Crushed asphalt driveway with carpet underlayment

[GilSilvers]

My first driveway project, looking for advice.

Driveway will span a small creek, a shallow ditch really about 1 foot wide. Planning to put two 15" culverts side by side.

The soil 100' either side of the ditch slopes down and is soft and muddy, takes about 10 days to dry out after rain, and even then it will rut.

I've read I need an underlayment between the natural soil and the next layer. Planning to use upside-down salvage carpet for the underlayment - basically free! Instead of $$ geotextile.

Planning to truck in cheap fill dirt (here it is red sandy clay) to build up a road crown on top of the carpet underlayment.

And crushed asphalt (they call it milling) for the road surface.

Do I have my layers right? Underlayment, sandy/clay fill dirt, crushed asphalt? Or does the underlayment go directly beneath the crushed asphalt?

Spreading with front loader and 7' box blade...

 

[Jay4200]

My first driveway project, looking for advice.

Driveway will span a small creek, a shallow ditch really about 1 foot wide. Planning to put two 15" culverts side by side.

The soil 100' either side of the ditch slopes down and is soft and muddy, takes about 10 days to dry out after rain, and even then it will rut.

I've read I need an underlayment between the natural soil and the next layer. Planning to use upside-down salvage carpet for the underlayment - basically free! Instead of $$ geotextile.

Planning to truck in cheap fill dirt (here it is red sandy clay) to build up a road crown on top of the carpet underlayment.

And crushed asphalt (they call it milling) for the road surface.

Do I have my layers right? Underlayment, sandy/clay fill dirt, crushed asphalt? Or does the underlayment go directly beneath the crushed asphalt?

Spreading with front loader and 7' box blade...

I can't comment much on the carpet thing, maybe that's done to help keep soft undersoil from mixing with the top coat, but I wouldn't do that. I would suggest removing the loamy soil (the muddy stuff). Go down until you are mostly free of organics - which is when you hit the sandy clay that is under the loam. Then, bring in bankrun gravel (sand/stone mix - it's cheap) to bring up the grade. You don't want organics (anything black) under your road, and you don't want clay in there either - both turn into soup when they get wet. Bankrun gravel packs in and can be used as a final surface if you want, BUT, if you add 6" of asphalt product as a top coat, you'll have a really nice result.

JayC

 

[GilSilvers]

JayC, you're making a lot of sense. I'd like to do it right - bulldoze the loam until I reach inorganic soil, then put the road on top of it.

I'm getting a quote from my dirt supplier to bulldoze the organic dirt out of the way - probably beyond my checkbook. Unless he's willing to barter for the loam - should be about 250 cu yards.

Thanks.

 

[jml755]

I would forego the underlayment and agree with Jay that you just need to remove the organic soil. here in Michigan, that's usually about a foot of topsoil to get to sand and/or clay. A cheaper alternative to gravel is crushed concrete(CC). Up here, it's readily available in a couple of sizes, 3" (fist-sized) or 1". It was recommended that I put down 6" of 3" then 6" of 1" on about 500 ft of driveway. The downside of 3" is that it's big enough to still have pieces of rebar and reinforcing mesh in it which will cause flat tires. BTDT. After that section, I had trouble finding the 3", so I just put down a foot of 1" CC after removing the topsoil and it's holding up great. No need for the bigger stuff underneath for residential loads IMO. CC costs about half of what gravel costs up here and packs like concrete. Usually driveways use limestone as a topping for it's packing ability over gravel but I've found CC works just as well. And I'd prefer the CC over crushed asphalt if you can get it.

I think the carpet idea is a waste of time if you've got a good base and good drainage off the road surface into the creek. It's crucial that you give the water a place to go and don't let it sit on your "paved" surface because it will make a mess of even a gravel or CC roadbed if allowed to sit.

Don't know if it applies where you're at, but up here in Michigan a "creek" is usually just part of a County drain system and if it's a designated "County Drain", a permit is required to put a culvert in it. Costs $250 and you've got to have the plans approved. In my case, they wouldn't allow side-by-side culverts like you're planning. Needed a 42" culvert but to keep a low-profile, I used an oval shaped one approved by the County. Even ordered it through them and got their discount.

Good luck.
ps, found a couple of pix of the culvert I put in. Sand on either side to the banks of the ditch and one foot over the top with a minimum of 6" of 1" CC on top of that.

 

[GilSilvers]

Thanks, JML. Here they call CC "riff raff." Just learned that today talking to the dozer guy who is getting my road started. I'm going to need plenty of riff raff, apparently.

You know you're on a tractor forum when someone complements you on your culvert pictures! They're very nice.

Thanks.

 

[MacLawn]

Gil, in my area of Georgia, the county code requires that the geo-cloth, or whatever it is called, be put down before you spread gravel on a driveway. You don't say where you are, but you might just want to check into that before you go too far. I am grandfathered in at my place because we have been here so long, but for any new stuff, the underlayment is required now.

 

[beeforty]

I agree with all, if you have to wait 15 days for the ground to dry you need to do it right. Geo clothe keeps the stuff you buy from being sqeezed in to the goo below, won't rot like carpet will. The bigger the culvert the better. At least your not spanning 48' with a bridge like I had to do.$$$ Also I have seen some info on "bottomless" culvert, sort half a pipe that sets on blocks. Fish and Game love it cause you have a natural bottom for critters in the creek plus your pipe never rots out on the bottom:thumbsup:

 

[20 20]

I agree with the others dig down and build from there. I would NOT use regular carpet it will not hold up and might cause bigger headaches later.

 

[gwjd]

carpet weights ten times as much wet and full of dirt dont ask how i know