Asphalt drive quote opinions

[jwvess00]

Hi there!

My house sets back from the road about 375 feet, and has a gravel driveway from the road to a small concrete pad in front of the attached garage. The gravel is not in great shape. It tends to wash out, and since the house is on a bit of a hill above the road, it tends to wash gravel down to the road.

The drive is mostly two strips of gravel with some grass growing up between them.

I called a local asphalt company for a quote on paving it. Their quote was:
"Bring existing rocked driveway from road to front of house to grade and compact. Install approx. 2" of DGA and compact.
Install Pramitol weed, grass killer as needed.
Install 2 1/2" of Grade-1 Bituminous Asphalt Surface. Mix and compact. Hard tamp exposed sides."

I don't know anything about asphalt. I had a gravel drive as a kid, but most houses I've lived in as a kid and as an adult have been concrete. This would be just for driving -- car, truck, motorcycle, etc. will be in either the attached garage or the shop for parking.

Does this sound reasonable for a driveway?

Photo standing at the corner of the attached garage looking towards the road..

 

[mrpizza]

Price?

 

[Rookie2]

google search
asphalt was around $120.00 /ton 2 yrs ago up north.

http://buildingjournal.com/asphalt-driveway-estimating.html

 

[kd3pc]

is the 2.5" before or after rolled...?

You want at least 2.5" AFTER it is rolled. I would want more, especially if you RV on it or plan on being there for 10-12 years.

In our area concrete and asphalt are almost the same price, so most go with concrete - if only for longevity...

 

[Seagoon]

is the 2.5" before or after rolled...?

You want at least 2.5" AFTER it is rolled. I would want more, especially if you RV on it or plan on being there for 10-12 years.

In our area concrete and asphalt are almost the same price, so most go with concrete - if only for longevity...

What he said. I'm a Brit so I don't know what your climate is like(I assume KY is Kentucky but that leaves me no wiser) but if you have wide temperature variations that surface would not last long.

 

[jack stand]

Kill (spray) that vegatation, let it brown out first. Get the width defined in the agreement. It's allways better to have a wider paved lane (esp. with curves) than the width of the gravel one. The pavement edges are best to not have a lot of traffic on them. Also backfill up to the surface for edge protection.

 

[jwvess00]

Hi there!

Price quoted was $10,350. Lane width was not quoted but with the square feet listed, works out to be 12 feet.

Kentucky winter is usually about freezing with a few inches of total snowfall. Summer is hot and humid. 90s degrees, nearly that in humidity.

I don't know if thickness is pre or post roll. I will confirm thickness and width before accepting.

Concrete here is around $100/yard, according to Dad. I would prefer concrete but it is too high, I suspect.

 

[Jinks]

Do concrete in sections as you can afford them..........

 

[steve308]

Get at least a half dozen quotes - it's a cut throat industry and if you shop around the price will come down. Just finished a 'repave' and added 400 sq ft of parking to my house - High quote without the 600 sq ft addition $6600.00. Completed with additional 600 sq ft all totaling 2900 sq ft compacted to 3 inches -- $3800.00 Oh - Northern Va prices.

 

[Rookie2]

I'm told that concrete will up your taxes because it's considered permanent. At least up in my neck of the woods. Anybody Know for sure?

 

[coldh2o]

Kill (spray) that vegatation, let it brown out first. Get the width defined in the agreement. It's allways better to have a wider paved lane (esp. with curves) than the width of the gravel one. The pavement edges are best to not have a lot of traffic on them. Also backfill up to the surface for edge protection.

Not sure what killing the vegetation will do. If it's in the area to be paved, it should be removed along with any underlying topsoil, backfilled with gravel and compacted.

 

[JimR1998]

If you're looking more for function and not an ultra-smooth surface, ask about getting an asphalt binder. It's basically a large aggregate asphalt which acts as a base for fine blacktop in heavy use areas. For a driveway you should be able to install without a base (directly on compacted soil, clear away the grass).

I had a trench excavated down my driveway and was worried the finer stuff might settle over time, so I got the binder as a base and planned to pave over it in a few years. 6 years later and it's still going strong. Kids would like it more smooth for their scooter but it more than does tha job of getting in and out.

About 2500sqft, some of it 12" deep in areas that needed leveling, cost $4000. And my prices are usually way high compared to KY.

May be something to check into. My aggregate is a little finer than what's pictured here.

 

[jwvess00]

Hi there!

