Eau Claire, WI · Northwestern Wisconsin Closed now (715) 450-9897
(715) 450-9897

Sealcoating in Sparta

Sealcoating in Sparta, Wisconsin.

Parking lot sealcoating for commercial properties in Sparta. Cracks filled hot first, edges cut in by hand, two coats where the traffic needs two, and the cure time in writing.

Get a Free Estimate Call (715) 450-9897

4.7 from 21 Google reviews

About an hour and twenty minutes southeast of Eau Claire on I-94 and I-90. The estimate is free.

A large institutional parking lot freshly sealcoated in uniform black, still wet-looking, running up to the building and out to the grass edge.
4.7 Google ratingFrom 21 reviews
2-3 yrs Reseal cycleNorthwestern Wisconsin
400°F Crack fillerDirect-fire rubber
0 Coal tarAsphalt emulsion only

Working in Sparta

A lot of the sealable surface in Sparta is new. South Pointe's lots went in from 2018 on, and fresh asphalt has to cure and oxidize before sealer will bond to it, so a new building's lot is crack work and striping for its first year. The older side of town, the courthouse, the hospital lot on West Main and the plants along South Black River Street, is where sealer is doing what it's actually for. Either way the lot gets measured and the number is fixed before anything starts.

From our jobs

Job Photos

Freshly sealed and striped school parking lot
A school lot, sealed and striped
A freshly sealcoated driveway winding up to a house in evening light
A sealed driveway, winding up to the house
A freshly sealcoated driveway running through the woods, caution tape across the entrance
A long wooded driveway, sealed and taped off
A crew member spraying sealcoat from the black tank rig
Sealer going down from the tank rig

All job photos

What makes a seal job last

Sealer doesn't stick to dirt. It doesn't stick to oil, it doesn't bridge an open crack, and it doesn't cure in the cold. Almost every failed driveway in this valley failed for one of those four reasons, and all four happen before the sealer ever comes off the truck. Which is why the part of this job that matters is the part that happens before anything looks different.

The cheap job

What a low bid usually buys

  • Blown off, maybe, and sealed straight over whatever is left
  • Cracks sprayed across rather than filled, so water still gets under
  • Sealer thinned with water to stretch the drum further
  • One thin coat, sprayed to the edges, apron included
  • Looks excellent for about six weeks

What we do

And why each step is there

  • Blown clean and edged, and oil spots primed so sealer can bond
  • Cracks over a quarter inch filled with hot rubber first
  • Sealer mixed to the manufacturer's spec, with the sand it calls for
  • Edges and aprons cut in by hand, two coats where traffic warrants
  • Left to cure properly, with the drive-on time in writing

The difference doesn't show that day. It shows in the second spring.

Does yours actually need sealing?

How we read a surface before quoting it

Some surfaces that look bad are fine, and some that look fine are not.

  • It has gone gray and chalky but it's smoothTextbook case. That's the wear layer gone and exactly what sealer replaces.
  • Thin cracks running with the drive, under a quarter inchSeal them now and they stay cheap. Left open, water gets under and freezes.
  • It was paved last year and still looks blackNew asphalt needs to cure before its first seal, usually 6 to 12 months. Too early is a real thing and we would rather book you for next season.
  • Cracked into squares, like dried mud, and it flexes underfootThat's the base failing, not the surface. Sealing it hides the problem for one season and wastes your money. Those areas get cut out and patched.
  • Potholes, or a low spot that holds water after rainRepair first, seal after. Standing water is usually a grade or a drainage problem and it'll take the new sealer with it.
  • Loose stone comes up when you scuff it with your shoeRaveling. Early on, sealer locks it back down. Advanced, it needs an overlay. This is the one worth having us look at rather than guessing.

Not sure which one you have? Send a photo of the worst area.

What Decides the Price in Sparta

Residential sealcoating runs about $0.15 to $0.25 per square foot, the rate Black Widow has published for years. Everything else is measured rather than guessed at, and your number is fixed before work starts.

Small commercial lot

Roughly 8,000 to 20,000 sq ft

Measured on site

  • Church, clinic, small retail
  • Crack sealing usually included

Larger lot

20,000 sq ft and up

Measured on site

  • Quoted after a walk
  • Striping and patching priced separately

What moves it: how much crack filling it needs, whether there are areas that have to be cut out and patched first, how much hand cutting the edges take, and access. Anything we find that changes the number gets said before we start, not after.

How the Work Goes in Sparta

The same six steps on a driveway and on a 40,000 square foot lot.

We look at it and price it

Free, and on site for anything commercial. If the surface has gone past what sealer can help, we say so then rather than taking the job.

Clean and prep

Blown down, edges trimmed back where grass has crept in, oil and fuel spots primed. Sealer won't bond to any of those, and skipping this is the single most common reason a job fails early.

