Whether you’re looking to stabilize clay-based soil or lower road construction costs, Perma-Zyme is the solution for you. You can use Perma-Zyme to create long-lasting unpaved roads, low-cost paved roads, and dozens of other projects.
You can apply this unique soil stabilizer on unpaved roads, paved roads, and dozens of other projects.
Governments, heavy industries, and homeowners all over the world trust Perma-Zyme as their go-to soil stabilizer. Discover who they are.
Whether you want to see a unpaved road that’s over eight years old or a paved road that’s over 20 years old, you can see all of those right where you are. View aerial and street-level photos and videos so you can get up close and personal with this unique soil stabilizer.
“It was a huge success…I would definitely recommend Perma-Zyme.”
“We started using Perma-Zyme in the early 80’s. Over 30 years ago and those roads are still holding up. Great product!”
“The asphalt over the subbase treated with Perma-Zyme is in the same condition if not better than the CTB treated subbase.”
Download our free How Perma-Zyme Works white paper.
Perma-Zyme is made of a proprietary blend of all-natural ingredients. Its active ingredients are a unique blend of enzymes. Learn more about how it's made.
The enzymes create a cationic chemical reaction, bonding clay particles in the soil together to produce high-density dirt road surfaces or a strong foundation for paved road construction, at a fraction of the cost of traditional methods. To learn more, read our blog What's an Enzyme, and How Does it Work?
The price varies based on container size. We sell Perma-Zyme in liquid form by weight. It comes in a one-gallon jug, five-gallon pail, or 250-gallon tote. Pails come with a convenient spout for transferring the product to water trucks.
For a quote, speak with our sales team about your project.
All projects require one gallon of Perma-Zyme per 160 cubic yards of soil.
To help put that into perspective, here’s how much you need to treat areas that are common sizes:
Perma-Zyme is extremely versatile and works with a wide range of soils. The soil should contain at least 15% cohesive fines. It should not contain more than 80% cohesive fines.
To achieve optimal results, it is ideal to have a wide variety of material sizes in the soil. This increases shear strength and internal friction which also increases the soil’s load-bearing capacity.
Before beginning any application, we recommend performing a #200 Finder Soil Evaluation to ensure Perma-Zyme will yield the proper results. We perform this evaluation for potential customers for free; we even pay for shipping!
Most customers can make incompatible soils work with Perma-Zyme by adding lime or decomposed granite to the area before treatment.
While you’ll incur some additional material and hauling costs to make your soil compatible, the end result is an impermeable, concrete-like surface that lasts for years and dramatically reduces maintenance costs. These long-term savings should offset the upfront cost of adjusting your soil to be Perma-Zyme compatible. To learn more about making your soil work with Perma-Zyme, check out our blog What If My Soil Is Incompatible With Perma-Zyme?
Yes, Perma-Zyme is the perfect foundation for an asphalt or chipseal road. When using Perma-Zyme with chipseal, follow the standard application instructions for Perma-Zyme and allow the treated area 72 hours to cure fully. Prior to the chipseal application, spray a small amount of Perma-Zyme diluted with water (approximately 1:10,000) onto the subbase to bond the chipseal to it.
Perma-Zyme’s most unique aspect is that it allows you to use native soil as a subbase and does not require transportation of any soil or rock to the jobsite. Instead, it hardens the native soil into a strong, concrete-like subbase that leads to a long-lasting road. That greatly decreases construction costs and saves time on the construction phase.
Application is a simple, one-time process. The basic steps are:
For more detailed information, check out our training videos.
There is no set dilution rate for Perma-Zyme.
You always need one gallon per 160 cubic yards of soil. However, the amount of water you need varies from application to application.
When applying Perma-Zyme, your soil must reach optimum moisture so it can compact fully. You’ll need more water to reach optimum moisture in a hot, dry climate than in a cool, humid one.
Since water usage changes from one project to the next, so does the dilution rate.
Optimum moisture is when the soil is wet enough to stick to itself and compact easily, but not so wet that it’s muddy or can’t hold its shape. Soil must be at optimum moisture to compact properly.
You can hire a geotechnical firm to determine your soil’s optimum moisture, or you can perform a hand test. Check out our blog, What Is Optimum Moisture Content?
Having the proper tools for the job is extremely important to ensure your Perma-Zyme application is successful. Substrata recommends the following equipment:
If you are recycling an existing paved road, you’ll need a reclaimer, also called a pulverizer or soil stabilizer.
You can apply Perma-Zyme in as little as one day, or you can apply it over two days. In the latter instance, you would rip up and pre-soak the soil one day so you can expedite construction the next day.
The lifespan of Perma-Zyme treated roads depends on many factors, including traffic, weather, water drainage, and paving. Unpaved roads typically see a lifespan of up to 10 years, while paved roads see a lifespan in excess of 20 years.
Yes.
Occasionally, Perma-Zyme treated roads may need minor repairs due to normal wear and tear, frequent traffic, heavy equipment, or damage during the curing process, like rain or speeding vehicles. These repairs are minimal and substantially cheaper than conventional road repairs.
For dirt roads, dilute a small amount of Perma-Zyme with water (approximately 1:1,000) and spray it on the soil to deactivate the soil’s cementation so you can move and manipulate it. After achieving the desired form, re-compact the soil and allow 72 hours for it to fully cure.
For paved roads, use traditional chipseal repair procedures.
With our Extra Mile Guarantee, U.S.-based customers can get a full refund on up to three pails of Perma-Zyme over the life of their roads, whether that’s one month, one year, or 10 years after application!
We work with each customer before and during application to ensure that they’re happy with their results, and we’ll do our best to make sure you’re satisfied, too.