Asphalt Recycler FAQ

07 Nov Asphalt Recycler FAQ

It’s Time!
Along with winter, the asphalt recycling season is here…
Here are a few FAQs to Determine the Best Asphalt Recycler to meet the needs of your growing business.

As the asphalt recycling field grows, the importance of an asphalt recycler grows. From construction companies to municipalities and military operations, asphalt recyclers provide critical solutions to important problems.

Bagela Asphalt Recyclers remain the premier asphalt recycler on the market. The reason is simple, Bagela produces proven results. Regardless of industry or business case, Bagela Asphalt Recyclers deliver high quality recycled asphalt that saves you time and money.

However, as the recycled asphalt industry grows and matures, other products and companies attempt to win new business by polluting the field. As a result, people aiming to purchase an asphalt recycler may have some confusion researching the best product. To help, here are some simple questions to ask yourself and evaluate your asphalt recycler options.

What are your asphalt needs?

First and foremost, when determining the best asphalt recycler for you, ask yourself what are your primary asphalt needs? For example, do you need hot and/or warm mix? Or do you want portability and/or stability?

These questions matter because certain asphalt recyclers offer flexibility for multiple use cases, which not every asphalt recycler provides.

Yes, the Bagela Asphalt Recycler offers continuous OR batch processing. And Bagela recyclers produce hot OR warm-mix asphalt. If you don’t know your needs or desire flexibility or multiple use cases, then ensure your asphalt recycler provides the functions you require.

How much asphalt is recycled per hour?

The industry rates asphalt recyclers based on tons of output per hour (tons/hour).

Nobody wants to waste any time. So, naturally, evaluating tons/hour of an asphalt recycler makes sense as a criterion in your decision making process. Plus, keep in mind that all asphalt recyclers market their tons/hour based on optimal conditions. If any company attempts to dissuade another product by focusing on “optimal conditions” then review those sales materials with a grain of salt.

Additionally, traditional tons/hour accounts for the processing time. This number does not account for load times.

At Bagela, our average recycler recycles at a rate of one ton of material every six minutes, whether batching or operating continuous flow. There is no need to stop operation, remove burners or load with a substandard ground level, built-in loading hopper, all taking time away from the recycling operation. When others claim a “12-20 minute” recycling time, they ARE NOT including the time it takes to load and unload their recycler, which is usually an additional 10-15 minute per batch, significantly lowering their real ton-per-hour rate.

Hydraulically-operated loading hopper allows the Bagela recycler to load RAP without stopping the recycling process.

How efficient is the asphalt recycler?

At the end of the day, you care about solving your problems. You need high quality asphalt capable of repairing a road, utility cut or runway. For example, some asphalt recyclers on the market promote “mobility” as a desired feature. However, well versed industry experts understand that traveling with material simply slows down the overall output times and volume.

Mobile-first works for iPhone apps. It doesn’t work for recycled asphalt because recycled asphalt solves serious problems. A shovel-ready amount of hot mix coming out of an asphalt recycler wastes your time and resources.

As a result, Bagela Asphalt Recyclers focus on recycling ample amounts of high quality asphalt.

For example, once RAP is loaded into a Bagela Asphalt Recycler, it is tumbled through a series of flights and paddles, while indirect heat, through a patented convection process breaks down the material. The entire process takes about 6 minutes to recycle one ton of high quality mix. When utilizing the continuous-flow process, the Bagela is capable of recycling ten tons per hour.

Unfortunately, the Bagela cannot be loaded by a wheelbarrow or by hand, as other manufacturers claim as a benefit to their offering. We know how inefficient and time consuming those methods would be when recycling 10 tons per hour. We recommend a single loader with a 1.5 yard bucket for loading raw and finished materials.

However, others in the industry like to promote the “mobile” nature of their machines, along with additional “features” such as working as a hot box. Yet, any use of an asphalt recycler other than actual recycling seriously impacts the output volume and times. This is not flexibility. Real flexibility allows companies to leverage the asphalt recycler that meets various business needs.

Does the asphalt recycler design support your workflow?

Depending on your primary need for an asphalt recycler, your operational workflow may differ. Therefore, understanding how a particular machine may help or hinder your desired use of the recycled asphalt makes a difference in the decision making process.

The Bagela Asphalt Recycler offers tremendous flexibility, which is not available with other machines on the market. For example, the Bagela recycler gives the operator the option for batch recycling operations or an industry exclusive, preferred, continuous flow operation. All at a rate of 10 tons per hour.

Plus, Bagela Asphalt Recyclers are designed to be fully portable and self-contained. There are no burners to move or remove and no set-up or breakdown whenever quality hot mix is needed. It is serviced by ONE loader and operator, used to load the built-in hopper and then load quality hot mix into a hot box or dump truck as needed.

As a result, the Bagela offers TOTAL control of the input and ultimately the discharge. The operator can discharge as much or as little as the project demands!

Does the company support claims with facts and data?

In a world of “fake news” many industry competitors make many claims about the Bagela Asphalt Recycler. This brash opinion makes sense as a sales tactic if other machines simply cannot prove their results compared to the Bagela.

As a result, when others in the industry make claims about the size or speed of production, ask for supporting evidence. Additionally, some materials in the field make unsubstantiated claims, look out for such proclamations, such as:

• Do any materials make categorical claims of a superior product? Request the independent testing results.
• Are there any claims of competitors switching providers? Ask to speak with such a client to confirm.
• Do any materials promoting the fastest tons/hour production? Confirm load times are included in the tons/hour rate.
• Are any references made to substandard quality? Verify output quality based on independent testing results or clients that reportedly switch machines.
• Any design comparisons related to the structure or mixing drums that process RAP (millings and chunks)? Speak with customer sales reps to verify the design and structure of the machine and do not rely on a competing salesperson.
• Do sales materials attempt to make safety claims? Certainly verify any safety claims because asphalt recyclers require certain EPA standards and must meet various regulatory demands.

Finally, many factors contribute towards the overall expense. For any claims of a better machine at a lower price, look for the unrefuted evidence that supports such claims.

Decision time

As always, the decision is yours. Start with a demo. Once the merits of the Bagela design are demonstrated, you will more than likely conclude that a Bagela Asphalt Recycler is more than a fancy website and a lot of claims! With over 2300 Bagela Asphalt Recyclers in use worldwide, we have a large mix of commercial, municipal and Government customers that are more than willing to share their success with their Bagela Asphalt Recycler.

Interested in learning more? Contact Pavement Recyclers today!