Driveway Advice NF

[Tim Mills]

I am widening my single driveway (future boat storage) and am looking for advice. I am not sure if I will be doing Asphalt or Concrete.

 

I will be doing the grunt work -prep, removal, excavating, grading, curbing myself but will be hiring someone to do the paving or the concrete finishing.

 

If anyone has done this themselves or contracted this out and has some advice regarding materials, contractors costs, etc. I would appreciate it.

 

 

[John Bacon]

Check your zoning laws.

 

You may not be allowed to widen it. I had a driveway paved about 15 years ago. Concreat was way more expensive... about 7:1. If price is a major factor then I think you will need to go with asphalt.

[Twocoda]

Not sure about the prices of the contractors down in streets ills ...but....asphalt should run you around half the cost of concrete...2.50 ish per square....normal brush room finish for concrete should run you around 4.50ish per square...add another .50 per square for mag swirl finish....if your going stamped and colored it can get as high as 14.00 per square....these prices reflect clean ground...( no demolishing of old material)

Doing the demo and setting up your own forms will save you large and you can kick some cash to some finishers to " place" the concrete again saving yourself more money

 

If your ground conditions allow you to get away with 4 inches of concrete spend the ill extra to steel reinforce it for piece of mind...other wise 5.5 inches of concrete....if you are going to be parking heavy equipment in the lane way (highway tractor) then you'll need to reinforce the 5.5 inches with steel .....for normal cars and normal size fishing boat...the steel is purely piece of mind but not ness airily needed....

 

If you have any specific questions feel free to pm me

Good luck

Edited March 30, 2013 by Twocoda

[paul_614]

here in the Falls, concrete driveways add to your house tax because it is "permanent"

[HTHM]

Consider Interlock as well, all the wear characteristics of concrete and the cracks are already in a decorative pattern.

[mistaredone]

Problem with interlock is if not done right you'll have to do it again in a year or two

[mistaredone]

Problem with interlock is if not done right you'll have to do it again in a year or two

[glen]

How much is the interlock ? Then just install yourself.

[OhioFisherman]

here in the Falls, concrete driveways add to your house tax because it is "permanent"

 

It is the same here in my area stateside. My drive way is 180x22 and gravel.

[FloatnFly]

check the by laws first, you'd be pretty upset to wake up with a parking ticket for parking in your driveway

[mukluk]

I was in a similar situation about 6 years ago. Decisions, decisions. Finally decided on asphalt. Has at least a couple advantages over concrete and interlock. Cheaper and ice and snow will melt off asphalt much quicker during the winter months.

 

I got 3 different estimates. I seal it each year. The asphalt has held up really well. Four vehicles running over it daily.

[Twocoda]

HEre is a few shots of my laneway that i did myself....coloured stamped...i formed the black borders first and filled them in ...then the body(redish) was simply a matter of filling it in and crown it ...then stamp....my back patio i did the same way without the borders ..same stamp bu ti put a compass stamp in it indicating north....the vestibule when you walk into the house is also stamped concrete with in floor heat...i wanted to do something different so i brought the concrete into the house as a finished floor...it goes right through to the back patio...heres a few pics to give you an idea..

 

 

 

[pics]

HEre is a few shots of my laneway that i did myself....coloured stamped...i formed the black borders first and filled them in ...then the body(redish) was simply a matter of filling it in and crown it ...then stamp....my back patio i did the same way without the borders ..same stamp bu ti put a compass stamp in it indicating north....the vestibule when you walk into the house is also stamped concrete with in floor heat...i wanted to do something different so i brought the concrete into the house as a finished floor...it goes right through to the back patio...heres a few pics to give you an idea..

 

 

 

[pics]

Looks nice but how slippery is it with a bit of snow???

[ch312]

concrete is THE way to go and if done properly it will last much longer than any asphalt or interlock driveway. but, i'm slightly biased as i've been doing concrete work for almost 10 years now completing jobs such as garden curbing, foundations, massive driveways, pools, 50k sq/ft floors, high rise balconies, parking garages, etc.

 

here are some price ranges for my area to give you an idea of what a contractor might charge to complete the entire job from start to finish:

 

-concrete cost per meter $170+

-broomed finish $6.50+

-swirl finish $7+

-seamless stamped (looks like a large slab of stone) $8+

-patterned stamped like twocoda's (ashlar slate?) $9+

-exposed aggregate $11+

 

adding color to the concrete, which you can do for both broom and stamped finishes, will add $1-2 per sq/ft depending on the brand and type of colorant used.

 

 

as for the concrete to be used, i always go with at least 32 mpa with 6% air for exterior horizontal concrete. the air is needed for the freeze/thaw cycles we have in this climate and the mpa refers to the strength. higher mpa is slightly more difficult to finish and costs a couple bucks more, but insist that it's used. some contractors will try to use 25-28 mpa, the same strength that's used in basements.

 

 

the base is the most important part of the job so be sure to check your soil type to find out how much of what type of aggregate will be needed. a 4" slab poured on a properly prepared base should have no heaving or cracking while an 8" slab poured on a poor base will likely crack and heave within the first couple years.

 

 

considering how cheap steel ($9 per 20ft length) and concrete ($170+ per meter) actually is, insist on a 5" slab with 10m bar at 16" centers. on a standard double car driveway that's 20 x 25, adding an extra inch of concrete and the bar will add about $600 to the cost which is very cheap insurance. steel bar in the concrete will ensure each panel (each square formed when you make crack control cuts) stays flush with the adjacent panel if any heaving does occur. it also makes it much stronger as concrete has compression strength, but nearly zero tensile. adding the steel provides the tensile strength that concrete lacks.

 

insist that whoever pours your driveway does NOT use water to finish the slab and uses a jitterbug instead. adding water to the surface to make finishing easier is basically watering down the top layer of concrete which makes it much weaker. a jitterbug is a mesh roller type tool that forces the stones near the surface to be pushed down into the concrete allowing for the entire surface to be uniform for the best possible finish. not only that, but it also prevents "popping" of the surface stones by ensuring there is an even layer of "cream" over the entire surface. if you've ever seen a driveway or sidewalk with little divots and a visible stone in each divot, you've seen the result of a lazy contractor.

 

 

 

pics, stamped concrete is not slippery as long as "non slip" or "anti slip" sealer is used. sealer should be reapplied every year or two depending on how much vehicle and foot traffic you have.

Edited April 2, 2013 by ch312

[ch312]

i've always wanted to see what a fish centered in a seamless stamped driveway with ashlar slate borders would look like...

 

DO IT!

[Twocoda]

i've always wanted to see what a fish centered in a seamless stamped driveway with ashlar slate borders would look like...

 

DO IT!

Know anyone with a fish stamp...might look pretty cool in a bbq patio area

[express168]

We can get the fish stamps ordered in at work, I am the Outside Sales Rep at Form and Build Supply in Hamilton.