FAQ’s and Facts

We provide asphalt surfacing for projects from 150m2 to 50,000m2 or more.

NK Asphalt can provide an obligation-free measure and quote. You can also choose an in-person consultation or a free, over-the-phone consultation to discuss your options.

Feel free to give us a call or send an email from our contact page. Alternatively, get a free measure and quote, or book in a job now.

• Asphalt surfacing for car parks, driveways, commercial areas, and hard stands.
• Resurfacing of damaged older asphalt surfaces including surface preparation and asphalt repairs.
• Baseworks for car parks and driveways.
• Resurfacing recycled asphalt with new hot asphalt.

• Site sweeping and cleaning, prior to asphalt surfacing works.
• Initial surface repairs (e.g. potholes, tree roots, minor surface removal and repair).
• Profiling and removal of old asphalt or bitumen surfacing when only resurfacing is not feasible.
• Extruded 32Mpa Ready-mixed concrete kerbing, with or without colour added.
• Traffic control for large jobs or those with access limitations.
• Soakwells.
•  Linemarking for car parks.

Hear from our many happy customers with our client testimonials.

You can view some of our asphalt projects here: Asphalt driveways, asphalt car parks, commercial asphalt, hardstands.

We’ve been providing asphalt services to Perth and the surrounding areas since 1989. In that time, we’ve completed over 13,000 projects.

Aggregate (granite or laterite/gravel) is dried and and bitumen binder is added, mixed and heated to a temperature (around 150-170 degrees Celsius), to create hot-mix asphalt. NK Asphalt uses hot-mix asphalt for all our projects to meet exacting relevant standards and specifications. Find out more about hot mix asphalt.

Bitumen is a by-product of the refining process of crude oil and is a heavier end product, lighter ones being petrol, diesel and kerosene among others. This material is liquid at higher temperatures, stiffening as it cools to ambient temperature. It’s the binding agent in producing asphalt. Find out more about bitumen vs asphalt.

Tarmac is made from coal tar, as bitumen is made from crude oil. Tarmac is composed of similar aggregate materials to asphalt, except the binding agent for tarmac is tar instead of bitumen. Tarmac was never used in Western Australia, with asphalt being produced in Perth since the 1960’s. Learn more about the difference between asphalt and tarmac.

Both asphalt and concrete provide a good solution for large driveways, car parks, and commercial areas. However, asphalt is preferred for its durability, reduced glare, simple repairs, and fast, affordable resurfacing without the need for initial demolition and removal in most cases along with reduced time between laying and being open to traffic. Learn more differences between asphalt vs concrete.

Hot mix asphalt has a number of advantages when compared to concrete, brick paving and even recycled asphalt.

Learn more about the advantages of hot mix asphalt.

The most common asphalt surfaces are roads, car parks, larger driveways, strata residential areas, commercial properties, industrial warehouses, hardstands, racetracks, loading docks, and airport runways/helipads.

Sometimes asphalt is also used for outdoor basketball courts, tennis courts, and playgrounds.

An asphalt hardstand area is thicker than a traditional asphalt surface so it can support heavy loads such as industrial-grade machinery, shipping containers, and large quantities of vehicles or construction equipment. Learn more about the Importance of hardstands.

Asphalt has no need for joints to be installed in the way that concrete requires and is laid to give a virtually one-piece result unlike brick paving, so no added tyre noise from traffic.

Additionally, hot mix asphalt has a smoother dense bound surface, unlike recycled asphalt or bitumen seals which have coarser, loose aggregate surfaces.

Asphalt will not ‘melt’. Asphalt is extremely durable, even in the extreme Australian climate. By comparison, in some cases a bitumen sealed surface is mistakenly assumed to be asphalt. The bitumen seals can sometimes ‘bleed’ as the bitumen rises to cover its aggregate surface, resulting in a shiny, sticky black surface and is caused by a combination of over applied bitumen when constructed, traffic volumes, vehicle loadings and heat. This does not occur with asphalt.

A new asphalt surface can scuff if laid in hotter weather when a car does a stationary power-steering turn. Further traffic will often close up the scuff or can be repaired with a gentle reheat and tamping down, with no long-term detrimental effect.

The total cost of an asphalt driveway depends on multiple factors including the size of the driveway, any existing surface or baseworks and its condition, colour of the driveway, location of the driveway, and any additional services required. See the breakdown of the cost of an asphalt driveway in Perth. Or get a free measure and quote for an accurate number.

You may be eligible to claim the full cost or fraction of the cost of an asphalt surface depending on the use of the surface, and the reason for its construction. Read more about the factors related to claiming an asphalt project on your tax return.