I did some back-of-the-envelope math and a 4" thick slab of concrete would be about 55 yards (375 feet long, 12 feet wide, 4 inch thick). I don't know what installation costs would be. I'm going to call around for a concrete quote. Prices much above $10-11k are probably not going to happen without some reaching on my part since I still have to finish out the shop (insulation, wall covering, and paint -- too close to stall out now!). I figured the asphalt quote I got would be higher than it was, so I'm hopeful that I'll have a hard surface driveway sooner than later.

I've contacted a few asphalt companies so far but only one has given me a quote. The others have ignored me, save one. That one did talk to me to say that they weren't interested because their asphalt plants were too far away and the haul costs would be high. They gave me a number of someone much closer, but they've never returned my calls.

There are a couple more asphalt places I'm going to try.

 

[machsnell]

So 375 by 12 is 500 sy. 500 sy at 2.5" is 75 tons at an average in our area of $55 per ton including tax plus maybe 8 bucks a ton haul you are close to 5000 for asphalt. They would also have the stone at 2" which is 60 tons at 18 delivered 8s another 1000 bucks. So roughtly 6 grand in material and trucking leaves them 4 plus for installing weed control and grading and compacting the stone and paving it. Sounds reasonable to me. I would be slightly higher on my price. Note that 2" COMPACTED or 2" and then compact is a big difference. 1/4" per inch installed is compacted. 2" would be fine and a minimum. It really depends on you subgrade. Of your stone and subgrade is good and tight and doesn't pump with a heavy truck 0ver 9t then the asphalt will hold up. Pave it! And make sure they hit the 12 foot width if not you will be driving off the edges and they will Crack. Also I would spray with round up all vegetation under and 6" outside of asphalt areas. It can grown through but most importantly you don't want the organic material under asphalt creating a soft spot. If me I would remove all the vegetation. Or at least discuss with contractor to make sure it just won't be graded around in the stone and 0aved over.

 

[mikester]

Make sure if you get more than one estimate the quotes are for the same mix asphalt. They have cheaper mixes that don't hold up as long. In my area the plants have used everything from recycled glass to ground asphalt shingles as filler.
My driveway is starting to show its age. It was put down in '82. This years winter took its toll. Cracks got wider. I really need to have it redone but its so expensive and the quality has changed so much since '82. One of my friends had his done 10 years ago and theres cracks all over it. I'd be so pissed !

 

[jack stand]

Not sure what killing the vegetation will do. If it's in the area to be paved, it should be removed along with any underlying topsoil, backfilled with gravel and compacted.

Chances are that the contractor will not seperate the organic material during the minor re-grading that look's to be needed from his pic. I've seen grass come right through new pavement as if it were fertilizer to the grass! It's also just the right way to do the job.

 

[WhiffySpark]

I would never want concrete.

 

[ProCharger]

I would never want concrete.

I am opposite, you could not pay me to take asphalt

I am at $2.80 square foot on 4" concrete with 4" base. That includes the concrete cost itself.

 

[WhiffySpark]

I am opposite, you could not pay me to take asphalt

I am at $2.80 square foot on 4" concrete with 4" base. That includes the concrete cost itself.

We have a 6 inch asphalt drive way. I have too much equipment for concrete. Plus concrete cracks and chips

Asphalt is fixable with a crack sealer and top coat

 

[Bronson]

I've never met a damned asphalt Contractor who would return a call.
I needed a commercial Property and My own drive, and went with concrete.
No more asphalt for Me.

 

[G McKay]

I'm told that concrete will up your taxes because it's considered permanent. At least up in my neck of the woods. Anybody Know for sure?

This is true.

 

[G McKay]

Get at least a half dozen quotes - it's a cut throat industry and if you shop around the price will come down. Just finished a 'repave' and added 400 sq ft of parking to my house - High quote without the 600 sq ft addition $6600.00. Completed with additional 600 sq ft all totaling 2900 sq ft compacted to 3 inches -- $3800.00 Oh - Northern Va prices.

2nd this. Get several quotes. I had a relative who had his driveway blacktopped a few years ago. $1500.00 for an 80' driveway. Multiple that times 4.5 which is about what yours is=around $6750.00.

I wouldn't worry about the vegetation either. Just grade it down level with a bobcat and go on with it.

 

[reader2580]

I am at $2.80 square foot on 4" concrete with 4" base. That includes the concrete cost itself.

I must live in the wrong part of the country. At that price concrete would have cost me $3400 or so for my 1,200 square foot driveway. I paid $1000 more than that for asphalt last fall. Concrete probably would have cost me 50% more. I would rather have concrete.

