I need gravel bad!

[schmism]

So when we bought our property in aug of 06 most of the area used by cars was grass. (in front of the barn etc) The reason for this, after years of little use by the previous owner/grandma (who didnt drive) the leaves, dirt, grass grew over a very solid base of gravel that was put down by the owner 30-40 years ago.

you can see what we had in these pics

the way it was the day we came home from buying it.
http://www.snjschmidt.com/pics/property/as_bought/pole_barn2 (Large).jpg

and later that fall same year (2006)
http://www.snjschmidt.com/pics/property/Oct_Nov_06/DSC02487 (Large).JPG

well the grass bairly made it though the rainy spring last year, it was already starting to die off in spots by then, and after we trenched 2 or three diffrent treches across the front, and with regular vehical traffic on it, it was reduced to no grass dirt by the end of last year.

To recap i have a 2-4 inch layer of dirt ontop of a very solid gravel base. (the propain truck does not leave tracks in the area with the exposed gravel.

BUT!

what this has left us with is a worsening 2-3" mud problem. like the cars and even my 4runner needed a tug from the tractor the other morning. Especially with the freeze thaw, it turns into this greesy mess.

After getting stuck rounding the tree to pull into the barn last night (it had been raining yesterday afternoon) I was ORDERED by the boss to get some gravel in ASAP!

But to my question issue.

1) can i just lay 2-4" of driveway gravel (cursher run, 3/4-minus) gravel ontop of the slop? (remember their is a solid base there, some areas ive exposed it already, others it still lies a few inches below dirt)

2) do i have to let it dry? (how much dry?)

3) should i attempt to scrape most of the dirt off?

4) can you put gravel down on frozen ground? does frozen mud cause problems if you put the gravel down on top of it?



As ive said, ive been tasked with getting gravel like "I want you to order gravel today!" so i kinda need to get something worked out

 

[sandman2234]

No clue on this end, at least not any real clue, but what ever your going to do, you better get busy, cause daylight is wasting and the boss won't be happy if the sun sets while your still trying to consider what to do. I would think go ahead and order the gravel and check back in to see if anyone has any good ideas.
David from jax

Just what is "frozen ground", anyway?

 

[Highbeam]

I live in an area where the ground is constantly in the freshly thawed state through the winter. Lots of rain here. It would be a shame to waste that good gravel base that lies below the muck. That good base may be preventing the muck from drying out by perching the water there. In your situation I would add clean crushed rock 1-1/4 to the top which is known as a good rock to puch into and set up around mud. If the mud spooges up through rock then you need more rock or you could dig out those few areas and replace with clean rock.

I don't think you have time to remove all the muck if the wife wants it now.

I'm not a fan of fabric but this might be one of the better applications.

 

[schmism]

im fairly shure if i get some quotes today, and figure out WHO im going to order it from, say im "working on it" and give some sound reasons why we dont want it done RIGHT today.....

i can let it slide for another week or so while i wait for some better weather if needed....

My gut feeling is that i could put it down on frozen mud, but it would squish in later, but not be permantly squishy.

I think i want to scrap most of it off, but have to find weather that is reasonable to do that.

The other pluss is this is baiscly the high spot of the property. the parking/driving area gets sloppy because of rain/thaw not because it "holds" water. a day or 2 after 2" of rain and ill have firm enough mud that you dont track it around anymore.

 

[slowrev]

I would put larger gravel than the crush mix you mentioned. At least a 5-7 size, called 57 around here. Then after that is stable add the crush mix on top if you want.
Not a pro at it , but the way I would do it.

 

[schmism]

hmmm intresting you say that... i do have a pile of left over washed 1.5-2" crushed limestone in the back which is the left over of the base they used before (and in my barn, the crap is the worst to walk on)

but i could put some of that down in the worst spots ASAP as i have it on hand its free. and if it does sink in, no big loss....

 

[wushaw]

I would just add rock where it is needed now and fix it how you like it when it thaws and dries up.

 

[deereguy]

I'd scrape the muck off to the gravel base otherwise the mud will keep working its way up thru the gravel (or gravel into the mud). I know the boss wouldn't like this answer but it beats re-doing the job over and over. If you can add 1" and under (dust) crushed limestone, get it leveled out then drive the tractor back and forth and pack it down, it should be like concrete in a few months. We did this behind a livestock barn, it works well and be scraped off with a smooth edge on a loader bucket.

Good Luck!!

btw- Great job on the clean up around the barn and property!!

 

[riptides]

I am in the same boat as you. We had a new driveway cut in last year and with this years rain squalls and freeze/thaw it needs help.

Basically I am patching with 57a, A small rock and dust mix. In areas where Isee ground, I use 57 (rock only).

This helps the mud.

When the freeze/thaw cycle is over, we will regrade accordingly.

-Mike Z.

 

[jeffinsgf]

I'd get that larger rock on the worst spots right now. Sure, it is going to settle into the mud some, but that's the idea. Digging out isn't going to solve your problem. Building up is what you need to do. Get that 2 inch in there, drive over it for a week or two, then topdress it with some crusher run.