base for gravel

[vtsnowedin]

The one time I had a large load of crusher run delivered to complete our driveway after we moved into our new house and construction traffic was done, I had the driver put it down with the truck. She (a grandma who drives a dump truck and makes big $$) opened the gate and chained it so that it would not open all the way, and then took off down the driveway raising the dump. It worked awesome. I had very little extra work to do with the tractor other than to compact and groom it with a box blade. I think it has to be a good experienced driver, and dry crusher run would certainly help. I can't see it working if it was damp.

An experienced truck driver is a wonderful thing. Years ago the town road crew would spread loads by themselves in mud season and if they stalled and left a pile had to shovel it around by hand so the next tax paying car that came along could get passed it without losing a muffler. Shovel a few yards by hand and you will learn how to do it no shoveling required.

 

[/pine]

In these parts with (granite) crusher run...it is always wet (unless in a drought)...the fines hold water...that's why (here) the yield is slightly less than say #57's etc when paying by the ton... But as 's219' related... with a good driver, spreading with the truck does an almost perfect job...usually just have to feather out the starting and stopping points...
Around here a good driver can (by adjusting the gate chain) lay it down as thick or thin as you want it...

 

[s219]

Shovel a few yards by hand and you will learn how to do it no shoveling required.

Boy is that the truth. I once shoveled 30 tons of topsoil to spread it, and to this day my wrists have never been right. I occasionally have to shovel 1-2 yards of material out of my trailer into the tractor bucket, and it's not fun. One of these days I will buy a dump trailer. Or just suck it up and pay the haul fee for small deliveries.

 

[dmccarty]

In these parts with (granite) crusher run...it is always wet (unless in a drought)...the fines hold water...

A quarry in NC that sells ABC to DOT is required to maintain the moisture content in the gravel. It has to be within a certain range though. The quarry could rip off the buyer by having soaking wet ABC so there is a standard they are supposed to follow. From buying gravel over the years, the moisture content seems to be the same. I can't measure the moisture level but it always looks the same and spreads the same.

Later,
Dan

 

[vtsnowedin]

A quarry in NC that sells ABC to DOT is required to maintain the moisture content in the gravel. It has to be within a certain range though. The quarry could rip off the buyer by having soaking wet ABC so there is a standard they are supposed to follow. From buying gravel over the years, the moisture content seems to be the same. I can't measure the moisture level but it always looks the same and spreads the same.

Later,
Dan

Measuring moisture in aggregate is no trick. take a sample of about a pound and weight it on a scale that reads to a single gram. Your wife's diet scale will do. put it in a cake tin and into an oven at 350 until it is totally dry. let it cool then weight it again. The wet weight minus the dry weight gives the moisture content in grams then divide by the wet weight to get the moisture in the sample as a percentage. If you had 1000 grams wet and 900 dry you would have had 100 grams of water and a 10% sample.
An out door stockpile is at the mercy of the weather. Clean sand will normally run about 3% moisture but the day after a good rain it will be 8 to 9 % as the rain water drains down through the pile.
. Concrete plants use sensor probes in the bins to adjust each load for the water in the sand and stone. It is the only way to get consistent results load to load.

If what you produce locally called crusher run holds more then that it has too much dust and clay in it to pass most specifications. Some soft rock sources turn into a very dusty product when crushed that may pack well in the south but would not stand freeze thaw cycles hear in New England.

 

[Tollster]

Kind of in the same boat here in PA, I laid down a layer of #3 or #4 angular ( Not sure what size it was), no round river rock, as I wanted them to lock together to prevent the vehicles from kicking it out.., then graded it with my York rake.
This is prior to construction, so construction vehicles will compact it.. it will likely require another 15-20 tons of the same after wards, then I'll top with #2 crushed, so it too will interlock with the larger stones and also allow drainage without washout or migration due to vehicle travel.
This was in a clay base as well towards the bottom and middle of this shot, as it was tied into and older drive at the top which seemed compacted.. At the bottom of this shot the old drive was at 90 degrees to the road, I angled it to allow bigger tucks access, and built the wall along the hill and a bigger terraced wall on the other side, so allow an over run for the turn up the hill from the road... The main road is a cul-de-sac, allowing only one way in, so the drive was angled for that access.
You can see the old road in this image, it goes along the upper ride where I angled the stone wall so I could back it if I can't make the hill in the winter..

This is the over run area on the down hill side..
It took me 3 months with my Little BX23 to cut it in, timber, haul stone, stack, grade, regrade, and stone

Getting the house bid tomorrow.. reality check time!

 

[check]

The muddy part of my driveway that makes ruts looks awfully black, and I suspect it has a lot of organics in it. Can I still put 4" inch crusher run down over top of it as a base?

BTW the soil down deeper is Rocky Sandy.

 

[AaronS]

I love that rock wall!

 

[vtsnowedin]

The muddy part of my driveway that makes ruts looks awfully black, and I suspect it has a lot of organics in it. Can I still put 4" inch crusher run down over top of it as a base?

BTW the soil down deeper is Rocky Sandy.

You can but it won't last. An inch of topsoil can turn a foot of clean gravel into mud. If you dig out all the organic top soil and replace with good gravel or crushed rock it will last for decades.

 

[vtsnowedin]

I love that rock wall!

+1 Plus one on that.! He has some time and money tied up in that already.