The Ins and Outs of Asphalt Equipment Cleaning

There isn’t a better way to clean your asphalt equipment than with PavePro. Not citrus. Not diesel. Not soy. PavePro isn’t some by-product or chemical that just so happens to clean asphalt. It was made specifically to do two things: prevent asphalt build-up and clean it. It’s as simple as that.

In my experience, there aren’t a lot of people that love to clean their equipment. Of course, they exist, but most people clean because they have to. Ignoring asphalt build-up doesn’t only make your equipment look bad, but it makes the job harder. Your tools get heavy, you get cold chunks in your mix or moving through your machine and causing wear and tear on all the moving parts or you have to get in the back of your truck bed and chip out the asphalt.

PavePro makes demanding daily maintenance and cleaning easier and faster, improving your overall efficiency. For starters, PavePro is the longest-lasting release agent available. Because of its high flash point, you can get up to 4 or 5 loads in a truck bed before you notice significant build-up and 50+ shovel loads. That means you spend less time stopping work to spray your equipment and more time doing your job. It also makes cleaning large areas easier than products like diesel fuel or, God forbid, using citrus and a torch. We have customers who clean fleets of trucks, pavers, and tools in no time with PavePro. You spray it on, no different than with diesel, and come back with a pressure washer. By the time you’re done applying the PavePro, the asphalt is typically ready to be washed off. It has a higher KB value than diesel so it cleans better and penetrates deeper into thick build-up.

PavePro also has a unique ability to lubricate as it cleans. All those delicate moving parts inside your paver that you want to protect go through a lot of wear and tear when your hopper isn’t cleaned or properly prepped. Using PavePro will help lubricate those parts, as well as prevent chunks from moving through the machine and preventing it from breaking down in the middle of a job.

Dump Truck Beds

Let’s face it: the crap they give you at the plant just doesn’t cut it and you either have to find with build-up and carryback every day or you prep your bed with diesel a half mile down the road from the plant before you roll in to get mix. Look, we all know you do it, and frankly, that’s your choice. But to be honest, you’re hurting yourself. Let me explain.

Diesel fuel doesn’t last in the bed like PavePro. That’s why you have to get out of your truck and apply and scrape every time you go back for another load. With PavePro, you can get up to 4 or 5 loads with one application. You can use less products for better results.

Diesel fuel ruins your mix. Hard to get around this one. If it’s so good at cleaning up hardened asphalt, what do you think it does to the mix when it gets laid into the mat? The difference between PavePro and diesel is that we have non-stripping products and our products biodegrade in less than 5 days. Diesel fuel tends to stay in the pavement for up to 2 months and continues to cut through the asphalt for the entire time it’s there.

Diesel fuel puts you at risk of suspension or fines. It’s happening all across the country because of the risk that diesel fuel presents to the safety of workers and equipment and the damage it deals to the asphalt. Do yourself a favor and use a legal substitute that will keep you out of trouble and keep your trucks on the road.

PavePro Blue is high-performance DOT-approved across the US as a non-stripping asphalt release agent that can be used to prevent asphalt build-up. It’s NTPEP-tested and proven to be the best water-dilutable release agent on the market.

Asphalt Paver

Cleaning up any asphalt spots on your paver is easy. However, for better results, you can use PavePro as an asphalt release agent in the hopper of the paver, on the auger, and screed. We’re talking all day results. Multiple loads without any build up and no nasty diesel getting into your mix. It effectively prevents build-up in these areas, which is crucial for achieving a successful final product. PavePro works exceptionally well without disintegrating your asphalt.

Asphalt Plants

The best part of PavePro Blue is that it was designed with asphalt plants in mind, specifically for bed release spray arms. PavePro Blue is the perfect solution to replace the soap at the plant and keep trucks from using diesel fuel before they come to get mix, all while reducing the amount of scraping the drivers have to do and minimizing carryback.

We also have a product perfect for drag slats. PavePro Drag Slat Xtender is the best way to extend the life of your drag slat, reduce energy costs, and transport more asphalt. Drag slats are under immense pressure, wear and tear on a daily basis, and are the lifeline of your plant. Without proper care, your asphalt plant is at risk of breakages and downtime. We designed PavePro DSX to clean and lubricate your drag slat to keep it running as efficiently as possible.

Tired of your good-for-nothing asphalt solvent or release agent and ready to make a switch?

Shuttle Buggies

Even Shuttle Buggies can reap the advantages of PavePro solutions. By incorporating PavePro Green into the machine, similar to drag slats or paving machines, all moving parts can be kept clean and lubricated with ease. In addition, PavePro Blue can be used in the tire spray-down system to prevent asphalt from sticking to the wheels, all while being safe on rubber.

Pneumatic and Rubber Tire Rollers

Preventing asphalt pickup on asphalt rollers is key to successful paving. When pickup occurs, small pieces of aggregate are stripped from the freshly paved mat by the roller and leave holes in the asphalt. This leads to a quick deterioration of the pavement if not fixed properly, costing a contractor more money and time to either fix or repair. Luckily, it’s easy to prevent with PavePro Blue in your water tank. Water doesn’t naturally stick to metal or rubber, which is why, as a release agent on a roller, it doesn’t work all that well. When you add PavePro Blue to the water, it creates a bond between the water and the roller which prevents it from sticking or picking up any asphalt.

Tack Trucks and Distributors

PavePro Gold can be used for both exterior cleaning and interior cleaning.

On the exterior, PavePro can be sprayed on overspray tack to clean it with ease. It’s water-deactivated and it won’t ruin the rubber lines or any other sensitive parts on or connecting to the spray bars. Because it’s pH neutral, it won’t dull or fade your aluminum body either. It makes cleaning easier than ever without having to worry about destroying your equipment.

On the interior, PavePro can be used in smart clean systems or in the belly of the truck to clean and flush your lines. We once had a customer with a broken down tack truck on the side of the highway last year. He couldn’t get anyone out there to fix the truck for him and it sat with at least a foot deep of tack in the belly of the truck for a couple of weeks. He poured some PavePro Gold into the belly and came back after the weekend and it ate right through the hardened tack and he sprayed the mess out right through the lines.

Hand Tools

No one likes lugging around a heavy shovel or lute. It makes your life much harder than it needs to be. With PavePro, you can dunk your shovel or spray your lute, just like you do with diesel, and prevent build-up for much longer than diesel fuel.

Boots & Clothes

Just like on your hand tools, you can prep your boots with PavePro to prevent build-up when you’re walking on hot asphalt. It won’t harm your boots and it rinses off with water.

You can wash all your work clothes in the washing machine with PavePro. No joke! Just spray them down with PavePro and wash them in a separate load of laundry and the PavePro will pull the tar out of your jeans, shirt, or safety vest.

You can even clean your truck mats and carpet with PavePro if you get any blacktop on them. Just get in there with a little bit of PavePro and agitate it with a rag and come back with a clean, warm water rag and get everything up.

Don’t you get it? There’s no better way to keep your asphalt equipment clean on the market. There isn’t an asphalt remover or asphalt release agent with the cleaning efficiency and release power that PavePro has. Oh, and that includes diesel too.