Does anybody know what I can add to my gravel drive to stabilize it and keep it from washing out?
It’s stormed alot lately and if I’m going to put it back( the gravel ) maybe I can add someything to it.
It’s about 2″ of 3/8″ on top of 3/4″-1″ base. The 3/8″ washed off the top.
I could call around to gravel yards and such to see what they say.
Replies
Try CA6 3/4 to 1 with the fines ,packs well . But portland mixed with the gravel would hold better ,maybe some sand also.
"Gravel" usually means a mixture of sand and rounded stones. I'm not sure if that's what you have, but if it is, it's not particulary stable. Probably the best material is crushed stone, sometimes called "crusher run". It's sharp-edged stone of mixed size, from pea size up to any given size. I would think that what they call "1½ inch and smaller" would be fairly stable. It's a mixture of sizes up to about 1½". Being sharp-edged and a range in sizes means it locks together really well. If you're in an area prone to washout, it may be worthwhile to have a contractor compact it with a vibratory roller, too.
If the borders are washing out first, you could border the drive with larger, softball sized stones.
Of course, the obvious thing is to direct water elsewhere. It's hard here to describe all the possible ways of doing it, but give it another good hard look.
I'd start with WayneL5 advice.
Along with redirecting the water, look farther up in the drainage to see if you can capture it or slow it down before it gains too much force.
Sometimes a series of small swales or pockets will do the trick.
If that doesn't do it, bar ditches, culverts, or a Zurn drain may help.
If you have round gravel, just figure nature did you a favor and put a fractured product down.
DRC
The 3/8" is rounded. I'll call around and see if I cant get something that locks together better
The 3/8" is chocolate brown with a light tan. It looks like the previous owner got it on sale or something. It's only on top in certain places.
I don't mind it, but it wouldn't have been my choice of color or shape.
Oh well, there's not too much of it.
You know, I was starting to take this thread seriously.
Then I read...
The 3/8" is chocolate brown with a light tan. It looks like the previous owner got it on sale or something. It's only on top in certain places.
I don't mind it, but it wouldn't have been my choice of color or shape.
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Try asphalt or concrete.
I'd use a 2" layer of crushed concrete and then the sharp edged gravel and have it bulldozed down compacting it all together
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Sounds to me like you need to get the water off the drive sooner. Re-grading the ditchs may be all it takes.
Water is what ruins most driveways/roads.
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I'm going to regrade it when I add in more stable rock/sand.
I'll give it more overall hieght and more crown.
"Does anybody know what I can add to my gravel drive to stabilize it and keep it from washing out?"
David,
I had the same problem with my drive washing out. It was ~1" -2" 3/4 T&B crushed limestone. Occasionally had 12" deep gullies when it rained hard. The driveway is 150' long and slopes down 20'. Last spring I had it dug down 10" - 12" and replaced with 1 1/2" T&B. Hasn't washed out since. And we even had a day where it rained 4.5" in 18 hours and almost 2 in one hour! At the quarry it goes for ~$6.00 a ton.
Jon
Sounds about like what I'm going to do. It's hard for me to estimate how much rock I need. We'll see What happens when that first truck unloads.