Jump to content
  • GUESTS

    If you want access to members only forums on HSO, you will gain access only when you Sign-in or Sign-Up .

    This box will disappear once you are signed in as a member. ?

Gravel Driveway problems


randerson

Recommended Posts

My parents are just south of brainerd and have a gravel driveway that is about 1800ft long that is not currently paved. There is a bad stretch that when the frost is coming out is like a mud bog pit we believe the original driveway builder skimped on the fabric as the first 700 ft is pretty good but then there is 50-75ft of bog pit before the driveway goes back into the trees and is pretty good and higher ground with he exception of a low area that is maybe 20ft they got a bid for about a 1000' of asphalt at 10ft wide and it was $22000 which seemed pretty high but understand its a lot of material. Our plan is to sub-cut the bad spot put down about 100' of fabric than top dress with crushed material or driveway base. Anyone know of a good place to get driveway material in the area, with the road restrictions we may have to wait a while to get some trucks to deliver material. This should get them by for a few years to be able to save up the cost of asphalt. This year has been the worst of 12 years at this property with the last 3 springs getting worse as the property adjacent was logged of about 60 acres of standing pines which I'm sure sucked up a lot of the moisture causing the recent problems.  

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Some of those asphalt driveway companies are super crooks.  Especially the ones that put flyers on your door.  I had an estimate from one of the supposedy famous ones and couldn't believe the price.  I knew what a yard of hot asphalt cost and told him so.  It embarrased him.  Then I told him to get out of my house.  Some of the neighbors did get taken by them.  I had a local asphalt company who does good work come and give me a bid.  It was 1/3 - 1/2 of the price and they did a great job.  Get estimates.  Like 3 or 4 of them to make sure 2 aren't in cahoots and price fixing.  They do that too.

That occurred when I lived in Stillwater.  They went from town to town and did a lot of advertising so looked to be a qualified company.  Can't remember their name. They had beautiful trucks etc.  The company that did it actually had equipment that looked like they used it.  

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Put a truck load of rock down then a load of Class 5 on top and compact it. Your still going to need a good base if you ever try and put asphalt down or it will sink and crack up over time.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

to fix that soft spot you have to remove it start building with clay. Somebody that has done road construction should be able to look at the dirt and tell if it is soft and sponge. You can dump all the rocks you want in the soft spots if there is no base they will keep pushing down.

They tried fixing the soft spot in our parking lot at work.  The contractor  was not experienced with roads he only dug down 2 1/2 feet put a rubber membrane, put some crushed granite then gravel  over that. 

This spring looks like they did nothing.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

We had a frost boil in our alley a few years back & mentioned it to a couple people that we knew that worked for the city. They showed up a couple days later with a farm tractor / backhoe that also had a bucket on the front. On the 2nd scoop, the tractor just about disappeared. They ended up having to bring 2 or 3 dump trucks of fill in to repair it. It has been good since

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now ↓↓↓ or ask your question and then register. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Restore formatting

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.



×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue.