Asphalt Paving in Palm Bay, FL

Asphalt paving in Palm Bay starts with a question most homeowners never think about: where does the water go? Brevard County's largest city sits on flat, sandy land that was drained by a network of canals in the 1920s and then platted into thousands of lots starting in 1959. Homes here drain to roadside swales and culvert pipes, the city sees about 55 inches of rain annually, with the heaviest months stacking up from June through September. A good driveway works with that system. A bad one blocks it.

The ground under South Brevard

Much of Florida's flatwoods are sandy marine soils that drain poorly. The USDA's description of the Myakka series, the state soil of Florida and a common soil of peninsular flatwoods, says its water table sits within 18 inches of the surface for one to four months in most years. Sand by itself is not a bad foundation, but wet sand under a thin driveway moves. Ruts, sunken tire tracks and cracked edges are the usual result.

For that reason, our driveways get a compacted base of crushed stone or limerock, set to a depth that suits the soil and the vehicles. For a home, HomeGuide pegs the usual build at a 6 to 8 inch rolled base under 2 to 3 inches of blacktop. On ground that stays wet, we lean toward the deeper end of that range, and we raise the finished surface enough to keep water moving away from it.

Swales, culverts and the apron

Most Palm Bay streets have open swales instead of curbs and storm drains. Where a driveway crosses the swale, a culvert pipe under the apron carries water past. If that pipe is crushed, clogged or set too high, water backs up into the yard and onto the driveway. We check the apron and the culvert during every estimate. If the city or county needs to be involved because the work reaches the right-of-way, we find out what is required for your address before anything is scheduled.

Roads still being rebuilt

Palm Bay maintains roughly 851 miles of roads, and Wikipedia notes that most roads west of DeGroodt Road are unpaved. In 2018, voters approved a $150 million bond for citywide road repair, with work moving through the city in four quadrants on an eight-year plan that started in August 2019. When the street in front of your house is repaved, it is a good time to look at your own apron and driveway too, so the two meet cleanly.

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Rain, heat and timing

Palm Bay's wettest month is September, with nearly 8 inches of rain on average, and June and August are close behind. Fresh asphalt and new sealer both need dry weather. We pave in the morning during the summer, keep the base covered or compacted ahead of storms, and save most sealcoating for the drier stretch from fall through spring. December is the driest month of the year, averaging under 2.5 inches.

What we do

• New asphalt driveways and replacements
• Shell, gravel and dirt driveways converted to asphalt
• Resurfacing worn driveways that still have a sound base
• Sealcoating and crack filling
• Pothole, edge and settlement repair
• Parking lot paving and line striping for businesses, churches and HOAs

Palm Bay is our base, and we work throughout South Brevard and into northern Indian River County: Melbourne, West Melbourne, Malabar, Grant-Valkaria, Micco, Barefoot Bay and Sebastian, out to the beachside towns of Melbourne Beach, Indialantic, Indian Harbour Beach, Satellite Beach and Cocoa Beach, and north to Viera, Rockledge, Cocoa and Palm Shores. Conditions differ from place to place. The mainland cities sit around 20 to 26 feet above sea level on sandy flatwoods; the barrier island towns sit closer to 10 to 13 feet with salt air and sandy lots; rural towns like Grant-Valkaria and Malabar have large lots and long drives. Each town page explains what we see there.