Price My Lot Price my lot

Sealcoating · Los Angeles basin

Sealcoating a parking lot in Los Angeles, priced by the square foot.

Published California rates run $0.14 to $0.35 per square foot for two coats, plus $0.75 to $2.75 per foot of crack fill. The area comes off the aerial. The condition comes from your photos. The quote comes in writing.

Price my lot How the count works

Retail center, Azusa CA (sample) · 24,900 sq ft paved

Two coats of sealcoat, then fresh stripes. Drawn sample.

What sealcoat is for, and what it is not.

Asphalt is oil, sand and stone. Sun pulls the oil out of the surface, and the lot goes from black to gray and starts to shed fines. Water gets into small cracks, reaches the base, and the next thing is a soft spot and then a pothole. Sealcoat is a thin emulsion layer that slows the oxidation, sheds the water, and stands up to fuel and oil drips better than bare asphalt does.

It is maintenance, not repair. A lot that is already alligatored or has potholes needs those areas cut out and patched before anything is sealed over them, and a sealcoat quote that skips that step is not doing you a favor.

The order of work.

  • Clean. The lot is swept and blown, oil spots are treated with a primer so the sealer bonds.
  • Crack fill. Cracks wide enough to take it are filled with hot-pour rubberized sealant, priced per foot at $0.75 to $2.75. This is the step that keeps water out.
  • Two coats. Sprayed or squeegeed, $0.14 to $0.35 per square foot published. The second coat goes on after the first has set.
  • Cure. The section stays closed while it cures, usually overnight, longer in cool weather.
  • Stripe. New lines go on after the cure. Every sealcoat quote carries the restripe as its own line, because a sealed lot has no lines left.

Keeping the lot open.

A commercial lot is sealed in sections so tenants keep their parking. Half one night, half the next, or thirds on a bigger lot. The section plan is drawn on the aerial and written into the quote with the dates, so a property manager can tell tenants where to park before the crew arrives.

The coating and the air district.

The South Coast Air Quality Management District limits the solvent content of coatings under Rule 1113. Asphalt-emulsion sealers comply, and the product going on your lot is named on the quote so you can check it.

Published California ranges by area

10,000 sq ft$1,700 to $3,500
25,000 sq ft$4,250 to $8,750
50,000 sq ft and up$8,500 to $17,500

Two coats, from a California paving contractor's published price page. Crack fill and striping are extra lines.

What the photos need to show

  • 01The worst crack, with something for scale.
  • 02Any area that looks like alligator skin or has a soft spot.
  • 03Oil spots where cars park nose-in.
  • 04The drive aisle where trucks turn.

Four phone photos are enough. The area itself is measured off the aerial.

Try your lot

Stalls in, sealed square feet out.

A commercial lot runs about 300 square feet per stall including its share of the drive aisle. Drag the count with sealcoat on. It is a range from published rates, not your quote.

88

Published range

$4,490 to $12,100

Accessible required
4
Per stall
$5 to $20
Accessible, each
$50 to $150
Sealcoat, per sq ft
$0.14 to $0.35
Mobilization
$150 to $500

Published Los Angeles ranges, not a quote. Accessible minimum per CBC 11B-208.2.

Questions about sealcoat.

What does sealcoat actually do?

It is a thin protective layer over the asphalt. It slows the oxidation that turns a lot gray and brittle, sheds water so it does not get into the base through small cracks, and resists oil and fuel drips. It does not fix a lot that is already failing: alligatored areas and potholes need repair first.

How often should a lot be sealed?

Every two to four years for a commercial lot in Los Angeles, depending on traffic and sun. A lot that has never been sealed and is still sound is the best candidate. Crack filling comes first, sealcoat second, striping last.

Does the lot have to close?

Sections of it, for the cure. Sealcoat is scheduled in halves or thirds around tenant traffic, and striping follows once it has cured, so a lot is never fully closed. The schedule is written into the quote.

What about air quality rules?

The South Coast air district limits the solvent content of coatings under Rule 1113. Asphalt-emulsion sealers comply. Which product goes on your lot is named on the quote.

Can you price it from the aerial?

Square footage, yes, at a known scale. Condition, no. Cracks, oil spots and failed areas show in photos, so a sealcoat quote asks for a few and carries a small contingency for crack footage that only shows up close.

Price my lot

Get a written sealcoat quote for your lot.

Send the address and a couple of photos of the worst spots. We measure the paved area off the aerial and send an itemized quote with the schedule.

No trip charge. Issued under the contractor's license number. Photos, if useful, are requested by email.