What to Expect During an Ocala Asphalt Milling Project; Tips from an Ocala Asphalt Paving Company

08 Oct What to Expect During an Ocala Asphalt Milling Project; Tips from an Ocala Asphalt Paving Company

The asphalt milling process is an essential part of the road construction cycle. It is used to remove a top, worn-down surface before adding new asphalt. It is also used to remove ruts or increase the surface friction of a slightly worn-out pavement that is still usable.

Milling is performed by a machine known as a cold planer, which removes asphalt from the road using a rotating mandrel. The mandrel has hundreds of teeth that erode the asphalt surface. As the asphalt is removed, it is fed by a conveyor into a semi-trailer or dump truck in most cases, but it can also be discarded on the road to be removed at a later date. The mandrel is cooled with a water spray system, which is also used for dust management.

The Purpose of Asphalt Milling in Ocala

Milling is generally used to remove distresses from an asphalt surface. This helps provide a better driving experience, and it improves the life of the installation. The issues that can be addressed through the milling process include:

• Raveling: this is the issue where the aggregate becomes separated from the binder, causing the asphalt surface to become loose.
• Bleeding: an issue where the asphalt binder comes up to the surface.
• Rutting: a type of distress where low spots are formed in the pavement, usually along the wheel path of the vehicles using the road.
• Shoving: this distress is formed transversally to the direction in which traffic occurs, and it has a washboard appearance.
• Distresses which reduce ride quality: any distress that affects the quality of the ride (such as depressions, sags, bumps, or swells) falls into this category.
• Accident Damage: some damage that occurs from fires or accidents can be addressed with milling.

The Benefits of Asphalt Milling

Besides the benefits that come from removing various imperfections in the pavement—such as restored cross-section and longitudinal profile, restored drainage flow, improved skid control, and restored curb-reveal—milling also helps achieve several business objectives. To start, milling is time efficient. Traffic flow is minimally interrupted, as most asphalt milling projects can be performed in a way that maintains traffic flow. On top of that, the surface is immediately usable after the milling process.

The process is also ecologically friendly, and it provides valuable recycled asphalt pavement through the milling of the surface. This recycled material can be used as an aggregate when creating new asphalt, which decreases the overall cost of the process. Milling also does not generate smoke or flames, and it only generates a small amount of dust that can be easily contained. When it all comes together, you have a rapid process that does not hold up traffic, is eco-friendly, provides recyclable material, and is much more cost efficient than outright reconstruction.

Are You Interested in Asphalt Paving or Asphalt Milling in Ocala?

Milling can be a project of its own, or it can be part of a bigger initiative to reconstruct an asphalt installation. When used as its own project to remove imperfections in the road, milling is a very cost-effective way to restore the asphalt pavement. When it’s used as part of a bigger reconstruction project, milling saves you money by removing the need to completely replace the entire asphalt installation.

If you would like to know more about asphalt milling in Ocala, and the options you have when it comes to asphalt repairs and maintenance, contact us today! We will be glad to provide you with in-depth information regarding the process, its costs, and what you can expect once the project is completed.