“This Indecision’s Bugging Me”

THE MANY OPTIONS IN ASPHALT MAINTENANCE

Whether you are just getting into asphalt maintenance, or have been in it awhile, the sheer number of products available can make your head spin. How on Earth are you supposed to pick one? And, how do you know if it’s good? We’ve culled together a list of companies and interviewed their customers about their products to give you some options. By no means is this a comprehensive list, and you can see that some big names are missing—we would have to double the size of the magazine to include them all. But, it will give you a place to start or an idea if you are looking to try something different.

Maintenance Inc.

Maintenance Inc. has a variety of products to meet your asphalt maintenance needs, such as post-added sealer additives (FSA, Fass-Dri, and Targel), and preparation and repair products (Gator-Patch, Pothole Patch, Tack Cote, Minco Oil Spot Sealer, and others). Rec-Tech Spot surface coating as well as small tools and supplies are available at more than 350 worldwide distributors.

This 75-year-old company produces Fass-Dri, their proprietary pavement sealer additive that can dry pavement sealer in as little as 30 minutes under ideal conditions.

Mark McLeod, president of Maintenance Inc. gives seminars for his distributors throughout the United States, Canada, and Mexico, and has contributed articles to industry magazines and websites. “As far as helping new people get started in the industry, it’s what I do,” says McLeod. “We have a wide range of experienced personnel to assist our distributors with ordering the right products, and our customer service is second to none! I just helped a contractor find and buy an Elgin sweeper from my list of industry contacts. Working together always is a win-win situation. Maintenance Inc. is a service company, with a storied history, with longevity and can boast that many pavement industry manufacturer/owners in today’s market came up through Maintenance Inc. A fun place to work for sure.

“We’re a service company and it makes it a wonderful company to work for. Because of the longevity of the company, it has a storied history. Several chemists got their start here as did others in the industry.”

Steve Kluesner, owner of Eastern Iowa Asphalt Maintenance, paves everything from millions of square feet to a small driveway. He purchases the bulk of his products from Maintenance Inc. “My main additives that I use are TARGEL-PLUS and FASS-DRI PSA,” says Kluesner. “I’ve seen a great improvement in durability. The dry time is phenomenal and it improves the encapsulation and dispersion of my heavy sand load in my mix. It’s hands down better than any other additive out there. You should try it in your next load of sealer going out and listen to what your workers comment on the black color and fast dry times compared to other additives! Give it one shot and you’ll be switched over in a heart beat!”

Pitch Black

Pitch Black has been used on the west coast for more than 25 years, and now has plant locations in Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Maine, New Mexico, Nevada, and Texas. We talked to the guys at their newest plant location in Texas, Texas Star Supply, which will be up and running by the time this article hits your desk, and they are super excited about their product. Since they are a brand spanking new distributor, we didn’t have any customers to interview. However, Pitch Black has gained a reputation for its quality. They also provide samples to customers.

“We are a one stop shop for all your pavement maintenance needs,” says Jason Brown, vice president of Texas Star Supply. The company manufacturers and sells the Pitch Black sealcoat as well as traffic signs and cones, pavement tools, traffic stencil kits, crack sealer and primer, and traffic marking paint.

“Texas Star Supply’s mission is to produce the leading asphalt emulsion-based sealcoat and to be the leading provider of the best eco-friendly and installer-friendly sealcoat in Texas, while focusing on superior customer service to our customers,” says Brown.

The guys at Texas Star Supply have more than 40 years of experience in the industry as applicators. “We understand what it takes to get the job done,” says Brown. “Come visit us for product knowledge, support, and products to help complete your current or future projects.

“Pitch Black is a custom rubberized asphalt emulsion blended with select minerals, polymers, and chemicals to produce the finest product. Pitch Black is built to last—each additive was selected for its characteristics that ultimately produce a sealcoat with the deepest and longest lasting color, firmest body, and greatest durability. Performance in the field and laboratory testing confirm the superiority of Pitch Black over competitive products in the market place.”

SealMaster

With more than 65 SealMaster® Sealcoat manufacturing and distribution centers throughout North America, SealMaster’s friendly and knowledgeable staff and franchise owners can help answer your questions whether you are just getting started and need training or run into a problem that you don’t know how to solve.

The 40-year-old company manufacturers a variety of asphalt maintenance products including sealcoats, crack fillers and sealants, pothole patch, asphalt emulsions, tack coats, traffic paints, and sport resurfacing. They also have sealcoating and crack filling equipment such as squeegee machines, sprays, storage tanks, and asphalt distributors.

“Our goal is to be a one stop shop for anyone maintaining asphalt,” says Tim Stephens, franchise director for SealMaster. “A comprehensive maintenance program includes cracksealing, pothole repair, remove and replace when necessary, and sealcoating. You can’t just sealcoat over alligator cracks, you have to maintain the surface along the way. If you do striping, we have a number of tools and paint to help you do the job. If you are thinking of experimenting, then I suggest to do it on a lot that has already been striped.”

“SealMaster is our preferred manufacturer,” says Dave Rivers, director of operations for Rose Paving, a nationwide paving company. “We use all of their products nationwide as well as their small equipment. SealMaster is our preferred product because of its overall quality and their customer service. They stand behind their material. If anything is not up to par, then they take care of it. They are interested in keeping a good relationship year in and year out.”

Whether you choose one of these companies, or another one, at least you’ll be able to get the Clash’s song out of your head (now that I’ve put it there) and have some ideas as to what products others have tried and liked. But, if you are sticking with a product you don’t like just because you don’t know what to choose, then you should follow the Clash’s advice, “if you don’t want me, set me free.”

Story by Jennifer Taylor

Resources

For more information:
—Maintenance Inc, visit www.maintinc.com
—Pitch Black, visit www.gopitchblack.com
—SealMaster, visit www.sealmaster.net
—Texas Star Supply, visit www.texasstarsupply.com