What Is The Best Way To Cut An Asphalt Driveway?

What Best Way Cut Asphalt Driveway

When it comes to sawing roads and asphalt, it is important that you utilise the proper tools and equipment. Compared to other surfaces such as concrete, marble, or granite, asphalt is softer, meaning that it requires a special blade to cut through it.

So how exactly should you cut asphalt? What tools are necessary to carry out this job? And what tips should you keep in mind? If you want to learn more about the best way to cut asphalt, then feel free to continue reading below to learn more.

Why You Would Need To Cut Asphalt

You may be wondering in what scenarios you would need to cut asphalt. Cutting asphalt is necessary if you plan to replace asphalt. It is also often required for asphalt repairs that need to cut away deteriorating pieces of asphalt such as filling potholes.

Blades For Cutting Asphalt 

Using the right equipment for cutting asphalt is critical. While many people might assume that using a tool such as, say, a jackhammer might be suitable, this is actually quite wrong. This is because equipment like a jackhammer can potentially weaken the surrounding asphalt.

Rather, an asphalt cutting blade should be utilised in order to produce the best results. More specifically, asphalt requires a diamond blade with a hard bond especially since asphalt is typically softer than other surfaces. 

When you use a diamond asphalt cutting blade, the exposed edge will wear away the more it cuts through the asphalt. This is conducive for sustained cutting since the wear on the blade can expose new layers of grit. 

You may find asphalt cutting blades in both wet and dry varieties. Dry blades have a softer bond than wet blades, and wet blades require water in order to cool and lubricate a cut while cutting.

What Best Way Cut Asphalt Driveway

Steps For Cutting Asphalt

Once you have secured the proper cutting equipment, you can start the asphalt cutting process. Whether you plan to fix a pothole or remove a damaged section, here are the steps for cutting asphalt:

Step #1: Clean Up The Area

Before cutting asphalt, it is important that your working area is clear of all debris. This is so that your saw does not catch pebbles, rocks, or other debris that can pose safety hazards. Remember that this is a crucial step, so be sure to conduct it thoroughly!

Step #2: Mark Out The Cutting Lines

When cutting asphalt, don’t just cut the damaged area. Make sure to slightly widen your cutting zone so that you have good, solid edges. Squaring up the edges can help for a more long-lasting repair compared to a round patch.

Once you have figured out where you want to cut, mark it out with a chalk line then dent the chalk line with a screwdriver and a hammer to give the blade a path to cut along through.

Step #3: Make The Cuts

Before cutting, set your blade depth according to the paving’s thickness. To check this, you can dig at the edge of the pavement to gather how deep it is. Make your first straight cut, stop, then lift the blade to the next position of your next straight cut.

When cutting asphalt, make sure that you never turn the saw while the blade is still running. This can possibly lead to a breakage of the blade. 

Moreover, if you plan to cut to run a cable, then one straight cut path is all that is necessary. Mark, cut, lay the cable, and then crack fill.

What Best Way Cut Asphalt Driveway

Asphalt Maintenance

When it comes to asphalt maintenance, it is relatively easy. Most of the maintenance revolves around filling surface cracks and seal coating every two or three years to prevent damage in the long run. 

Unrepaired cracks, for example, are one of the biggest drivers of blacktop excavation. Cracks can result in poor foundations that will lead to asphalt replacement. They can also arise from earth movement, heavy traffic, weather, tree roots, and more. 

In situations such as cracks, it is recommended to use a crack filler. It is usually very easy to pour as it can be directly poured into fissures.

Applying a seal coat to your asphalt every two or three years can help minimise the need to perform blacktop excavation and replacement. Coal tar asphalt sealer is a great option as it has unique asphalt rejuvenation abilities. It is also environmentally friendly and prevents liquids from ruining the surface.

Summary

Cutting asphalt requires different techniques and tools that are typically required for other surfaces such as concrete or granite. As a softer material, it requires an asphalt cutting blade that can produce sustained cuts for the cutting project. 

