Picked the $18 tube of crack filler over the $40 bucket and now I have regrets
My asphalt driveway had a crack running about 6 feet near the garage edge, so I stood in the aisle trying to decide between a small tube of filler and a big bucket of the pourable stuff. The tube was cheaper and I figured it would be less mess, so I went with it. Two months later, that crack is back and wider, probably because I didn't get the goop deep enough into the gap. I did the whole thing on a Saturday morning in maybe 20 minutes, so I get why I rushed it, but cheaping out here clearly didn't pay off. Anyone got a method for getting filler down into a narrow crack so it actually stays put?
How bad is it really though? A crack near the garage edge is pretty normal for asphalt and it's gonna move with the seasons no matter what you shove in there. I've watched my neighbor fight the same battle for years, refill it every spring, and the crack still comes back every winter. The honest truth is filler is more of a cover up than a real fix, so even if you did it perfect it might open back up. That said, if you want it to stay longer, clean the crack out with a wire brush and a hose, let it dry good, then use the pourable stuff and fill it slow so it goes all the way down instead of just skinning over the top.