Appearance.  Clean, smooth and black, asphalt driveways look great all year round.

Durability.  Asphalt driveways can withstand years of rain or shine, snow and ice or wear and tear.

Affordability.  Compared to concrete or rock, asphalt is a low-cost solution to your driveway needs.

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Driveway installation times can vary, depending upon the size of your driveway, type of soil and weather conditions.  An average-sized residential driveway takes only a couple of hours to grade, and a couple of hours to pave.  Most customers are pleasantly surprised at how quickly their new driveway is finished. 

New asphalt can be walked on immediately.  We recommend waiting at least an hour to drive on your new driveway, and at least a day to park on it.  Also, be sure to take hot weather into consideration, allowing your newly laid asphalt a little more time to cool.  For more tips on care and maintainence, visit our Driveway Care page.

Typically, a well-cared-for asphalt driveway will last approximately 15 years or more.

Some asphalt driveway owners decide to seal coat their driveway after a time, but this is merely for the sake of appearance, and is not necessary for the care or use of the driveway.  Some over-the-counter seal coating products even contain chemicals that will cause your driveway to deteriorate prematurely.

We recommend using a professional seal coating company if this is something you decide is right for you.

No. 

But with harsh Minnesota winters, cracking may occur in your driveway, as well as in roads, parking lots and other asphalt products.  This cracking is due to frost and to the natural movement in the earth. 

One of the great things about asphalt is its ability to breath(expand and contract), which is important with Minnesota's changing seasons.

Yes!

Asphalt pavement is 100 percent recyclable and can be made to perform better the second or even third time around. In fact, it is the most recycled product in the United States at 80 percent. That compares to significantly lower percentages for aluminum cans, newsprint, plastic and glass beverage containers, and magazines. Asphalt roads are removed, recrushed, mixed with additional aggregate and fresh asphalt cement, remixed and placed back on the road. The hot mix asphalt industry also accepts the following recycled materials: rubber from used tires; slag from the steel-making process; roofing shingles; and sand from metal-casting foundries.

In a report to Congress, the Federal Highway Administration estimated that over 70 million tons of asphalt paving material was recycled in 1992. Recycling roads not only conserves natural resources and decreases construction time, it saves American taxpayers over $300 million each year.

Source: National Asphalt Pavement Association              

Besides asphalt driveways, we offer excavation and gravel, sidewalks, bike paths and patching.  Rum River Contracting also deals with commercial-sized jobs, which you can check out on our Services page.