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

Sealcoating in Stillwater

Sealcoating in Stillwater, Minnesota.

Parking lot sealcoating for commercial properties in Stillwater. 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 a half west of Eau Claire on I-94 and north on Highway 36. 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 Stillwater

Minnesota's coal tar ban has been in force since 2014, so no coal tar sealer goes on asphalt anywhere in the state and a management spec that says so is repeating the law. We run an asphalt emulsion, Pitch Black. The lots worth sealing here are the county campus on 62nd Street, the hospital on Churchill, the Highway 36 retail on Market Drive and the business park buildings along Curve Crest and Tower Drive. Downtown is a different job, because the surface lots along the river are the city's public parking rather than a property's own.

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 Stillwater

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 Stillwater

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 Stillwater

What Stillwater calls us about, answered straight.

More questions answered
How far is it from Eau Claire, and do you come this far for a lot?
About 74 miles and an hour and a half: I-94 west, then north on Highway 36. For commercial lots we come out. Send the address and what the lot needs and we'll set up a time to walk it. The estimate is free.
Does county work have to go out as a formal bid?
Yes, and it comes back in that form. You get a written scope with the quantities measured and a fixed number, which is what a county board or a facilities committee needs in front of it.
How late in the year can you seal?
Roughly May through early October in Stillwater 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 Stillwater

Stillwater is the Washington County seat, on the St. Croix River, about 19,000 people and roughly 74 miles from Eau Claire: I-94 west and then north on Highway 36. Highways 36, 95 and 96 all run through it. The old downtown is down on the river and the newer commercial ground is out west along 36.

The county holds the biggest institutional ground in town. The Washington County Government Center on 62nd Street North is the main campus for county government, and the courthouse carries community corrections and the Tenth Judicial District courts. Lakeview Hospital is on Churchill Street West and City Hall is on 4th Street North.

The retail is on Highway 36. Stillwater Marketplace on Market Drive runs 13.6 acres and about 100,922 square feet of retail anchored by Cub Foods and Target, built in phases between 1996 and 2000, and Valley Ridge Center on 36 is another 82,289 square feet on 8.32 acres. West Stillwater has a business park area along Curve Crest Boulevard and Tower Drive, zoned business park office with Highway 36 access. Downtown is a parking question more than a retail corridor: the city runs a paid ramp of 248 spaces a block west of Main Street plus roughly 760 surface spaces, most of them along the river.

Where we work in Stillwater

  • Curve Crest Boulevard
  • Tower Drive
  • Market Drive
  • The Highway 36 corridor
  • Downtown Main Street

Around Stillwater: The Stillwater Lift Bridge, Lowell Park on the riverfront, The Washington County Government Center on 62nd Street North, Lakeview Hospital on Churchill Street West, The Warden's House Museum.

19,386 people, 2024 Census estimate.

The ground around here is sandy glacial outwash, excessively drained, sand and sandy loam textures. MnDOT has wanted 30 to 36 inches of frost-free material under asphalt since 1995, and it rates silt as the worst soil there is for frost heave.

Get a Free Estimate in Stillwater

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 Stillwater
  • 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 Stillwater

Sealcoating in Nearby Towns

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