Paving a long driveway

[RedNeckRacin]

This might be relative to somewhere south that never sees frost but couldn't be any further from truth/reality for frost country. Even our County maintained gravel roads that are built with several feet of layered and compacted gravel/crushed rock still break up and need grading from frost moving it around every year....sometimes several times a year if it's a bad freeze/thaw winter.

This is exactly why getting the water out of the sub-base is so important. Water has no structural capacity and actually reduces the coefficient of friction in the media making it more fluid and therefore less able to carry a load. If you can confine the material it helps, but cellular confinement is about the only thing that helps and depending on the ESAL loading it still may not be enough. PA has some of the worst roads in the country due to the freeze thaw cycle and it doesn't take long driving around here to realize that. Even going from the Mason Dixon line up to I80 is a big difference. Alot of people blame the condition of the roads on the plows and the only thing they are truly responsible for is removing the de-laminated material from the road surface.

 

[Tomtint]

I have friends in both the concrete and asphalt business. Spoke with both of them today. Explained what I want to do and my concrete guy said to just pave it. The labor involved in forming 2, 4' strips, along with the cost of 6,000lb mix, wire mesh and rebar is not cost effective. My asphalt guy said he can do 1000 feet 2" thick and 10' wide with a binder coat for 8k. After that I can top coat it whenever I want... So I don't need to spend the money all at once.

 

[Streetcar]

concrete pavement Is usually reinforced if it subject to frequent heavy loads. It is very hard to get the reinforcing in the proper location in a thin slab.
Two inch lift of asphalt is thin and could fail unless gravel is in great condition

 

[Tomtint]

concrete pavement Is usually reinforced if it subject to frequent heavy loads. It is very hard to get the reinforcing in the proper location in a thin slab.
Two inch lift of asphalt is thin and could fail unless gravel is in great condition

I have at least 6" of base recycled asphalt now. It is compacted on top of 5-6" of hard well packed dirt and sand under that so it drains very well. We are going to spread a few tons of processed in the areas where the snow plow has made caused damage to the top layer

 

[RedNeckRacin]

I have friends in both the concrete and asphalt business. Spoke with both of them today. Explained what I want to do and my concrete guy said to just pave it. The labor involved in forming 2, 4' strips, along with the cost of 6,000lb mix, wire mesh and rebar is not cost effective. My asphalt guy said he can do 1000 feet 2" thick and 10' wide with a binder coat for 8k. After that I can top coat it whenever I want... So I don't need to spend the money all at once.

Who in the world told you you need 6kpsi concrete in a driveway!? Walmart only specs 5kpsi concrete for their truck loading dock areas.

 

[roadhunter]

That's what we have now, it's about 5 years old a dim tired of the dust and dirt. Not to mention it's a pita to plow.

And 2 strips of concrete is going to be better for plowing? LOL.

You must have gotten some dirty millings and/or didn't install them properly if you are having a dust/dirt problem. I've never seen asphalt millings turn to dust.

 

[roadhunter]

Who in the world told you you need 6kpsi concrete in a driveway!? Walmart only specs 5kpsi concrete for their truck loading dock areas.

This is a bizarre project to say the least. 2 long strips of 6,000 psi concrete for a driveway. Only in America!

 

[Tomtint]

And 2 strips of concrete is going to be better for plowing? LOL.

You must have gotten some dirty millings and/or didn't install them properly if you are having a dust/dirt problem. I've never seen asphalt millings turn to dust.

If I went with the strips, I would have used my snow box with rubber edge for snow removal. I also have a large parking area that I could use any k e of several pieces of equipment to plow. I simply like the look of the 2 strips, with grass down the middle better than a regular driveway. It's a personal preference. The cost difference in 4K to 6k concrete is so minimal, I would have just spent the extra. Rather have it and not need it than need it and not have it.

 

[MossRoad]

If I went with the strips, I would have used my snow box with rubber edge for snow removal. I also have a large parking area that I could use any k e of several pieces of equipment to plow. I simply like the look of the 2 strips, with grass down the middle better than a regular driveway. It's a personal preference. The cost difference in 4K to 6k concrete is so minimal, I would have just spent the extra. Rather have it and not need it than need it and not have it.

I had a two-strip concrete driveway at our first house. Granted, it was only about 40' long. I also liked the look of it. That's about all I liked about it. As I mentioned, its a pain in the butt to clear snow from. Its double the edging. And every time someone missed the strips they'd leave tire tracks in the center grass. I'd use a double strip like that for an approach to a seldom used shed or cottage. It really is a nice look. However, for a daily use driveway, never again.

 

[tractchores]

A couple comments that may or may not be helpful. I did a .5 mi drive several years ago. We did 3 - 4" on top of a 6" base, which was on top of another 6"of gravel. The first time it was done it held up 30 years to new england winters. It ultimately failed because frost pushed rocks up through it everywhere. I think you'll be fine if you go with 3 - 4" and a decent base. Cost was around 40k and its about 12' wide (was suppossed to be 10 but they got carried away).

On the millings I have a building where I did the parkinglot with asphault millings. It looks like crap, gets all dug up in the winter with plowing and in general was a bad idea. I think it may work better in other climates, or maybe the mix was just bad, but I wouldn't recommend it.