I live in a new townhouse community in Myrtle Beach, SC, where we have 256 units and the roads were paved about 18 months ago. My question is, do we need to seal driveway surfaces now, as the pavers who do this work say we should? The cost is over $20,000. Also, when I lived in New Jersey, the company that repaved my 20-year-old blacktop driveway said not to sealcoat (and reminded me that public road crews don’t even do this to shared city streets).
Our Answer
It’s very unlikely that well-made, driveway sealing is needed this early on. Do a little investigating by making an appointment with the township’s engineer (who would’ve had to approve your community’s paving plan in the first place) and see what they think of the sealcoating proposal you’ve received. This’ll also give you the opportunity to dig into plans for the overall site, and determine any particular areas where eventual maintenance attention may be required. In addition to determining the necessity of driveway sealing, you’ll also be able to find out if there are any local restrictions regarding particular driveway sealing products. Sealcing a driveway typically lasts from two to eight years, depending on climate and surface use.
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