Need to fill in area.....will this work???

[AndyM]

Andy that's rite.
But I still take it when it's available need it or not cause sooner or later I can use it.

Do you still have the "Fill Dirt Wanted" sign out front?

 

[MossRoad]

I am building a new barn/garage that is going to need to be brought up around 9" on one end so that would amount to quite a bit of dirt to bring in. I was wondering if it were possible to backfill with sand and then put gravel on top of it? I didn't know how the gravel would work with sand underneath it? I'm going to need quite a bit of dirt to bring it up to where I would want to start the gravel and didn't really want to spend alot of money hauling in dirt. I can get clean sand for a fairly reasonable price and believe it would probably take somewhere in the 40-45 yard range to handle my surface area.

Are you wanting to build the foundation ON the fill? If so, you need to comact it first or you will regret it later. It may be cheaper to put in deeper footings and foundation walls on the low end than to try to fill and compact before building. Especially if you are only talking about 9".

 

[MossRoad]

Trouble with free dirt is it's rarely offered to you when you need it.

The trouble with free dirt is it's rarely clean, good stuff that is suitable for compacting and building on. It is usually trash dirt with wood or other construction/destruction debris mixed in. If it was 'good' fill, the original owner probably would have kept it on site.

 

[AndyM]

The trouble with free dirt is it's rarely clean, good stuff that is suitable for compacting and building on. It is usually trash dirt with wood or other construction/destruction debris mixed in. If it was 'good' fill, the original owner probably would have kept it on site.

That is true also...
My neighbor gave me dirt loaded with pieces of old bricks and blocks, but it was free and I put topsoil over top of it (the stuff you have to pay for).

Even when you pay for dirt, you have to watch what you're getting... I bought topsoil once and was a very poor heavy clay that wouldn't grow grass on it.

 

[LBrown59]

Sand is one of the best fill materials you can get. The corser the better, but just about any sand is ideal. Sand is the only material that will self compact. Just spread it out, and your ready to build on it.

I'm curious why you want to put gravel over the sand?

Eddie

The ohio river bottom north of town is nothing but pure sand here.
A fellow needed fill for the pole building he was building.
He just took a Robert Kitty and got all the fill he needed from his back yard.

 

[BigMccorm]

If you're looking for a good stone that will be solid when compacted use.....i think its called this.....303 Limestone? Its a combination of limestone fines and #8 limestone I believe. When properly compacted (run it over with a plate compactor or something) it will get solid as a rock. I'm pretty sure you could build on top of it. Just another possibility.

 

[gary1611]

You can Useally get fill for free or cheap From A concrete company. Some Also delivery it for a charge or you can get someone to deliver it. It is normaly called wash out. It from when they have leftover or a bad batch of concrete. Thay flood the truck with water and empty. it basicaly is just sand and agregate.
It makes good fill as long as you keep it dry. If it gets Wet while youre working it its a mess. You also do not want to pour on it when its wet.