By Naomi Hatch
Every paved road in the Town of Taylor will have a slurry seal coating by the end of this week, weather permitting, according to Town Engineer Stu Spaulding.
There are two reasons for the slurry seal coating, Spaulding explained. The first is that the oil stops the oxidation, which will make the road hard and contract like concrete. The second is that slurry seal fills in the alligator cracks, which form when water enters the cracks that are across the road, that cause the road to settle, which will, in turn, fill up and cause pot holes and compromise the subgrade.
“If the roads get bad enough, you have to tear out all the asphalt subgrade and tear up the road,” said Spaulding. “Fortunately, ours haven’t reached that stage yet in Taylor.
“With this preventive work we’re able to preserve our streets; without it they would deteriorate and we would have to tear up the streets.”
Information provided by American Pavement Preservation, the firm applying the slurry seal, notes that asphalt slurry is a “very economical surface treatment that prolongs the life of the asphalt by stopping erosion from water and oxidation from the sun. Timely preventative maintenance like this helps avoid extremely costly street rebuilding in the future.”
Spaulding said that in preparation for the paving project, the town had to get rid of all weeds along the streets, repair every single pothole in town and sweep each road.
“The actual process is called train of events,” said Spaulding. “The first thing that happens is the road is swept so the oil can stick to the road.”
In the second step, a special truck spreads an oil and sand mixture on the road. Then the road is rolled, if needed, and two weeks later when the volatiles have evaporated, the road is restriped.
“The engineers check several things,” said Spaulding, “including that the sand meets specifications, is well washed, fractured and meets the proper size.
“The oil mixed with it is developed for slurry seal and has acid so it can bond between the road and the oil.”
“Driving or walking on this new material before it has cured will damage the street and will stick to your shoes, be splattered up onto your car, and will track onto concrete driveways. The material is highly adhe-sive,” according to American Pavement Preservation.
Spaulding said that the road can be ready to drive on in from one to six hours; generally, it is curing in ap-proximately two hours in Taylor.
American Pavement Preservation will notify you 24 hours in advance so you have an opportunity to move a vehicle to an adjacent non-posted street prior to the scheduled time of your road repair.
The firm is also working with school bus drivers to ensure bus service.
If you have questions regarding the project, call Spaulding at (928) 606-7469.
Photo by Naomi Hatch
The Town of Taylor is putting a slurry seal coating on every paved road in town, a project that should be completed this week. American Pavement Preservation has been contracted to do the work.
