Need advice on a new gravel driveway

[zeke83]

I will be building a new house with a 500 foot driveway. I bought the geotextile material to put under the gravel...but im not sure how deep to go down with the gravel. I have read online anywhere from 12" to 2".  The driveway is in a wooded area that has some wet spots, so im thinking to go atleast 6inches deep.

Any help?

[WNYBuckHunter]

As deep as you can afford to go lol. The deeper the gravel, and better the drainage, the longer it will last. Make sure to mix stone dust in with the top layer of gravel, and have it rolled in with a big roller, it will help keep it together. My dad had a gravel drive way that was 10" deep rolled in with a pretty big roller and then did the stone dust and it lasted a little over 30 years before it started getting a few potholes in it. The potholes really only happened after the town dug up the end of the driveway to put in a culvert. He paved it after that happened.

[Culvercreek hunt club]

residential traffic up here in Ny I wouldn't go under 8" and while it cost a bit more used a crused stone product not round gravel. It locks in better and won't tend to roll under traffic. I don't care how much fabric and stone you use you will have problems if you are holding water in the bottom. don't dig the driveway down like a trench and fill in with stone. It will act like a pond. make sure the surface is sloped and the water can daylight out of the stone.

[Doc]

Yes, that reminds me of another important feature ....... ditches.

Back years ago when I put in my 1000' driveway, it ran right through an area that traditionally had standing water (a swamp). I cleared the whole thing by hand (axe, and brush-hook) about 40 ' wide and then had the guy with the bulldozer dig huge ditches, about 3 feet deep. The dirt from the ditches went up onto the roadbed to form an elevated driveway. So I had the ditches to conduct away water, and the driveway was the highest thing in the area so it always drained well. We're heading into our 40th year here, and that driveway is as solid as any professional county road, and it was put through the center of a swamp.

I'm sure you're not dealing with a swamp, but there is still some virtue in having a roadbed that is higher than the surrounding ground, and some nice deep ditches to conduct away water.

Doc

[zeke83]

I was going to bulldoze a trench, then fill it in with the gravel. But I guess thats a bad idea. Of all the reading I have done on the subject, that small, but key feature was never mentioned.

[Culvercreek hunt club]

Zeke...where are you doing this? I am in the construction business and have worked on several highway construction projects. I am not a contractor but would be more than willing to give you some on site input if you want

[zeke83]

Thanks for the offer but your about 3hrs west of me. Im building in the town of Little Falls.

Do you have any experience with the geotextile fabric?

[Culvercreek hunt club]

Yes I do....I a. Frpm herkimer and go home a lot during northern gun....what do you need to know

[Doc]

I was going to bulldoze a trench, then fill it in with the gravel. But I guess thats a bad idea. Of all the reading I have done on the subject, that small, but key feature was never mentioned.

Of course it would be a good idea to speak first with someone with a bunch of years in the driveway business, but here's my thought on the trench idea. Depending of course on the nature of the soil you're putting the driveway over, digging a trench and filling it with gravel may just provide a gravel filled "canal". If the grond is predominantly clay, a trench filled with gravel could actually contain the water under the driveway until it slowly leached through the clay. That's why I suggested that a slightly raised driveway with ditches on the side would conduct water away from the driveway area and leave a fairly thick, high and dry, well-drained, road-bed.

I don't know ..... that's what worked well for me with some very extreme water conditions. But like I said, I would talk to somebody who has actual experience in putting in driveways in all kinds of ground conditions and see what they suggest.

Doc

[sits in trees]

item 4 tailgated to about 6 inches. about 18 to 23 bucks a yard when you get 20 yd triaxle dumps delivered. don't really need to roll it, just drive on it. that simple.

[Culvercreek hunt club]

Sits...hate to disagree with ya but I really wouldn't use Item 4. It is screened gravel product and not crushed. It has a tendency to roll in surface applications especially if the road bed is above grade and not restrained on the edges. I would ust a crushed product and the cost of rolling is minimal compared to the regrading when uneven settlement occurs.

If he is in Little Falls there is ample supply of both crushed gravel and Limestone products and if he gets a great deal on millings after a few years it will be like concrete.