Driveway advice

   / Driveway advice #1  

podagrower

Silver Member
Joined
Apr 5, 2007
Messages
217
Location
Eustis, FL
Tractor
NH TC 40
It's time to fix the driveway for real. About 10 years ago, I built a driveway with "road base", which in my area is recycled concrete and limerock mixed. It has served us well, except for 2 spots where I suspect I just didn't get it thick enough, the rest of it has hardened and packed down like concrete. It has ruts where we drive on it, leaving the center higher, and I also screwed up the slope for drainage (left it flat, should have sloped it to one side). The plan is to go over it with milled asphalt. I have access to a transit level, compactors of all sizes, my tractor with bucket and box blade. The questions are: 1. Where the 2 bad spots and ruts are, am i better off just adding more milled asphalt to bring it up to the rest of the drive, or should I fill in with some gravel/fines first (the ruts are probably 2" deep at the worst). 2. Since I already have a solid 6" base, is 4" of milled asphalt enough to make it bulletproof. 3. Should I blow off/broom off loose dirt and leaves first, or is that a waste of time. 4. Anybody got a better idea for establishing the depth of the asphalt I'm putting down besides just driving a bunch of stakes beside the drive and stringing between them.
 
   / Driveway advice #2  
Break up the edges of those potholes with scarifiers or any material you lay on/in them will squeeze out over time - I had the same problem with my stone dust base - fill the holes with gravel and the gravel just slides right out and the holes return.
 
   / Driveway advice #3  
My drive started out when they dug out about 12" of topsoil and graded about 10" of 4" lime rock. After running a vib roller on it, they put about 4" of 3/4" lime gravel on top.
 
   / Driveway advice #4  
Are those rutted areas from water or from a poor subbase or a thin spot of material? I'd try and determine that first. It would definitely effect how I would recommend fixing the issue. Also, what is the virgin soil like in the area?
 
   / Driveway advice
  • Thread Starter
#5  
Break up the edges of those potholes with scarifiers or any material you lay on/in them will squeeze out over time - I had the same problem with my stone dust base - fill the holes with gravel and the gravel just slides right out and the holes return.

The squeezing out is my fear, no real way for new base to "bond" to the old base.

Are those rutted areas from water or from a poor subbase or a thin spot of material? I'd try and determine that first. It would definitely effect how I would recommend fixing the issue. Also, what is the virgin soil like in the area?

The rutted areas are just from traffic wearing down what is there. The 2 bad spots are from my original material being too thin (to my semi educated eyes). Virgin soil is "sandy loam" on a good day, but turns into sugar sand that swallows vehicles if it is over worked, I did take off the top 3 or 4" of soil/sand when I put in the road base.
 
   / Driveway advice #6  
For a good base, you need 3-4" dia rock that is odd shaped, not round rocks like wash stone. Round and smooth stone will keep slipping past each other and won't hold up weight.
 
   / Driveway advice #7  
I don't know what is typical in Florida, but we use geotextile over a poor clay soil. We have mostly clay soils in Western PA and as long as the water is kept out of it and the pressures are kept down it is decent to work with. First thing is always to control your water though. If they are in low spots, I would consider adding some perforated pipe to keep everything dry before you put the finish layer on.
 
 
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