Colours other than the standard black asphalt are going to cost more per square metre because the asphalt mixture requires oxides to be added and different aggregate type. The basecourse and other preparation steps beneath the surface use the same process no matter the colour of the asphalt above.

Asphalt will lighten in colour over time due to the oxidation process which occurs because of its exposure to traffic, air, weathering, sunlight, dirt, and varying levels of use. With time and use, the film of bitumen on the aggregate wears off, exposing the natural colour of the aggregate. Once the aggregate colour is visible, the resulting colour is relatively permanent and won’t continue to fade like concrete can.

Coloured asphalt surfaces aren’t painted, rather, the asphalt mixture is combined with oxide pigments and aggregate changes.

Asphalt can be surfaced with several layers of acrylic-based material as in a sports court, with a standard granite asphalt under the acrylic, but is not suited to vehicle use.

Asphalt can be painted with lines, arrows, signage, and more. Contact the team at NK Asphalt if you require painted areas with your new asphalt project in or around Perth.

In time, asphalt can eventually show signs of damage such as cracks. The main causes for cracking are water ingress damage, tree roots, fuel/oil spills, sub-grade movement (e.g., clay, rock, or unstable sand) and use by heavier vehicles/ traffic than the design intended. View the major causes of asphalt cracking and learn the solutions here.

As soon as possible after you notice signs of damage such as cracking or potholes. If damaged areas aren’t patched, they can deteriorate as water soaks in, and the base and underlying subgrade move underneath the surface. Learn from our asphalt repairing tips.

The process for repairing asphalt varies depending on the extent and type of damage. Sometimes a simple patch is sufficient, but if you notice the damage persists, you may have a deep-rooted problem that requires resurfacing. Learn more about repairing asphalt damage.

Hot mix asphalt is not normally sealed in Western Australia, as the ice and snow in other countries is not a consideration.

Depending on the scope of the asphalt job and other services required, total laying time may take anywhere from half a day to several days. For example, a 2,000m2 standard layout in a car park would be completed in a day on site or possibly two smaller car parks or driveways of several hundred square metres also in a day.

Hot mix asphalt is suitable for light use the day after being laid, otherwise can be used as normal a couple of days after. However, the full oxidation/hardening process can take several months.

If the existing bitumen or asphalt driveway is in reasonable to good condition and the finished level isn’t too high, then yes, a new asphalt driveway may be laid directly on top. In some cases, the existing surface may need the surface removed by profiling (milling) process due to poor surface condition or levels being too high relative to adjacent floors, concrete pads, doorways, steps etc.

The thickness of an asphalt surface depends on its intended use. For a standard driveway or car park, the asphalt is usually 30-40mm thick. If the surface is used for heavy loads, the thickness may be closer to 60mm. For hardstands, the asphalt thickness will be over 40mm and may go as thick as 100mm laid in two layers. Learn how thick asphalt should be.

If no existing foundations are in place, we will lay 100-250mm of compacted base material as the basecourse, depending on local ground conditions and intended use of the area.

Professionally laid asphalt requires heavy-duty machines including asphalt delivery trucks, asphalt paving machine, rollers/compactors, and the float to move all to/from site plus a sweeper to clean before and afterwards. NK Asphalt owns and maintains all our own machines and equipment.

Not ideally. Some jobs have timetables or other requirements that require a job deadline to be met but isn’t a preferred option

To suit common vehicles, an asphalt driveway should be at least 3 metres wide, though we recommend a wider area if vehicles are larger or if space is required to turn around or at bends/corners. You should consult the local council regarding the requirements for a new crossover before siteworks begin, as each council has varying requirements.

Kerbs provided by NK Asphalt are made with 32Mpa ready mixed concrete (not hand-mixed garden kerb), laid with an extruded kerb machine and come in four styles: flush/flat, mountable, semi-mountable, and barrier kerbs.

Colour can be added if preferred.

See the range available.

Asphalt car parks are usually finished with lines to outline parking bays and may use arrows or text to direct drivers. Also commonplace are concrete, plastic or rubber bumpstops in front of the bays and speedbumps on main routes.

With uses for reclaimed asphalt and other asphalt mixtures that include recycled plastics, glass, and crumb rubber, asphalt is relatively sustainable.

New hot-mix asphalt is manufactured to meet Australian Standards or other specifications such as Main Roads WA and local government IPWEA/AAPA specifications, among others. As the recycled material is made from old bitumen and/or asphalt from old roads and car parks the material can vary greatly, resulting in a variable finished product that may need ongoing maintenance. The best way to be sure is to ask for some examples near you that have been laid several months or a number of years before to allow a comparison and see what may be ahead. Learn more.