Freshening Up the Gravel Drive

[dirtworksequip]

Runner, thanks for the good comment. Just take your time and you will eventually get the hang of what you are doing with the rake. Maybe try running with it barely touching the stone.
Pittbull is right about grading up the road first to get rid of any potholes or ruts. Then lay down the new stone. I sort of took that for granted as something I always do and forgot to really mention it when I first posted. Also get rid of the water, no matter if it is even a minute amount and you will have a road that will hold up and cost you less in the long run.

Sincerely, Dirt

 

[dangerdoc]

Dirt,

I just can't get a smooth surface with any rear attachments without gauge wheels. When the front of the tractor hits some irregularity in the drive, it changes the depth of the rake, or blade, and I wind up with "ripples" in the surface.

This might not be as much of a problem in grading dirt, where it wouldn't be quite as noticeable, but on a driveway, you feel all the imperfections.

I've heard others on here say they can get it smooth without wheels, but I sure can't figure out how. I know you would have to be constantly on the rockshaft lever, and I tried that with limited success, but it gets old FAST.

Having the wheels on there makes it a "set it and forget it" deal.

I have found that if you turn a regular blade backwards and then blade, it does a great job spreading rock and almost eliminates the ripples.

 

[ore540]

Nice job on the driveway.

How deep did you make the 3/4" gravel? I'm looking to regravel mine soon. It has a good solid base but needs a new top coat. I've guessed at an inch or two but don't really know.

In the past I've patched it with "3/4 minus" which has done a great job. It's just time to do the whole thing.

Thanks.

 

[Runner]

ore

I used different amounts in different areas, depending on the shape they were in. Out by the street, I had to fill in about 4 inches and tapered down to the original surface. Most of the "good" part of the drive, I just layed down about an inch or so, maybe a little deeper to fill in some isolated low spots.

The main problem I was fixing was the back half of the drive (behind the shop where the pile was dumped). That whole area was originally just a couple of inches of "crusher run" sitting on the dirt, and was very soft and spongy whenever it rained. I added about two inches over that whole area to try and firm it up. Not sure if it will totally fix that problem, but it's got to help.

The main thing I am finding out about gravel is that I never seem to have enough. There are still areas where I need to add more, but I don't feel like doing it right now, so I'll probably let them go until next year.

Also, I've decided I'm not crazy about crusher run or really small crushed rock for the driveway because it is messy. I'm constantly having to sweep the stuff out of the shop and garage. I think the larger sized gravel will stay put better.

Good luck on your project.

 

[scesnick]

. That's what scarifiers on a box blade are for, loosen up the top material, fill in the low spots and then spread the rock so that it packs evenly into the road surface.
.

This is how i do it also. My driveway/road is 2.5 miles long that I have to maintain. So, i have had plenty of seat time with the box blade attached...

 

[ore540]

ore

<snip>

Also, I've decided I'm not crazy about crusher run or really small crushed rock for the driveway because it is messy. I'm constantly having to sweep the stuff out of the shop and garage. I think the larger sized gravel will stay put better.

Good luck on your project.

Thanks. You're probably right about the small stuff getting into the shop but I've been clearing the larger gravel surface off of my drive. When I ride the motorcycle in the big stuff the wheels dig in and it wanders a bit more that I like. Not the part of riding I want to make exciting but I'm getting kinda old and dull .

 

[ampsucker]

we use 1" base. this is sometimes called 1" "dirty" and has lots of fine poweder mixed with the 1 inch rock. it is what they use for a lot of the county roads around here. anyway, the key is the 1" size packs and locks together well and is heavy enough and large enough it wont get stuck in your boot treads or tire treads. the dirty part keeps it really well packed and basically becomes almost like a cement that locks things in place and makes it harder for water to erode. just don't use dirty rock over drainage pipes as it will keep the water from draining. you need to use clean so the water can work it's way through the rocks to the drain.

the process for dirty is this:

spread rock, blade smooth, wet it down, roll it to compress. where we've done this, it has held really well. you can roll with whatever you have - a roller, a car, a tractor, etc. wetting and rolling is key to getting good, smooth surface that stays in place.

i agree, you have to dig down to get the potholes out before you resurface. been there, done that, getting ready to do it again!

for spreading, i angle the back blade all the way left or right and run it backwards (or drag it forward with blade reversed) to get smooth spreading without gouging down as the tractor rolls over uneven surfaces.

amp

 

[Jeff244]

Regarding the "ripples" people get when grading, you may want to try back dragging with your loader bucket. Just play with the angle on the bucket and you can dig in of fill. You can also adjust the amount of down pressure to get the desired results.



Jeff

 

[Kendrick]

the biggest must for gravel drive is to make the subsurface (ie dirt) shead watter. potholes will be your nemisis if you dont fill them! ruts will be evil untill filled.

I have a friend who is an engeneer and helped design many gravel roads in the area. he was spot on when saying if it doesnt have a crown and a place for the watter to drain at the soil level gravel is worth nothing to you. my drive was left to the wild for several years and it shows. i had ruts deep enough to bottom vehicles. I have no love for the propain delivery guy who was not considerate of our wet drive. I spent the last 3 weekends pushing slop around the drive. It looks like i will get to do so again tomorow to. I got about 90% of the drive in decent shape now drainage wise. the bottom of the hill is where it has all collected and is making a bit of a mess. I also get the joy of brining out the bh this summer once the land has dried some and diging out the collapsed culvert.

The parts of my drive way that are decently graded are dry right now. the part that has ruts still is knee deep slop. oh ya and the gravel that was on my drive way has just been scraped to the surface since i drug alot of material to the wet spot. it turns out my drive really was a gravel drive. It all just sunk due to no drainage.

 

[MasseyWV]

A low tech approach I have used to finsh smoothing freshly spread gravel is to drag a heavy wooden railroad tie across the surface.