What aggregate is best for driveways?
I can get Hmmm S L A G is a bad word I never knew that LOL slag 57s or fines or crush and run or pea gravel etc etc what is best overall?
I think I read somewhere the metals from the slag could present a problem if you ever wanted to cover with concrete or asphalt since they expand and contract different but I have no intention of ever doing that I just need a solid base to prevent getting stuck in some low areas of the drive ways
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In Minnesota , we had lots of limestone to put down. Usually 1/2" with lots of dust was the top coat. set up like concrete.
In Idaho it is more often black granite ground to <1/2". My drive crosses a very wet meadow for about 100yds. My rock
base should be appearing in China any day now.
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reclaimed asphalt works well here in the deep south. it will get fairly hard after several months of summer sun. you have to be careful where you get it from, some of it is not ground very well and will still have chunks in it. other than that crushed limestone but its pricey.
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Just filling in soft spots with rock isn't the best way to approach it. Dig out the soft spots, install the correct ground fabric for your needs, and then ad some sections of rock, going from 4" at the base, 2" mid layer, and up to your finish layer with the small finish material, compacting each as you go.
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Toad I'm on clay if I try to dig out the soft spots I'll be with pingjockey in China! I could add fill dirt to force the run off off the driveway but would still need some grip for when we get 10 inches of rain, grass just peels off then.
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Here in Kentucky we "spread dump" #3's and drive on them for a year, then fill any low spots with some more #3's before spreading some #5-#7's followed by "dense grade" (fines from crushing). Not a quick process but we've got a pretty smooth drive.
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i'm in upstate n.y. , the best i've found is the milled blacktop, then it is processed somehow and then screened a couple times to get out the big chunks. It can be raked, and it lasts. the price was quite reasonable. In the past i've used crusher run, item 4 and stone dust and that stuff disappears within a year or 2.
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My circular drive on the edge of town property had to support a 90,000 lb. truck, even in the spring when the frost goes out. So some pains were taken.
First I drove in the normal spot until I punched down huge ruts over a foot deep. Then I filled the ruts with 5"-6" stones picked up from a farm field, mostly granite. Drove on that a while and when it got punched down, I cut wire hog panels lengthwise and laid on top of the rocks. The wire panels distribute the weight and holds things together.
Next came 3" limestone (a quarry is only 2 miles away) and packed that down. The top 2-3 inches is 1" road rock and some sand.
This was done when I bought the property in 1980 and I have been driving on it with no problems since.
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I agree that you have to prepare a good base first. If you can get the millings, they're the best. What area are you in?
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Follow a cement truck back to the plant. Ask if they have/sell washout. It’s cheap, usually, and it’s hard to beat. No ground prep. Dump spread and done.
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when i first move here 25 ears ago my drive was crushed oyster shell, as that was going away i put down wash out because it was reasonably priced. about four years ago i added the reclaimed asphalt and have been very happy with the results. but understand down here the base soil is very sandy and will eventually absorb almost anything you put on it.
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My drive is about 200 yds long - 100 road to house & 100 house to shop. I have used #57 but there is an area back toward the shop that can have standing water after a good rain. I put #2 down there first then the #57.
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I have a crusher run driveway and use a box scrape on it about twice a year.People that know more than me about such things tell me to use screened asphalt milling next time.
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1 layer of 3" crushed limestone topped with 3"-4" of grade #8 (3/4"-fines) limestone. Dress with the grade 8 in years to come. Dusty but structurally VERY sound.
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Multiple loads of slag pushed into the mud over several years before blacktop
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Your right it doesn’t like the sl word!
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The bugger is when a paver comes in. They want to remove your well packed base that's been there for years and is solid. Then put in their own base and charge you for the removal & replacement.
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3" makes a decent base BUT is rough and is hard on tires. We use some 3" for a base and cover with 1 1/2" after the base gets evened out.
The big issue here is sand pockets in the clay. Right now there are literally sink holes in the county roads. Gouging those out with an excavator and repacking with clay doesn't always work. It may look OK for a while but a wet spring will push water right up through the clay fill.
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Just pave it.
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Shale if it’s available in your area.
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cant go too wrong with 5-7.
on some residential drives I find 8 s to work great if it’s not to deep, if it’s applied over an inch and the 8 and small car tires don’t play well together
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