If you need asphalt sawing performed safely and reliably, please call us at MEGASAW. We have over 20 years of experience providing quality concrete and asphalt cutting services all over Melbourne. Our experience is your guarantee!

Please call us today on 1300 920 419 or leave an inquiry.

Safety Precautions in Handling Concrete Road Sawing Tools

It is a well known fact that concrete is one of the toughest materials to work with. When it comes to cutting concrete roads, powerful tools are required to ensure that the cutting is done in the right manner. There used to be a time when people had to cut through concrete using only chisel and hammer as most of the power tools were not easily available. However, cutting concrete roads has become far easier these days as power tools can easily penetrate through concrete.

When it comes to concrete road sawing, there are a lot of concrete road sawing tools available in the market. There are basic concrete road saws that are used for cutting flat work. There are also wire saws, handheld cut-off saws as well as chain saws.

It is important to realise that a concrete road saw is a very powerful tool. Therefore, it needs to be handled in a safe manner. It may look like any other power tool to an observer. However, people who actually handled road saws understand that even a minor mistake poses a big danger to them as well as people near them.

operator and road sawing machine with complete gear

All of the saws available in the market including the road saws come with standard safety instructions. It is important for any operator to follow these instructions at all times. It is essential to ensure that the guards are always well maintained and positioned in the right manner. Also, the blades should always be tight and straight. Needless to say, you must need to use the right blade with the saw. Below are some essential precautions that you should follow to acquire optimum safety when handling road saws.

Safety from Silica Dust

One of the biggest dangers in cutting concrete is the generation of silica dust. When concrete is cut with an abrasive blade or a diamond blade, it generates very fine dusts. Some of these fine dusts contain silica dust. Silica dust is very dangerous as it is fine enough to be drawn deeply into the human lungs. If you inhale high quantity of fine silica dust, it may cause silicosis.

Silicosis is a lung disease that causes lung fibrosis and there is no known cure for this. Quite a few construction workers lose their lives every year due to silicosis. Therefore, it is important that the person who is cutting concrete on a regular basis should protect himself from silica dust. It is important to keep silica on the ground and prevent it from becoming airborne. If it is not possible to keep silica on the ground, then workers should use respirators to breathe. However, wet saws or other types of vacuum systems can prevent the silica dust from getting into the air.

Blade Safety

Blade is the most important part of a concrete road saw and also the most dangerous. Almost all of the concrete cutting saws make use of diamond blades as these cut much better than the abrasive blades and these are affordable these days. The most important thing about blades is that you need to choose the right type of blade for your particular sawing job. There are both wet and dry blades available in the market and it is essential to ensure that wet blades are used with water. Dry blades can be used with or without water.

Since concrete is a very tough material, blades can get damaged on a regular basis. It is recommended to have a careful look at the blades before you start cutting with those blades. Since these blades are rotated at a very high speed, it leads to generation of a lot of heat. It is possible that already damaged blades may eject hot steel pieces that can cause injury to the operator of the saw or anyone who is standing nearby. Therefore, it is important to check that there are no damaged segments and there are no cracks in the blade. Also, you need to get a new blade if it seems that the blade has been overheated.

Prevention of Kickback and Lock in

The term kickback is used to refer to the event when the cutting saw jumps back towards the operator. There can be many causes of kickback. Usually, it happens when the operator tries to put the blade into a cut that is already started without the blade spinning at the top speed. Therefore, it is essential to make sure that the blade in the saw is at top speed before putting the blade in an existing cut. On the other hand, lock in happens due to shifting of the work piece. Therefore, one needs to ensure that it is properly clamped to prevent any lock in.

Using Protective Equipment

It is essential to wear safety glasses while cutting concrete. Also, a respirator is required when cutting dry concrete. You also need to protect your ears and therefore, ear plugs or earmuffs should be used.

Overall, concrete road saws are very powerful tools that allow one to work efficiently. However, it is important to take safety precautions seriously to prevent any kind of unfortunate incidents while working.