The only advantage asphalt has is the black color absorbs sunlight in the winter to melt snow and ice. Concrete can have black color mixed in, but the coloring agents cost a lot of money.

 

[raf0419]

I'm no professional, but I want more specifics on the the asphalt base as 2" isn't much. The last thing you want to do is spend $$ on an asphalt road that has an unstable base. Did they measure the depth of your current base? This will be even more important in the areas where your drive has previously washed out.

 

[jwvess00]

Hi there!

My attempts at getting paving contractors to call be back has been, um, slow. I did have one say they were going to look at it today, so hopefully I'll get a quote from them soon.

I also called two concrete contractors. One looked at it today and should (!) be emailing me a quote. From our conversation, I don't have a good feeling about their operation so that one is probably a throw-away. The other didn't look at it, but ballparked it at $18.5k-$20k. He said up front that he could not compete with asphalt on cost but would inspect the site and give me a written quote if those numbers were around what I was thinking. It's nearly 2x my budget for this, so I will probably pass. I liked what I heard from him, though, and I really want a concrete apron on the front of the shop where the garage doors are, so I will probably call him back for that.

 

[jwvess00]

I'm no professional, but I want more specifics on the the asphalt base as 2" isn't much. The last thing you want to do is spend $$ on an asphalt road that has an unstable base. Did they measure the depth of your current base? This will be even more important in the areas where your drive has previously washed out.

I wasn't home when they inspected the site, so I don't know if they measured it or not. I too was a bit sketchy on the base. The quote said they would grade, and add 2" of DGA (dense grade I assume?), then pave.

The driveway's been here since 1990 when the house was built, I'm guessing (I didn't build the house), but I don't know what that really means. Did they try to build a real gravel lane with a solid base, or just scape off the topsoil and fill with gravel, or is my drive really just 25 years of putting a load of gravel on top of the ground every so often? I don't know.

 

[jwvess00]

Hi there!

Sorry for spamming my own thread, but I just got another concrete quote -- $19,053 for concrete. $4.35/sq. ft. for 365'x12'x4" with wire mesh reinforcement. That does not include the estimated 48 tons of gravel that was estimated by the concrete contractor, which would be billed directly from the quarry.

 

[reader2580]

Most asphalt driveway companies will want to put in their own base so they know it is good and the pavement won't fail. I used a well known local asphalt driveway company on my last house and they actually wanted me to leave just the base over the winter for it to settle first and then they paved it in the spring. (My brother's father in-law owns the company, but I got no discount.)

 

[jwvess00]

The quote was for 2.5" of grade-1 bituminous surface mix asphalt, which I assume is pre-compaction. Their marketing materials say: "4 LeeBoy pavers, all less than 4 years old", they use "20,000 lb. heated vibratory pavers" that give 80% compaction ratio vs. "others using 3-12,000 pounds compacting at 50%". The claim is that because of this, for 2" overlay they end up at 1 5/8" instead of 1.5". It looks nice in their promotional materials but I'm no asphalt guy so I don't know if it's good or just marketing. They also claim to keyway at the road, etc. instead of tapering for a flush fit and better life where the drive and the road come together. That does sound good to me.

They also said they paint the area to insure the customer's expectations are met on the paved area, so I should be able to confirm the 12' width if I go with the first quote.

 

[jwvess00]

Hi there!

I received another quote -- two total of some number of attempts, for 2.5" compacted for $12,000. The first bid was $11,500 minus an "early season discount" to $10,300 so they're not too far off. I asked the first company about the thickness and was told the 2.5" quote was after compacting. I accepted the first company's quote.

About that early discount -- the funny part is that they asked me if I was in a big hurry, because we've had a lot of rain here in KY and that's really slowing them down. I said I wanted it right, not fast, so it will be 3-4 weeks before they get to me.

 

[MattN03]

Did you get somebody out of Lexington? I'm in Harrodsburg and would like to get some quotes to have mine paved.

 

[Kevin54]

Install Pramitol weed, grass killer as needed.

You don't want Pramitol "as needed", you want the complete driveway sprayed beforehand. Pramitol will sterilize the ground for two years if sprayed properly. I used to use it on the fence row between us and the neighbor. You mix it with diesel. It will kill weeds within a day or two. BUT....if you don't spray the complete drive, the untreated areas still has a chance of weeds coming up from the roots of the previous weeds. Just one dandelion will push right up through asphalt. You can spray it yourself. Go to your farm store and get a couple of gallons, and a decent sprayer. Mix the Pramitol 50/50 and spray the entire driveway and concentrate on the middle twice as much as the rest.

