Oil and Stone Chip Seal
Oil and Stone Chip Seal Driveways in Commack, NY
Also called tar and chip. Hot liquid asphalt sprayed onto a prepared base, stone chip spread into it, and the whole thing rolled so the aggregate embeds: a textured, matte finish with the stone colour showing through.
The ground under Commack
Commack sits north-central, on moraine rather than outwash: glacial till, with sand, gravel, silt and clay deposited together and left unsorted. Denser and much slower to drain than the clean sand south of the ridge.
For chip seal, the base requirement is exactly the same as for asphalt. On till, that means the drainage question has to be answered before the surface goes on: chip seal over ground that heaves will heave with it. Its texture does give better grip on a slope, which is a genuine advantage on north-shore ground.
How we do the work
Chip seal gets misunderstood in both directions, so let’s be plain.
It is not a cheap version of asphalt. Different product, different look, different maintenance cycle, different jobs it’s good at. Choosing it purely to save money on a driveway that wants asphalt is a decision you’ll regret in five years.
It is not a repair for a failed base. Chip seal is a surface treatment. Sprayed over a driveway that’s sunk or cracking from below, it cracks in exactly the same places within a season or two. Anyone offering to chip seal a broken driveway is selling you eighteen months.
It is genuinely good on long drives, on properties where a smooth black surface would look wrong, and where you want texture and grip rather than a formal finish. It suits older houses and larger lots better than a suburban front driveway.
Living with it: expect some loose chip for the first few weeks as unembedded stone comes free: it sweeps up and settles down. Plough with the blade slightly raised or with shoes fitted, because a blade dragged hard across it will pick at the surface. And it’s renewed by recoating rather than resurfacing, on a longer cycle than asphalt sealcoating.
What moves the price in Commack
Lot size is the Commack variable. Larger properties and long driveways mean cost scales with area rather than frontage, and the price gap between materials widens sharply at that scale: a difference of a dollar or two per square foot is trivial on a short drive and substantial on a long one. On larger jobs phasing is realistic, and we’ll price it both ways if that helps.
Local rules
Commack is split between two municipalities: part in the Town of Huntington, part in the Town of Smithtown. The boundary runs through the hamlet, and which town you’re in decides which office and which rules apply. We establish it from your address before quoting.
What we’ll do regardless: tell you what applies before you sign, not after we’ve started.
Why this crew
The person who quotes the job is on the crew that runs it, and the quote states the base depth, which is the line worth comparing across any estimates you’re holding.
ICPI certified, Techo-Bloc Pro, A+ with the BBB, trading since 2017, working out of a yard on Horseblock Road in Medford.
Frequently asked questions
Can I put chip seal over my existing asphalt driveway?
Only if the existing surface and base are sound. Over a cracked or sunken driveway it will mirror the failure. We’ll look before we answer.
Is it dusty?
No. The stone is embedded in hot asphalt, not loose over a base. That’s a gravel drive, a different thing. There’ll be some loose chip in the first weeks and then it’s a solid surface.
Is my property in Huntington or Smithtown?
Commack straddles both. We’ll confirm from your address at the estimate: it decides which permit office applies.