It is one of the first questions people ask, and the honest answer is: it depends far more on how the driveway was built than on the tar itself. Two driveways laid in the same street in the same year can look completely different ten years later.
What decides the lifespan
The base underneath
The asphalt on a residential driveway is usually only 25 to 40 mm thick. It does not carry the weight of your car on its own; the compacted layers underneath do. A driveway built on a well-compacted base of suitable material, on firm ground, will last many years. One laid on loose sand, topsoil or a thin layer of rubble can fail within a season or two.
Water
Water is the enemy of every paved surface. If water ponds on the driveway or gets underneath through cracks and edges, it softens the base, and that is when potholes and sinking start. Correct falls, good edges and early crack sealing make a big difference, especially in the Western Cape where winter rain can last for weeks.
Sun
The Western Cape sun oxidises the bitumen in asphalt. Over time the surface turns grey, loses its fine stone and becomes brittle. That is normal ageing, and it can be slowed down with maintenance.
How it is used
A driveway that only carries two family cars ages differently from one used by delivery vans, a caravan or building trucks during a renovation.
Signs your driveway needs attention
- Fine cracks and a grey, dry surface: time for crack sealing or a slurry seal.
- Edges crumbling into the garden: the edges were not restrained properly or are being driven over.
- Puddles that stay after rain: a drainage or level problem that will speed up wear.
- Crazy-paving pattern cracks or soft spots: the base has failed in that area and needs a proper repair.
- Potholes: water has already reached the base.
How to make your driveway last longer
- Keep water off it and away from the edges.
- Seal cracks before winter.
- Clean up oil and fuel spills, which soften asphalt.
- Apply a slurry seal every several years once the surface starts to dry out.
- Repair small problems early, before they spread.
Resurface or replace?
When a driveway reaches the end of its life, you do not always need to start from scratch. If the base is sound, driveway resurfacing gives you a new surface at a lower cost. If the base has failed, a new tar driveway built properly from the ground up is the better long-term investment.
A free site survey will tell you which applies to your driveway.