Better Roads Digital Magazine
Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/85910
Applications&Innovations Mix It and Stick It Blend the right patch; make sure it stays o, how do you mix up the best pothole repair sauce? "We blend the mix for different seasons and geo- graphic locations," says Towner Magill, senior sales man- ager with supplier QPR, who has a background in mix design. "We'll make the liquid blend different ways based on the climate and region for the material." Without giv- ing away "the secret sauce" blend, Magill explains that the company adds more or less softener to the mix. "We add more in the winter and less in the summer," he says. "It all depends on the ambient temperature." S The chemicals in the cold patch adhere the liquid to the aggregate. "We use a very strong anti-stripping agent that keeps water from intruding between the asphalt binder and the aggregate," preventing the water from washing the binder from the aggregate, Magill says. The material's technology doesn't require the patch to later be square-cut and laid with hot mix. But Magill still does not recommend the often-used throw-and-go technique. "We recommend that loose de- bris be swept out and then the patch material be applied in 2-inch lifts. Each lift should be compacted with a little bit of a crown on top, because as traffic rolls over it, it will con- tinue to compact and will begin to settle." Magill adds that to more quickly set up a pothole patch, play sand can be taken and sprinkled over the top of a patch about 1/4-inch thick, and then continue the compac- tion with anything from an 8-pound hand tamp to a truck tire run back and forth over the patch. Magill says that while there is a perception that pothole patches are temporary, "a good, high-performance cold patch put in the right way can be a permanent repair." Making sure a pothole patch stays put can be easy as blasting a spray can. Tom Donnelly, Midwest regional sales manager of Trans- po, says his company's Bondade spray promotes adhesion. "You just sweep out the hole, spray the material and patch the hole," Donnelly says. Budget-strapped agencies and municipal public works departments are using the patching aid to increase the ef- fectiveness of potholes that are patched with non-premium patch mixes, he says. "It could still enhance a premium patch mix, "Donnelly notes, "but for a community that might not have big budgets and that has to buy inexpen- sive patch materials, this will help the material stay put." Booth # 511 Write 176 on Reader Service Card Cimline_BR0212pg31.indd 1 Better Roads February 2012 31 1/21/12 10:15 AM