Recycled Asphalt Shingles

What are your thoughts on recycled ashphalt shingles (RAS)? How would you like to incorporate them into your contracting business?

RAS is a cool concept with some real potential, but it’s got its pros and cons. I like that it cuts down landfill waste—only about 10% of the 13 million tons of shingle waste in the US gets recycled, which is wild. It’s also cost-effective, saving on virgin asphalt and aggregate for things like driveways or road base. The catch? Quality control is tricky. Older shingles can have contaminants like asbestos, and mixing RAS into hot-mix asphalt needs careful testing to avoid issues like cracking, especially in a coastal spot like Torrance where we deal with salt and UV.

For my business, I’d consider partnering with a local RAS supplier to test it in smaller projects, like residential driveways or parking lot patches, where regulations are looser. Using it in new shingles or underlayments could also be a green selling point for eco-conscious clients. Anyone here using RAS regularly? What’s your setup for sourcing clean material?

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Incorporating RAS (Recycled Asphalt Shingles) into pavement mixtures can contribute to reducing landfill waste, offering significant advantages. Moreover, utilizing RAS and other recycled materials helps alleviate the environmental impact caused by the production of new asphalt materials. 

-wilkinsonwilfrid

Using RAS in pavement mixtures can assist decrease landfill trash, which is one of the key benefits. In addition, the use of RAS and other recycled materials helps lessen the toll that new asphalt materials take on the environment.

Recycled asphalt shingles (RAS) refer to the reuse or recycling of asphalt roofing shingles that have reached the end of their service life.

On the one hand, it is an economical and efficient material for road construction. On the other hand, it is a potentially hazardous waste that requires special control because there is a possibility of environmental pollution by heavy metals, organic compounds, and asbestos contained in some types of shingles. You need to be confident in the quality of the material and have a proven and reliable supplier.

-LeonardLi

No doubt that there are considerations like this. There are some states that have RAS usage in place with all appropriate regulations. Not so in NYS.

The easier road for RAS usage is in parking lots and driveways. Public road usage could be limited to the base coat. If there is a will, there's a way! The industry sends millions and millions of pounds into landfills each year. Some (most?) could be used as RAS! 

Recycled asphalt shingles (RAS) are a type of recycled material that is made from waste asphalt shingles. They are commonly used as a component in asphalt pavement mixtures, as they can help improve the performance and durability of the pavement.

One of the main benefits of using RAS in pavement mixtures is that it can help reduce the amount of waste that is sent to landfills. Additionally, using recycled materials like RAS can help reduce the environmental impact of producing new asphalt materials.

If you have a contracting business that involves working with asphalt pavement, incorporating RAS into your business could be a way to differentiate yourself from competitors and appeal to environmentally-conscious customers. You could consider partnering with a local or regional RAS supplier to obtain the material, or invest in equipment to process and recycle waste asphalt shingles yourself.

Can't do RAS if there isn't a recycler in my area.

Can't become a profitable recycler if there is no one to sell it to due to:

1. transportation costs

2. no state DOT regulations allowing asphalt companies to use it

3. Even if there were state DOTs allowing it,  are asphalt companies going to take and use it? Is there a consumer demand for it?