Crack filling, hot

Anything over about a quarter inch gets direct-fire rubber at 400 degrees, which flows into the crack and bonds to its walls. Cold pourable filler sits on top and pulls away by the second winter.

Cut in by hand

Edges, garage aprons, around drains and islands. Hand work, because a spray wand at the edge either misses it or covers your concrete.

Sealcoat, twice on high-wear areas

Turnarounds, entrances and drive lanes wear faster than the rest and get two. The rest of the lot gets one, because a second coat there adds no life.

Cure time, in writing

Usually 24 hours before a car and 48 before anything heavy or before turning the wheels while stopped. It depends on the temperature and humidity that afternoon, so we'll give you the real number that day.

Booking the last of the sealcoating season now · Call (715) 450-9897

Questions We Get in Sparta

What Sparta calls us about, answered straight.

More questions answered
How far down I-90 will you come for a lot?
Sparta is about 77 miles from Eau Claire, an hour and twenty minutes on I-94 and then I-90, and for commercial lots we come. Send the address and what the lot needs and we'll set up a time to walk it. The estimate is free.
Our building in South Pointe is new. When can the lot be sealed?
Not right away. Fresh asphalt has to cure and oxidize before sealer will bond to it, and that's a season at least, so a new lot's first year is crack work, striping and keeping it swept. Sealer put on before the asphalt has cured doesn't bond, and it comes back off.
How late in the year can you seal?
Roughly May through early October in Sparta and the surrounding area, and it depends more on overnight lows than on the daytime high. Sealer needs warm pavement and a dry cure, so late-season jobs depend on the weather holding.
Do you use coal tar?
No. Coal tar sealer is perfectly legal in Eau Claire and a good deal of this region still uses it, which is exactly why it's worth asking. We run an asphalt emulsion instead, Pitch Black, by choice. The reason is the science rather than the rulebook. The US Geological Survey sampled streams around Milwaukee and traced somewhere between 42 and 94 percent of the PAHs in the sediment back to coal tar sealant dust. Minnesota banned the stuff statewide in 2014. We would rather not put it on a driveway that drains toward the Chippewa.
Can you seal a lot without closing it?
Sealed asphalt needs 24 to 48 hours before traffic goes back on it. On a lot that can't close, where that time comes from is part of what the estimate works out, so tell us which hours and which areas you can't lose.

The Lots and Surfaces in Sparta

Sparta is the seat of Monroe County and its largest city, about 10,000 people at Exit 25 on I-90, roughly 77 miles from Eau Claire. Highways 16, 21, 27 and 71 all come through, and Fort McCoy, a 60,000-acre Army training installation, sits between here and Tomah. The 1895 courthouse is downtown and the newer commercial ground is on the south side, where I-90 meets Highway 27.

South Pointe Business Park is the big one: 180 acres at the I-90 and Highway 27 junction with fully improved lots from 1.5 to 80 acres, opened in 2018 and built out through a second phase that put in streets, storm sewer, water mains, hydrants and curb and gutter. The state certifies 114.4 contiguous acres there with 94 developable, industrially zoned, with community stormwater retention on each parcel and no wetlands or floodplain. The city bought close to 200 acres for it after the east side park filled, and a health and wellness building is the newest lot going in at South Pointe.

The employers named for Sparta are Century Foods International, Northern Engraving on South Black River Street, Spartek, Mathews on River Road, McPherson Guitars and a U.S. Silica sand operation. Mayo Clinic Health System's hospital is downtown at 310 West Main Street, a critical access hospital with 25 beds and outpatient surgery, radiology and rehab, and the St. Clare Health Mission shares the building. Fort McCoy runs more than 1,400 training events a year with about 450 military and 2,500 civilian people working on post, and the city describes it as a significant part of its economy.

Where we work in Sparta

  • South Pointe Business Park
  • East Side Business Park
  • Downtown Sparta
  • The I-90 and Highway 27 junction

Around Sparta: The 1895 Monroe County Courthouse, Mayo Clinic Health System on West Main Street, Fort McCoy, The Elroy-Sparta State Trail, Ben Bikin'.

9,963 people, 2024 Census estimate.

Monroe County is Driftless country, never glaciated. The South Pointe ground was farm field, open scrub and woodland before it was a business park.

Get a Free Estimate in Sparta

Tell us what it looks like and we'll come measure it. You get a written price before anything starts.

(715) 450-9897
  • Free on commercial lots and properties in Sparta
  • A photo of the problem helps, and it can go in the message
  • Surfaces that are not ready yet get told so at the estimate

Get an estimate

Send the form and we'll call you back. The estimate is free.

What can we help with?

By submitting, you agree to be contacted about your sealcoating job. Text messages only go out if you checked the box above. We don't sell your info, ever.

Other Work We Do in Sparta

Sealcoating in Nearby Towns

Everything about sealcoating, including how the work goes and what changes the price