gravel drive

[lynng]

i have an existing lawn... to remove, and want to replace with a gravel drive/parking area on the front of my house. how much should i excavate and what needs to be layered before the final pea gravel finish is added?

 

[Thermo]

depends on what you have under the lawn, but you will be looking at a minimum of 150mm depth for the MOT/Scalpings/Roadstone (whatever it is called in your neck of the woods, which is the sub-base and a 2 inch layer of 20mm shingle.

 

[lynng]

hi Thermo we have a high water table, top water presently goes to soak-away, at the bottom of back garden. I was going to install some land drains from front [intended gravelled area] to soak-away at back, cos parts of the front are pretty sticky during the winter. It was also my intention to use 1 1/2" chalk down to dust under the pea gravel as a sub strata, well compacted. Do you think its a good idea to fit the micro-porous fibre under the chalk to let water through or is the fibre a new fangled fad?

 

[Thermo]

gravel and chalk are free draining. not much point really. a geotextile layer tends to be used to help stabalise the area, and to stop "pumping" this is when its not free draining and the continued traffic over the area pumps the water up to surface giving the drive unstable areas

 

[deefadog]

Just something to think about, but i did this recently and if your car is parked on the gravel overnight for example and there is frost the gravel sticks to the wheels and you get depsoits odf gravel all over the road, which is a pain.

I am thinking of using the gravels elsewhere and getting it tarmac'ed!!

 

[lynng]

thanks for that..... in order to get rid of the lawn, well the mower really, i did suggest to my little dragon that i would have it tarmac'd with green coloured stuff, but she didn't go for the idea.

 

[deefadog]

The gravell i got was the flint based stuff and is really strong and does not crumble, also it keeps it colour. Watch you don't go for the ones that are coloured (cotswold i think i got before) with that powder which washes off after about 3 months!!

Sorry don't know the technical name for these!!

 

[JohnD]

pea shingle is too loose. It kicks about.

A better gravel mix has varying sizes in it, with sand, and a little clay to bind it, and makes a firm drive,

 

[deefadog]

John is there anything i can do to my gravel area (as it's already down) to make it stop moving around so much? (a tonne of PVA glue may be good) LoL

Thanks

 

[JohnD]

sorry I don't know what to do.

 

[deefadog]

No worries, i can use the gravel in the garden, so it will not go to waste and get the area tarmac'd

Cheers