Professional Sealcoating will reduce wear, beautify and protect your investment
- Prevents gas, oil and salt damage
- Prevents sun induced oxidation
- Prevents water damage
- Reduces Maintenance cost
- Rubberized material enhances wear and adhesion
Your driveway was a major investment. Sealcoating is exactly how you protect that investment, maximizing the life of your driveway.
STAR-SEAL: THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN BLACK & GRAY
STAR-SEAL concentrate provides a tough charcoal barrier fortified with inert minerals. This solution is resistant to most prevalent elements that damage asphalt surfaces. STAR-SEAL has protective characteristics for better adhesion and longer wear.
Winter is Coming – Protect Your Driveway Now
The winters on Long Island are a strange beast. Some winters are harsh in Nassau and Suffolk county, while others seem mild. Your driveway, however, can face severe damage from the constantly changing temperatures as well as rain water in a mild winter that freezes days or weeks later. Sealcoating is the best step you can take to avoid thousands of dollars in damages this winter. It protects – and looks great!
Hand Brushed, Never Sprayed
Every driveway we seal is done by hand with brushes. It is slower than spraying, and that is the point. Brushing pushes the sealer down into the pores of the blacktop and into small surface cracks, and it leaves a thicker, more even coat. A sprayed coat is thin by comparison, so it wears through sooner, and spray drifts onto garage doors, walkways and lawns.
The product matters too. We use STAR-SEAL concentrate, a professional grade sealer fortified with minerals for wear. The sealer sold in pails at home centers is not the same material and will not last as long.
More on how we apply it: Long Island Sealcoating.
What Sealcoating Does, and What It Does Not Do
Sealcoating is protection for pavement that is still sound. It closes the surface so water, salt, gas and oil stay out, it blocks the sun that dries blacktop out and turns it gray, and it brings back a deep, even black. Done on schedule, it is the least expensive way to get more years out of a driveway.
Sealer is not a repair for broken pavement. Potholes, crumbled edges and sunken areas have to be cut out and hot patched with new asphalt first. We do that work before sealing, so the repair is protected and the whole driveway finishes one even color. If the pavement is cracked everywhere in a connected pattern, the base has failed, and we will tell you honestly that sealing it would be money wasted. See Blacktop Paving.
When to Sealcoat on Long Island
Sealcoating is warm weather work. Sealer needs mild, dry conditions to go on properly and cure, so rain, cold pavement and cold nights all push jobs back. Good weather days fill up quickly, which is why it pays to book early in the season.
- New driveway: wait 6 to 12 months after paving so the blacktop can cure, but do not wait longer than a year.
- Existing driveway: when the surface has faded from black to gray and water soaks in instead of beading on top, it is time.
- Before winter: a driveway that goes into winter sealed keeps water out through months of freezing and thawing.
More on timing and how often to reseal: Sealcoating on Long Island.
Getting Ready for Sealcoating Day
A little preparation helps the job go smoothly:
- Move cars, trailers, basketball hoops and anything else off the driveway before we arrive, and park where you can get out while it dries.
- Turn off lawn sprinklers that reach the driveway, the day of the job and the day after.
- Keep children and pets off the fresh sealer. It tracks onto floors and carpets.
- Let us know about deliveries or guests expected that day so we can plan around them.
When we finish, the driveway is blocked off. Drying time depends on the temperature, the sun and the humidity, so we will tell you exactly when you can walk on it and when you can drive on it.
What Affects the Cost of Sealcoating
We price every driveway after seeing it, and the quote is free and in writing. The price depends on:
- Size. The square footage of the driveway or lot.
- Condition. A dry, porous surface that has never been sealed takes more material than one that has been maintained.
- Repairs. Potholes and broken areas that need hot patching before the sealer goes on.
- Your neighbors. When several driveways on the same street are booked for the same day, we save on travel and pass the savings on.
Parking Lot Sealcoating
We sealcoat parking lots for commercial properties, chains, restaurants and supermarkets across Nassau and Suffolk counties. Repairs are made first, the lot can be sealed in sections so part of it stays open, work can be scheduled around your business hours, and fresh striping finishes the job. See our Client List.
Frequent Sealcoat and Asphalt Maintenance Questions
Studies by the Asphalt Institute show measurable benefits from preventive maintenance. Periodic crack sealing and sealcoating can more than double the life of your pavement.
No. Many manufacturers produce sealcoat, but the process, standards and compounds vary greatly. Sealcoat bought locally in pails will not last as long as a professional-grade product applied by a contractor. Reitman hand-brushes STAR-SEAL concentrate.
No. New pavement must lose some of its light oils and cure before it can be properly sealcoated. Wait at least six months, but do not wait more than a year. Newly installed, unsealed asphalt can absorb oil, gas and other chemicals or be damaged by winter weather before it is treated.
A new driveway sealed within 6 to 12 months of installation can get 2 to 3 years of protection from the first application under normal weather. A 10 year old driveway that was never sealed may only get 1 year from the first application, then 2 to 3 years from later applications. Water runoff, salt, sand, snowplowing and severe temperature swings all shorten that. After a severe winter you may need to sealcoat after one year. Anyone promising 5, 6 or 7 years from one coat is making empty promises.
Yes. With the high cost of gas and labor, we save time and money by avoiding travel between jobs, and we pass those savings along to you and your neighbors. Call (631) 549-5455 and mention your neighbors when you book.
Brushed. We apply STAR-SEAL by hand with brushes on every job. Brushing works the sealer into the surface and into small cracks and leaves a thicker coat. Sprayed sealer goes on thin and wears off sooner.
During the warmer months, on a dry day. Sealer needs mild, dry weather to go on properly and cure. It is best to seal before winter so water stays out of the pavement through the freezing and thawing season.
Hand brushed sealer fills small surface cracks and keeps water out of them. Potholes, broken edges and failed areas have to be repaired with hot asphalt first, and then the driveway is sealed so the whole surface is one even color.
Drying time depends on the temperature, the sun and the humidity on the day. We block off the driveway when we finish and tell you exactly when you can walk on it and when you can drive on it.
Content reviewed by Bob Reitman, Reitman Sealcoating, Inc. Last updated September 2026.
Why Homeowners Choose Reitman for Their Driveways
Bob Reitman and his team have served Long Island for 51 years. Over 14,000 properties in Nassau and Suffolk Counties have our work. Property owners trust our expertise. We’ve earned an A+ BBB rating for excellence. We also have 4.7 stars on Google Reviews. Our Credentials:- Half a century of Long Island expertise
- 14,000+ Long Island homes improved
- A+ accreditation from the BBB
- Google rating: 4.7 stars from real clients
- Hundreds of happy customer reviews
“By far beyond the best sealing company you’ll ever call. I’m speaking not just as a customer but as a contractor who has referred this company for over 20 years and each and every customer I sent has personally made it a point to call me to thank me for the price and service.”
– Christopher Juliano, Long Island Contractor
“We used Reitman for a new driveway installation. They removed and replaced our asphalt driveway. Reitman was very responsive and professional. They do high quality work at a competitive price.”
– John Nitti
“They worked with me to be sure everything was prepared prior to the sealing. It was efficient and very, very reasonable. Great job where they carefully applied the sealer to the driveway without getting it on the cobblestones.”
– Gregory Winter
What Makes Reitman Different:
- Bob Reitman personally oversees every residential project
- Top-quality materials and professional equipment
- Licensed, bonded, and fully insured
- Free quotes with upfront pricing
- Regular upkeep reminders to preserve quality
- Reliable, neat, and friendly team
