When you hire Atlanta asphalt contractors like The Surface Masters to improve your property, you should expect them to take all precautions to ensure the finished product is strong and long-lasting. That includes preparing and using subgrade.
Asphalt subgrade is the material beneath the pavement. Like a home or commercial building, asphalt needs a reliable foundation to provide decades of structural integrity.
Here’s what you need to know about subgrade preparation and what your Atlanta asphalt contractor should do.
What’s the Purpose of Asphalt Subgrade?
Your Asphalt contractor in Atlanta will use subgrade for various reasons, but its primary role is to serve as a foundation for your pavement. Soil quality can vary. Even on the same property, you might have highly compactable soil in one spot but soft sand in the next. Imagine what would happen to your pavement if an asphalt contractor laid material as-is.
It wouldn’t take long for the surface to fail. Asphalt contractors in Atlanta do subgrade preparation to provide stability and uniformity. It helps strengthen the finished surface while preventing issues like heaving, differential settling and cracking. Without it, an asphalt contractor in Atlanta wouldn’t be able to create the surface that will serve your commercial property for the next several decades.
How do Atlanta Asphalt Contractors Prepare the Subgrade?
An experienced Atlanta asphalt contractor will begin subgrade preparation by examining and testing the soil. To use subgrade properly, professionals must understand your soil’s compaction characteristics, moisture levels, stability, etc. That information guides asphalt contractors moving forward, helping them make critical decisions about manipulating the subgrade before paving.
What happens next depends on the needs of your soil. Excavation is common as your asphalt contractor in Atlanta removes unusable soil and debris. Then comes land-grading to create the appropriate slopes and establish a uniform foundation for the asphalt.
If necessary, your Atlanta asphalt contractor will stabilize the subgrade by adding materials like cement or rock aggregate. Once preparation is complete, asphalt contractors perform additional testing to ensure the subgrade is ready for pavement.
Do Atlanta Asphalt Contractors Use Subgrade to Improve the Pavement’s Load-Bearing Capacity?
A properly prepared subgrade goes beyond uniformity and stability. Asphalt contractors in Atlanta will also do what’s necessary to achieve the correct load-bearing capacity. What’s right for your project depends on the needs of your pavement. For example, asphalt contractors creating loading docks for heavy-duty freight trucks will need to achieve a higher load-bearing capacity than those laying a simple parking lot.
The subgrade directly impacts what the pavement can handle, so subgrade prep is not a task your asphalt contractor in Atlanta can ignore.
When you want things done right, go to the most trusted asphalt contractors in Atlanta, The Surface Masters. We’re an award-winning and nationally recognized asphalt contractor proudly serving commercial property owners throughout The Big A. We strive to cultivate strong relationships with clients like you. In doing so, we can meet your needs to a tee and get to the heart of what it’ll take to make your project successful while exceeding your expectations.
Let us be your go-to asphalt contractor. Our services include asphalt paving, repairs, milling, reclamation, sealcoating, crack-sealing, pavement markings and concrete curbing. We’re eager to hear from you. For your free quote, call us at (770)250-6392, email us at Info@TheSurfaceMasters.com or complete our online contact form.
