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Dan Miner, owner of Quality Seal in Hanford, WA, is a self-taught sealcoater. He began his business eight years ago as an alternative to a career as a shift worker at his community's nuclear power plant. By attending pavement shows, gathering tips from equipment and materials dealers, and through trial and error, Miner has built his two-man operation into a business that employs six workers and services both residential and commercial markets in sealcoating, sweeping, crack repair, and striping.

Sealcoating is Miner's bread and butter, accounting for about 75% of his business. In mid-October, when the sealcoating season is over in Washington, he turns to sweeping to keep busy until spring. Miner believes in keeping Quality Seal diverse and plans to add paving to the list of services his company supplies in the future.

"This way we can offer the customer everything," Miner explains. "If someone wants to add on to a driveway, I have to contract that paving out. I want us to be able to do it all ourselves."

When it comes to getting the word out about the services Quality Seal offers, Miner says the phone book is a good place to advertise, but also finds a lot of new business prospects at a local home show held in his community every spring. Miner says business is up about 30% this year over last year, and he believes much of that has to do with the exposure he gets at the home show. Miner has sealcoating samples available at his table so people can touch, feel, and see how sealcoating can improve a pavement.

"I find myself educating people," Miner says. "If we do a home show, it really enlightens people. And at the same time, you run into a lot of professionals that have businesses, like dentists and doctors, who are there shopping themselves."