Richards Paving announced it is using infrared technology to repair potholes in parking lots and other locations following a tough winter. Richards is believed to be the only Delaware company offering the service.
“This winter has been especially brutal on our roads,” said Richard Piendak, founder and owner of Richards Paving, “Traditional methods just patch potholes which allows water to seep in the seams and open them up again the following winter or sometimes even sooner. Our infrared technology heats up the asphalt and makes the seam between the existing and new asphalt as solid as the original.”
The undamaged asphalt is heated up and melted by a large machine, which looks like a giant flat iron, making the existing surface flexible and reusable. The area is raked and if needed, filled with recycled hot asphalt to level the area. A rejuvenator formula is applied to enable the new area to bond to the existing asphalt. The entire area is then compacted and rolled.
According to Piendak, conventional methods of patching requires significant amount of machinery, material and manpower, often taking up to four hours to patch the pothole and then waiting another two hours until drivers can pass over the area. By comparison, the average time to repair a pothole using the infrared process is 15 minutes with the surface being ready for traffic in as little as 30 minutes after completion.
Infrared repair is appropriate in the approximately 75 percent of potholes that do not need a new stone base. If a new stone base is needed, excavation will be required.
Richards Paving was founded in New Castle in 1973 by Piendak, a Delaware native. In 1997, Richards Paving added an asphalt plant to its operations.
In addition to paving services, Richards Paving offers concrete services and snow removal as well as selling paving products directly to the public and to commercial paving companies. More information is available at www.richardspaving.com or 302-328-5828.
