The Top 3 Mistakes to Avoid When Parking Lot Striping Done in the Summer Time

Just a quick reminder about having parking lot striping installed during the hot summer months. Summer time is a great time for parking lot striping, however there are a few rules to follow when considering having it done. Read below to learn the top three mistakes to avoid when getting parking lot striping done in the summer.

Parking Lot Paint & Humidity

Although California doesn't have a huge issue with humidity it can be a problem from time to time. That is why the first mistake to watch for with summer time parking lot striping is humidity. Parking lot striping paint can be applied in temperatures over 100 degrees, however if the humidity get higher than 80% it can start to be a problem with paint. Check the weather before allowing work to be done in humid conditions.

Parking Lot Maintenance in the Desert Areas (hi temps)

When working in desert communities it’s a good idea to keep a watchful eye on the temperature. Experience has showed us that once the temperature start to reach the 110-115 degree mark, you can start to get adverse affects on anything that you try to put on the surface. Seal coating materials, striping paints, and thermoplastics all have a much higher rate of failure when installed at these temps. One idea some have tried with success, when possible is to install the materials at night. Temps are typically much lower and parking lot striping and seal coat will both adhere better under those conditions.

Parking Lot Striping on Freshly Laid Asphalt

When it comes to fresh asphalt you have to be careful as to when you stripe it.  Fresh asphalt is a surface that is curing out oils and chemicals to the surface and because of this you will get some odd side effects.  If you do parking lot striping on asphalt that has just been laid, most times you will get a brown marking that occurs on the white lines or yellow lines you stripe down on it.  The best solution to avoid this is to stripe the asphalt after it has had a few days to cool down.  Most contractors however don't do this because the parking lot is typically needed as soon as possible.  One solution to this problem is to stripe it once and then return a week or two later to re-stripe it.  This is a good solution mainly because new asphalt is porous and requires two coats of paint to get a good finish on the lines.  So the first coat of paint will get the markings down for traffic and pedestrians (though stained brown in some cases ).  The second coat of paint will hide most if not all of the damage caused by painting the lines over the fresh asphalt and at the same time the second coat of paint will give a nice even and full finish.

About Empire Parking Lot Services

So there is your summer time parking lot maintenance tips for the Southern California area. At Empire Parking Lot Services we have been servicing the parking lot maintenance needs for companies such as Carl's Jr., Taco Bell, and Wienerschnitzel for years. No matter where your parking lot resides Empire knows what it takes to get the job done correctly. If you have any questions or comments please post below.  If you have a project coming up in the near future then just give us a call. We would love to hear from you today.