The Importance of Adequate Drainage in Parking Lots

8 Oct

Something that many business owners forget about is their parking lot and the problems that can ensue if they do not take care of it. According to the experts at Parking Lot Pros, parking lot repairs often come low down in the priorities of business owners who prefer to spend their money on other areas of the business. But not taking care of these repairs as well as other issues can become very costly in the long run. Take parking lot drainage as an example. Without adequate drainage, your parking lot can quickly fill with water during a heavy downpour, causing a massive headache for you, your staff, and your customers.

Why Drainage Problems Need to be Addressed

Without sufficient drainage in your parking lot, you are likely to see puddles and large pools of water in specific areas. This makes it hard for customers to find a suitable parking space. Those who do park in or around these pools of water are at risk of slipping when they get out of their car. As you can imagine, this could be disastrous for your company.

A parking lot filled with dirty puddles of water is not only unsightly, but it can also be unsanitary. If the water is not able to drain away, it can stagnate and start causing bad smells. Furthermore, allowing water to pool on your asphalt will seriously affect the lifespan of the parking lot, causing damage which can be very costly to repair.

How to Tell if Drainage Issues are Affecting Your Parking Lot

You are probably already aware that your parking lot drainage is an issue if water is pooling every time it rains. But is this causing damage to the parking lot itself?

Water that is allowed to pool on top of asphalt will inevitably cause issues over the course of time. You might have noticed that cracks are appearing in the surface of the parking lot. Sometimes it looks as though the asphalt is bleeding, which is caused by the binding agent rising to the surface.

Another common problem is rutting, which is when certain sections of the parking lot looks to have dips or dents, as though it is sinking. This often occurs in areas that get the most traffic.

How to Fix Drainage Problems

If you are having problems with drainage in your parking lot, there are things that can be done to resolve the issue – or at least there are things the professionals can do.

The first thing that might help is to adjust the slope in the parking lot, which should ideally be between two and five percent. If water is pooling in the parking lot, your slope is either inadequateor pitching in the wrong direction. The slope must be set at a point that water is forced to run off into the intended drainage areas.

Another potential fix is asphalt curbing. In addition to defining the edge of the parking lot, these curbs can help to direct water during heavy rainfall. With curbing, the water is directed towards the perimeter of the parking lot from where it can be absorbed back into the surrounding landscape.

If you have a large parking lot, the best solution may be the installation of grates and drains throughout the lot. Installing such as system will mean that water is not allowed to pool as it is immediately drained from the parking lot. It will be directed down into the municipal water system instead.

In conclusion, addressing issues with your parking lot drainage sooner rather than later will save your business both time and money.