Oakland County Landscaper Discusses Winterizing Your Driveway and Sidewalk

4 Ways To Winterize Your Driveway and Sidewalk This Fall

There’s no doubt that you spent a lot of time this summer and fall making sure your yard is safe from winter’s bone. But did you take the time to fix up your driveway and sidewalk? Often overlooked, these projects can be the simplest to fix if you catch them early. If you ignore them long enough, however, they can become the most expensive to replace. Your driveway and sidewalk need some love too, and here are some ways to give it to them.

1. Fill In the Cracks

Cracks are easy to repair, but people rarely take the time to fix them. These cracks often morph into the huge splits in your pavement that are not only ugly to look at, but require professional help to repair or remove altogether. All you need to fix these cracks is some concrete filler, a putty knife, and a stiff brush. Take the brush and clean out the crack. Apply some putty with the knife and let it stand for the recommended amount of drying time.

2. Fix the Expansion Joints In The Sidewalk

The spaces between the paved stoned on the sidewalk are important to fix up if you want it to stay intact over the winter and into the spring. To protect it from the freeze & thaw cycle, use some foam window insulation and liquid tar from a squeeze bottle. Clean the joint as you would clean the crack in the sidewalk. The space will be much larger, so the window foam is the perfect way to fill the hole. Once full of foam, seal it up with tar. This mixture of tar and foam will easily be able to take on the harshest winter.

3. Seal Your Driveway

The driveway takes a serious beating at all times of the year. There’s often no protection from the elements, so proper care is necessary to avoid big repair costs. If you have a blacktop driveway, clean off any grass and dust with a stiff broom and rinse it. Scrub all grease spots with strong detergent and rinse it again. After letting it dry, seal the driveway with a thin coat of sealant and a squeegee. Let the sealant dry for a full day. Resist the urge to use the driveway – even for walking. If you have a concrete driveway, follow the same steps as repairing your sidewalk.

4. Maintain Your Gravel Driveway

Sometimes the best way to keep the gravel from ending up on your lawn after the first shovelling is to allow the first snowfall to pack down. Driving on it will pack it tightly, which will create a firm base for your driveway over the winter. This will also allow you to shovel the driveway over the winter months without tossing gravel all over your yard.