Hello everyone. I am 50 and live in mid Michigan. My wife and are are finally going to build a log home. I will need to put in a 500' driveway. Labor I am going to do myself. The soil where the driveway is going is flat farm land that handn't been used in many years. Anyway, what would be a close estimate of materials (gravel) that will be needed for this? Also would anyone have a recommendation of depth and build of of this? I figure that the base bed will probably be a bigger material than the finish but I am not sure how deep the layers should be.
Will appreciate any feedback that I get and am looking forward to this forum. I have read through a lot of posts and there sure is a great amount of information.
Hi Bob and welcome. You'll find lots of info on driveways both here and on TractorByNet. You'll want to remove the topsoil from the driveway area before doing anything. The topsoil is too soft and retains too much water for a good driveway base. What that means is a layer of mud under your drive which will eventually work it's way to the top of the drive.
Once you determine how much you need to remove add back that same amount of good road base material (compactable sub-soil, large rock etc.) plus whatever you want to put the drive above the surrounding land for drainage. Add a top coat of your choice (pavement, crushed stone etc.). The amount will be the volume calculation of length times width times thickness in cubic yards. Unfortunately, the materials are sold by the ton. Best to contact your local gravel pit for pricing and conversions.
Removal of the top soil is a big project best suited for a dozer or other heavy equipment. What do you plan on using with your own labor?
Where in Mid-Michigan are you? I'm SW of you down near the corner [img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img]
First the topsoil should be removed and proper slopes and drainage established. Then the base should be shaped and compacted. Remember the base is the main part of the road and depends heavily on being able to shed moisture and keeping dry. The granular material will pack in, make a harder surface, help shed water and provide traction. A proper well drained subgrade will only require an inch or two of crushed granular material. As time goes on you may have to add additional crushed gravel as the first layer gets mixed into the subgrade.
If there is no proper subgrade and you wish to rely on granular material only It's almost requires an onsite evaluation.
Also note that crushed gravel that has many fractured surfaces and evenly distributed fines [ well graded ] is much prefered over rock that has not been crushed. Uncrushed rock will act like marbles.
I once built a log home. If you wish to know anything about what not to do I've probably done it.
Rob, I am in Holt and we have found 4 acres just south of Eaton Rapids we are thinking about buying. It's has a lot of gravel so I need to figure out what implements to buy that will work this soil the best on my JD2210.
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