Top Dressing Driveway - Gravel or Crushed Concrete

[fried1765]

.5 to 1 inch is pretty big to get a good finish....as a base, it would work good. If the max was .5", I would jump on it immediately.

Does the concrete have any fines in it? If your using it as a top dressing, it should really have a lot of fines and dust in it to lock in the chunks.

Part of our 1/2 mile drive, on a slight incline, has now lost most of the fines (25 years old) and a bunch of the 1" rocks are now loosening.... talk about a rough ride.... and it's now about impossible to grade it smooth.

I am planning on dropping about 200 tons of 3/4" minus.... about 50% of the mix is 1/4" down to powder. Easy to grade and smooth. Packs in like concrete.

3/4" minus is PERFECT for top dressing a driveway.
Recycled asphalt is EVEN better!

 

[BubbaSam]

I have about a half mile between my driveway and the road to my barn. I've put 3/4 inch trap on it for years to get a good base. I have tried a box scraper as well as a rake and neither does the job i want. The box scraper takes to much and the rake seems to go out to the sides. I have looked into a land leveler and that seems to be the trick... at least when I've watched videos on youtube, etc.

Seems to me that the 1 inch would be a bit to large. As I mentioned I use 3/4 inch only and not 100% happy with that but it was to create a base. I thought about using 3/4" again and cap it with stone dust. Any comments or suggestions on that concept AND on what land leverer you guys might recommend. I found an outfit in NC called EverythingAttachments.com which seems to have a nice leveler, decent price and delivery up to 1,000 for free. Comments?

 

[EddieWalker]

Again, it must be a regional thing, but here, I've never seen crushed asphalt hold up or last. I looks nice the day it's installed, but without heat and oil, it's doesn't have anything to hold it together.

 

[Xfaxman]

I found an outfit in NC called EverythingAttachments.com which seems to have a nice leveler, decent price and delivery up to 1,000 for free. Comments?

How and where did you find them?

 

[mgstevens]

I was interested in this thread b/c I am in the process of beefing up a few sections of driveway/laneway. In my area, we have a soil gumbo of rock and clay, which is only a problem in the spring, when the frost layer in the clay melts and gives a couple weeks of mud.

A few years ago, I redid the area in front of my carport, which would get messy every spring. I used about 3" of 3/4 washed rock ($25/yd) to create body and provide a drainage space. Then I added another 1-2" of what is called "crusher dust' ($10/yd) but is 1/4 minus, and all rock. I wanted the top layer to be the lock for the washed rock and also have no clay fines to absorb water, swell up, thaw and get messy. Well, it worked, at least so far (3 years) and it stays solid all spring, which is the fix I wanted.

I have added a skim layer of crusher dust to a few patches where the first application sifted through the rock, but otherwise, it still looks pretty good. I am planning to do another 3 areas this way after scraping away some top "soil" to maintain grades.

The only other component I would add would be geo fabric, but say goodbye to cheap/cost-effective. It looks like these two layers are working so far.

 

[deezler]

So is "laneway" Canadian for driveway? I just started watching Letterkenny last night and he keeps telling people to meet him for fist-fights at the end of the laneway on the farm, lol.

So your crusher "dust" still drains water well?

 

[JohnnyMX]

Sounds like this stuff varies all over the country. I may try some in a few of the areas that could still be built up some and see what happens. Then I can either get more or swap it out for something else.

 

[mgstevens]

So is "laneway" Canadian for driveway?

To me, laneway is deeper in the property. It's true that it's for driving, but sometimes only at tractor-quality specs.

So your crusher "dust" still drains water well?

Judging by the fact I never see standing water on it, I suspect (and designed for..) the larger rock layer is giving the water space to move within. That base, before the new rock, ran to a ditch on one side.

However, before the two new rock layers, I would always have some standing water (puddles) in a few spots (clay in the base). I did regrade the base a little, but since the new rock, there is no standing water, and no mud in spring. My "dust" layer is not deep enough to really lock the whole thing up hard. I can still feel a little bit of movement in the whole area, but not enough for anything (vehicle, tractor) to sink in.

 

[BubbaSam]

How and where did you find them?

If you are asking about the Land Leveler at Everything Attachments... here's the link:

Dual Edge Land Leveler Land Plane Utility Grader V2.0

Top rated industry best land leveler for sale with free shipping only at Everything Attachments!

www.everythingattachments.com

What I thought was a pretty good idea was their cutting edges which are angled at 10 degrees rather than the normal 5 degrees which is supposed to "slice' the higher spots (such as crowns) more easily. They offer free shipping but then not to your door (so to speak). You have to ship to a "COMPANY" so read the fine (red) print first.

Another good company is Homestead Implements. While they offer MANY different implements for Cat 1 & 2... here's the link to their Land Plane:

Land Plane - Homestead Implements

Shop Standard-Duty and Heavy-Duty Cat-1 & Cat-2 Quick-Hitch Compatible Land Planes from Homestead Implements

homesteadimplements.com

What I like about them is great people, free shipping (right to your barn) and offer a 10% veteran's discount. Checkem' out.

BubbaSam

 

[Xfaxman]

I found an outfit in NC called EverythingAttachments.com which seems to have a nice leveler, decent price and delivery up to 1,000 for free. Comments?

How and where did you find them?

If you are asking about the Land Leveler at Everything Attachments... here's the link:

I was being sarcastic since they are a site Advertiser and very active here on TBN:

Have you ever seen threads and posts by Travis here on TBN?
Here is one: New EA Land Plane(LPGS)