How to Break Up Asphalt

Asphalt is very heavy and requires a great deal of physical strength to remove it.

If you’re not willing to spend hours of hard labor on this project, call a paving company skilled in demolition.

1. Examine the area that is to be torn up. The size of the area will determine what tools are needed to do the job. If you are only ripping out a small section of asphalt, you will need a pick-axe or a jackhammer and a shovel. Larger areas should be excavated with an excavator.

2. Rent any required equipment from a local hardware store or from an outlet that rents construction equipment. Most people don’t have a jackhammer or an excavator sitting around in their garage. If you need to rent a piece of equipment, make sure you use it to its fullest potential as you will have to pay for the length of time you need the machine.

3. Use the excavator to break up large chunks of the asphalt surface. The excavator is useful for large driveways because it will lift large sheets of asphalt right out of the ground. However, these large pieces are much too heavy to maneuver and will need to be broken up into smaller, more manageable sections.

4. Use your jackhammer or pick-axe to break up the large chunks of asphalt. In order to load the pieces into a trunk or dumpster you will need to break them up into pieces you can shovel.

5. Avoid using an excavator on smaller slabs of asphalt that can be ripped up by hand. If you’re tearing up a small section, use the jackhammer to break up the asphalt and then further chip away at it with the pick-axe.

6. Shovel up the remaining asphalt with your shovel. The asphalt can be brought to a local recycling station if you have no other means of disposal.

Warning

Always wear proper eye and ear protection, footwear and gloves when working with equipment like a jackhammer and a pick-axe. Eyewear is a good idea when removing asphalt because once it is in small pieces, chunks can fly up into your face.