Chip Seal Season Has Begun

County crews chip seal J Road between 22 Road and 23 Road. Chip seal can be completed over existing gravel surfaces, chip sealed surfaces, or unsealed asphalt.

Mesa County Road and Bridge crews are always working on maintaining our roadways. However, during the summer, their priority becomes the overlay and chip seal program, which is now well underway.

What can be expected?
During a chip seal project, all vehicles must be removed from the street so that there are no obstructions. The road is then swept to remove any loose debris.

The chip seal process is then applied. First, a thin layer of liquid asphalt is sprayed onto the road, followed by a machine that spreads a layer of small pea-sized chips of gravel onto the liquid asphalt.

A thin layer of liquid asphalt is sprayed onto the road before a layer of pea-sized gravel chips is poured onto the liquid asphalt.

A dump truck full of chips (gravel) locks on to the chip spreader and is pulled backward. A thin layer of liquid asphalt is sprayed down in front of the chip spreader.

About 4,700 gallons of oil are used for each mile being chip sealed.

The street is then rolled with a compactor. Traffic is allowed back on the road within an hour of the application. After a few days, the street is again swept to remove any loose chips. Depending on the amount of traffic over the next several months, the road may be swept one or more times to completely remove all loose material.

Crews work fast to spread gravel left by the machine.

The chip seal process is completed by a distributor truck spraying oil over the surface at an even rate followed by a chip spreader evenly distributing the rock over the oil. Then, a rubber-tired roller is used to set the aggregate into the oil.

Each dump truck carries approximately 13 tons of gravel. It takes a full truckload to cover a quarter-mile.

It takes 52 tons of gravel to cover a mile of road.

When do we do it? Chip seal is applied during the warm summer season for the best results. Chip seals are usually applied every five to eight years, depending on the condition of the street.

Mesa County crews continue road work in the Fruita Area. Short road delays should be expected.

Why is it done? Chip seals are used to retard pavement deterioration, improve skid resistance, and waterproof the old pavement. Roads identified for a chip seal are in good condition, structurally sound with no significant deformations, and do not require an overlay.