GENERAL DRIVEWAY MAINTENANCE
Here's some general tips on how to maintain your driveway. For maintenance guidelines of asphalt driveways and concrete driveways, please go to each page for more specific information.
Clean your driveway regularly
Cleaning your driveway on occasion is the best measures you can take to keep it looking its best.
Actually how often you need to clean your driveway will depend on how much traffic it gets as well as the amount of pollutants in the air. Simply power washing your drive with a home pressure washer every couple of months will be enough to keep it clean.
Remove chemical spills immediately
Remove oil, gasoline, grease and other spills as soon as possible. If you do see any spills or drips clean get most of it off the surface with an absorbent product such as kitty litter, sawdust or cornmeal. After you soak up most of the spill, get rid of any residual marks by scrubbing with soap and water or one of a number of commercial concrete cleaners available from home or hardware stores.
Keep sharp objects off your driveway
Avoid the use of metal blades that might scrape or scratch the surface. Use plastic shovels or rakes instead of shovels or rakes with metal edges which will damage the surface of the driveway.
Limit the weight
The typical residential driveway isn't engineered to support heavy vehicles (like a huge moving van) and large construction equipment.
Repair any small cracks when you first notice them
Small cracks or potholes can occur due to natural settling or shifting of the ground. If they're left unrepaired, annual freezing and melting cycles will enlarge these cracks making them big enough for weeds to take root and in just a few years, you may need to resurface your entire driveway.
Reseal as needed
Sealers help preserve and protect the surface of your driveway (concrete) by preventing water from getting into the porous surface and help delay the effects of weathering. However, traffic and time will eventually wear out even the best sealer so you will need to reseal the surface to maintain that protection.Generally, you should reseal a concrete driveway every two years or so, or when the finish begins to show wear.
