Price for Gravel Driveway?

[kbarrett]

The new house is coming together a bit quicker than anticipated and it is forcing me to seriously consider completing the driveway a bit sooner than originally
planned.

Some background:

House sets back off the road and is in the woods. Nobody seems to be able to agree on the driveway's length ('625 - '700) are the ranges in size that people have measured. (I have no idea how there can be such a difference). For argument, lets say it's 650'. x 14' wide.

I might add that about 300' of the drive is in an open area (from treeline to road).

The soil type in the area is primarily clay/loam, so I paid $3300 to have a foot thick "muck" layer peeled off the top and then replaced with sand (about 30% clay content) that was dug from the property.

Had to do this step just so the heavy equipment could make it back to the house.

My question is this what would be the best gravel to lay on this bed: Crushed Concrete, Dolomite (limestone) or 22A Road "Grade" gravel. What's easier to maintain?

I will eventually pave this when finances permit. So, I'm leaning towards 22A for economy reasons. Some concerns are that the clay content of even 22A may turn into a giant mess in the springtime etc.

What is a fair price to pay for this to be done ($4-5K?).
Yeah, I know it's kind of hard to say if that is a good deal or not. Location, Proximity to Gravel pits, Transportation, Labor and Equipment all come into play.

Well, maybe it's impossible to guess at this point, but I was assuming that it would be closer to 3K to finish it up. Maybe a few more quotes are in order here?

 

[TonyC]

From experience I would recommend Crush and Run which is the 38 stone with rock dust in it. It packs well and won't dance off the driveway everytime someone rolls over it. I also laid down a nice layer of used broken brick as a base. It was very very cheap and makes a nice firm base. With the crush and run packing into it it will make a perfect preparation for when you win the lottery and have it black topped!!!!/w3tcompact/icons/grin.gif

 

[Anonymous Poster]

Around here I pay a lot more for the trucking than the stone. So there isn't much economy for me in buying a cheaper stone if it is not really the right product.

I recommend against crushed concrete unless you are going to cover it with several inches of something else immediately. I found out the hard way: had about 200 tons delivered for use under my pole barn and it had lots of metal and wood debris mixed in. I wouldn't want to puncture a tire with an old piece of wire or something.

In my area people stay away from anything with clay in it for driveways. Two inch crusher run (i.e. with the fines left in) makes a good base. I like mine topped with one inch crusher run. Find out what the people who do this a lot in your area would use, even if you have to get quotes to find out.

 

[tgello]

kevin, i just did my driveway this past fall. its 800' long by 12' wide. what works best in the area in CT i live in is to strip any top soil off it . dig it down a foot . iused a fabric cloth that lets the water move up and down but not let any silt come up through the stone. i can't remember what they call it. its in a roll 400' long by 12' wide.cost about $300 per roll,but well worth it. next step is to put a 8" base of whats called 3 inch minus processed stone or road base. after you spread that top dress it with inch and a quater processed stone . the stone dust in it will lock it all together nice. if you can get your hands on a roller youd be set. use a 10 ton vibritory one. the top dressing should be 4" thick. my driveway is solid .....tgello

 

[hwp]

By my rough calculations I figure you need about 500 tonnes of stone. Around here crushed stone goes for about $10 per tonne. A tri-axle can haul about 16 tonnes so you need about 30 truckloads. Around here delivery costs about $50 per load. If you need to get someone to grade and compact the stone, my guess is that would cost another $1000 including float charges. So if I were having it done I would expect to pay about $7500. Now when that gets converted to US currency and productivity, I would think you should get it done for about $US3500.

As others have said, I would start with a thick coarse base (about 8"), then about 3" of medium base and a top coat of about 2" of road mix. This should give a good base to pave later.

 

[MarkV]

Kevin,

Gravel road systems vary so much depending on region I am always fascinated by these discussions. In my area, which is mostly clay, we would start with a #4 gravel as a base and top with crusher run. We get a load of 16 tons delivered for about $225 where I am. Asphalt installed goes for around a $1 a square foot here but that does not include the base material.

Check out this site that estimates the amount and gives some descriptions of the types of gravel you need.

www.nest.com/calculator.htm

The next drive I build I will use the road fabric that tgello used on his drive. Although the initial cost seems like an extra expense, I think you will save that much in gravel in the future as you develop the roadbed for asphalt. That darn gravel just seems to disappear the first few years.

MarkV

 

[tgello]

kevin, howard hit it pretty close. i used 265 tons on half of the driveway. the other half i had material for, but still have to top dress it. where i am the 3" minus base was 9.00 a ton delivered. inch and a quater top was 13.90 a ton delivered. a tri axle here will carry on average 22-25 tons. the smaller the material the more load. most loads are 16 yards. the usally figure one and a half tons per yard of inch and a quater stone. you want to used crushed stone and not pipe gravel or bank run gravel because it is round and will never pack down. ....tgello

 

[PaulT]

Sounds like you're getting good advice from these guys. I hvae done this with an 800' drive, and now need a new top layer. The only thing I would question is the capacity of a tri-axle. Everytime I get a load of stone, whether its #2, pea gravel, etc, they claim they are bringing 22 tons, or about 14 yards. Since some of this stuff varies in density, the weight will vary. Water content will have an effect on weight, too. I would think it safer to assume 14 yds of material per truck, and calculate how many trucks you need that way, then call your quarry and ask how many tons per yard, since they usually price per ton. Also, have it delivered only after at east 5 days of clear weather, unless timing is critical.

 

[hwp]

Sorry I blew it. I meant 16 yards or about 22-25 tonnes per triaxle load. You do pay for the water from the crusher.

 

[kbarrett]

It never ceases to amaze me the expertise on this forum. I'll have to make a decision here pretty quick. Thanks for the advice and insight.