Not just a tarmac paint

When looking into getting your tarmac drive restored and gathering quotes off different contractors, always ask what product they are using and do your research into that product. On many occasions we have had customers who have had quotations at stupidly low prices off their local handyman or window cleaner who simply use a tarmac paint which fails within months of being painted onto the surface and then the customer is simply back to square one.

We use a tarmac restorer and not just a paint.

The major differences between the two are - a tarmac paint simply sits on top of the surface which in time then just starts to peel with weathering and vehicle traffic, whereas a tarmac restorer on the other hand soaks into the surface and contains an acrylic resin which your drive once had in when newly laid, it also has added UV filters to protect the tarmac from the damaging effects of sunlight.​

For more information give one of our friendly team a call on 0800 1075162

Bitmac or Tarmac

The name tarmac was original derived from John MacAdam, who developed the process in the West. He used tar, which can be found naturally, to hold the small stones together, hence the name tar macadam, or tarmac for short.

Nowadays, as the binding agent for the aggregates is bitumen, a by-product of the oil refining process, rather than tar, it is known as bitumen macadam, shortened in the trade to bitmac

Tarmac driveways are the cheapest option for a permanent driveway. Tarmac or Bitmac is a cheap, flexible medium made up of rock, shale and asphalt cement.

Since some of its ingredients are extracted from crude oil, tarmac and asphalt are very dark. Some contractors will mix the asphalt with a polymer dye for a more pleasing appearance. Generally these driveways last about 15 years.