

Solids Content

Steelguard 60 has a solids content of ~60%. In contrast, many hardware store products are below 50%. This means there is less coating left on the pavement after dry time.

Consistency

Bucketed material vendors may source the same raw material from many different vendors. There is no guarantee that one pail will be exactly the same as the last. Subtle differences in asphalt, aggregate, ink, or clay sources can affect the characteristics and most importantly the color of a coating. I would make sure that you are using the same lot# of pails if doing say a driveway.

Biocide or Preservative

All bucketed (store-bought) material contains biocides to “preserve” the material for an extended period of time. While low on loading, they have the potential to be an irritant if exposed to skin. We would advise homeowners to wear adequate protective gear when applying. Something else to consider.