This time of year, you put extra effort into protect the mat from the screed. Parts of North America have ambient temperatures too cool for paving, but municipalities and residential managers have to get projects in under some kind of deadline. That puts the onus on you and your equipment operators to keep a closer eye on start-up temps.
If your night paving crew wishes to warm the paver by stopping once a portion of the mat is placed, to let all components gain heat from the hot mix, watch the screed carefully. It will settle when not in motion. If you sit for longer than seven or eight minutes, you risk creating an indentation in the mat. Instead, stay alert.
Step One: The general rule of thumb is to charge the hopper from the second truck—second load—that’s arrived onsite. It will likely be a few degrees hotter than the first load, which sat in the silo cone awaiting loadout.
Step Two: Then pave forward the length of the paver and stop.
Step Three: Set your timer for five minutes to be sure you don’t sit too long.
Step Four: After five to six minutes of warming up, the paver is ready to go. Forge ahead at 20 to 25 feet per minute, following your best paving practices, as discussed in this article.