Road base / crusher run has too many fines. Mixing #56 or #57 with road base to fix

[durtynacho]

Hi all. In my area (Middle Tennessee) the road base / crusher run tends to have way too many fines in it. I have asked the quarry to deliver my next load as a 50/50 mix of road base and #56 as I think that would be a good mix. The #56 tends to be the same size as the larger rock in the road base. They thought I was crazy and that it would be a terrible idea. No idea why.

#56 is just a bit larger than #57 and makes a good base stone. Anyone here deal with road base that has too many fines? How do you deal with it, what do you mix yours with?

 

[Paddy]

On our Southern Indiana hills, we need the fines. Otherwise it's like spinning on marbles.
The flat areas near the house we use just 3/4 inch rock with almost no fines.

 

[Midniteoyl]

Hi all. In my area (Middle Tennessee) the road base / crusher run tends to have way too many fines in it. I have asked the quarry to deliver my next load as a 50/50 mix of road base and #56 as I think that would be a good mix. The #56 tends to be the same size as the larger rock in the road base. They thought I was crazy and that it would be a terrible idea. No idea why.

#56 is just a bit larger than #57 and makes a good base stone. Anyone here deal with road base that has too many fines? How do you deal with it, what do you mix yours with?

Thats funny. I've been seeing complaints of *too little* fines lately. Wonder whats going on?

 

[Paddy]

same here, last year I got a load of #53 on my hill, almost no fines. They delivered a load of dust and chips at no cost. I had to "work in". Big pain

 

[deezler]

Can definitely be hard to get to the right mix of fines. All fines and you have what turns into pot holed cement, splashing brown water on your cars/trucks. All loose, and you get washboards, it moves around, you spin out, etc.

That said, I go with clean, natural 21A on my 1000' gravel driveway. I just like the way it looks, and I don't mind lightly re-grading it a few times per year. Snowplowing is the most dangerous part, if the ground isn't frozen. I'm pretty careful but my old neighbor Bob tried to do me a "favor" once and plow my drive while I was at work..... he moved more gravel than snow and had no idea he was doing it.

Another thing about having less fines, is the rock tumbling and rumbling around a bit when people drive in makes for a nice driveway alarm. I don't like being snuck up on.

 

[Egon]

Have a check on the size distribution. That will tell you what’s gonna happen.

 

[s219]

I got a load last year with not enough fines, was basically like dusty #57. Pain to work with.

 

[Alan W.]

At the local quarry they sell road base that has more fines and dust.
If you want less fines and dust you order DGA. which also packs well.

 

[Ford850]

I use a mix with a lot of fines (411), and then top dress with a light coat of #8. That gives a good tight base that repels water and has the clean 8's on top. Best of both in my case.

 

[LD1]

Stone sizing seems to be a regional thing. Here in Ohio the two common ones with fines (or what some call crusher run) is 411 and 304. Both have the same dust content. 411 are 57's to dust. Meaning the biggest stuff in the mix is 57 sized. 304's are 4's to dust. 4's are about golfball sized. 304's are a little more common.

56's or 57's make terrible base. A uniform and washed stone is not good in thick layers. IT almost acts fluid and nothing to lock it together, hence the dust.

A "typical" driveway around here, done right, is about 8" of 1's and 2's. Here in ohio thats 3" to 4" stone. That gets topped with another ~4" of 304's. ALot of the 304 dust will penetrate and lock in the 1's and 2's. All that gets topped with the final coat of whatever the customer wants for appearance. Either 57's or 8's. And 8's are pea gravel size.

If you are putting on thick layers.....you want the dust. Without seeing just what you are working with, I tend to agree that adding 57's or 56's to a crusher run mix is a bad idea