How To Decide Between Concrete vs. Asphalt vs. Brick Pavers For Your Next Project?

• Weight Capacity: What is the weight of the traffic on the surface (pedestrian, bicycles, cars, trucks, semi-trucks, heavy construction equipment, etc.)? Will large vehicles be regularly turning their wheels on the surface in one location (this eats away at the surface of the paving material)? For example: We had a loading dock client that wanted to remove the asphalt loading dock and replace it with concrete because there were large deep ruts in the asphalt from semi trucks parking in each bay and they also had an area where the semi-trucks were tearing up the asphalt because all of them were pulling forward, turning the wheel, then backing into the loading dock. We recommended replacing that one small square of asphalt with concrete to prevent the asphalt from being damaged.
• Budget: Many people quickly assume budget is how much they have to spend on the project today, but the reality is your total spend on a project is typically much more than the initial installation. There is on-going maintenance required for any surface. Some require much much less than others. Understanding what your in-house staff can do and cannot do and whether there is an on-going annual maintenance budget will help steer which option is best for your project. We often work with non-profits with specific grants that cover them for the installation, but do not cover any on-going maintenance. Will the contractor you are working with incorporate a multi-year maintenance agreement into the sales price? NOTE: Double check whether this is allowed under your grant and also make sure you trust the company you select if you pay up-front for an on-going service.
• Aesthetics: The look is an important thing to considered. Your parking lot or sidewalk or front entryway is typically the very first thing your employees, members, patrons, clients, customers, etc. see when they approach your organization. Do you want to make a statement about being green by using permeable pavers? Do you want them to see a freshly sealcoated parking lot each year with new paint striping regularly to show how well maintained everything is? Do you prefer concrete or even stamped concrete or an exposed aggregate concrete to show an upgraded look? Aesthetics all comes down to what you are trying to accomplish. Any of the three options can work well.
• Climate: Our business is based in Illinois and so our clients typically have freeze/ thaw and salting/ snow plowing to deal with. If you live in the southern states where snow and snow plowing is not an issue, you may have different answers to how this impacts your choice. For us, you need to consider salt, snow plowing, etc.

This article is not intended to overwhelm you with information, the point is if a contractor tries to push you toward concrete or asphalt or brick pavers, you should probably think twice about that contractor’s motive. Are they actually trying to help you? Did they take the time to understand and listen to your needs? Or are they pushing you towards the surface that his/her company sells and makes money from? If you'd like to see a side-by-side comparison, we created a chart to compare the pros and cons of each option. While it isn’t perfect and there are always exceptions to these generalizations, we are attempting to provide a simple way to review the three options.