And when they compact the drive, you want it compacted AFTER a rain and not before. The dampness will help in compaction. Also, you want to compact with crushed stone with fines or extra stone dust for good compaction. Rounds will not work well. Asphalt flexes when driven upon, and without a solid compacted base, if you use rounds, they will start to move underneath the asphalt, and before you know it, you will have depressions in the drive.

Also....if you decide to add any extra asphalt on virgin ground, get the sod dug out now, get some stone in, and rent a plate compactor to compact that area so it is good and firm before the asphalt is ever laid. If not, it will settle later on.

 

[Kevin54]

Hi there!

I received another quote -- two total of some number of attempts, for 2.5" compacted for $12,000. The first bid was $11,500 minus an "early season discount" to $10,300 so they're not too far off. I asked the first company about the thickness and was told the 2.5" quote was after compacting. I accepted the first company's quote.

About that early discount -- the funny part is that they asked me if I was in a big hurry, because we've had a lot of rain here in KY and that's really slowing them down. I said I wanted it right, not fast, so it will be 3-4 weeks before they get to me.

Is the 2.5" after compaction of the asphalt, or after the compaction of the stone? The reason I say that is that they will set the spreader for a certain depth. If they set it for 2.5", after it's rolled, you may only have 1 3/4" of thickness. It's all in the wording of the way the quote is wrote up. Now if they set the spreader for say 3 1/4" or 3 1/2", then you might have 2.5+" AFTER rolling. The thicker it is AFTER rolling, the better

 

[58Yeoman]

Last year, I had a local asphalt company come and look at my cracked asphalt driveway, wanting an estimate on covering it. He looked at it and said that it was still good for 8 to 10 years, if I seal coated it. I asked him for an estimate on that, and he got his ipad and showed me an aerial view of my place with all the measurements on the drive. $700 for the seal coat and another $150 to fix the 6 worst cracks. How much to recover? About $8000 or so. I went with the seal coat. The drive is about 200 feet long with a turn around and a kickout for the 40' shop.

 

[NUTTSGT]

I also called two concrete contractors. One looked at it today and should (!) be emailing me a quote. From our conversation, I don't have a good feeling about their operation so that one is probably a throw-away. The other didn't look at it, but ballparked it at $18.5k-$20k. He said up front that he could not compete with asphalt on cost but would inspect the site and give me a written quote if those numbers were around what I was thinking. It's nearly 2x my budget for this, so I will probably pass. I liked what I heard from him, though, and I really want a concrete apron on the front of the shop where the garage doors are, so I will probably call him back for that.

If you're getting concrete work done around your garage like the apron, I'd be sure to get that done before you have any asphalt put down. I wouldn't want to take the chance of a concrete truck destroying your freshly paved driveway.

 

[txinstaller]

If you're getting concrete work done around your garage like the apron, I'd be sure to get that done before you have any asphalt put down. I wouldn't want to take the chance of a concrete truck destroying your freshly paved driveway.

Defently on this most people don't know how much a concrete truck weighs, they can weight in upwards of 80k pounds. I've helped one of my customer with a wrecker company roll one over that took a corner too fast. With that much weight it will definitely screw up your nice new driveway.

 

[jwvess00]

Did you get somebody out of Lexington? I'm in Harrodsburg and would like to get some quotes to have mine paved.

C&R Asphalt out of Lexington is going to do the work. The only other company that returned my call or gave me a quote was APM also in Lexington.

 

[jwvess00]

Hi there!

I thought I'd update the thread with some photos of the finished work.

I was not home when they did the excavation and laying down stone, which is unfortunate since I would have liked to have seen that happen.

I was told they would pave "at the end of the week" which was either Thursday or Friday before Memorial Day Weekend. Ugh. I was running a bit late getting ready for work Thursday morning when I saw their trucks pull in, so I made arrangements to work from home that day.

They started at 8 AM and finished up just before noon, so about 4 hours all told to do nearly 400 ft. of 12' wide driveway.

The first shot is the original gravel driveway:

This is the drive with the crushed stone. I was surprised at how smooth it was. When I heard stone I was thinking more like a compacted gravel bed. This was much more fine-grained.

Here's the paved lane. It's a bit proud of the grass on either side. You can see on the lower right where the drive curves around the house to the shop. It doesn't go far, but the idea was to keep from driving off of the main driveway to get to the shop. The foreman said that they do this often on farm lots. If I later want to pave or concrete that drive to the shop (I do), then he said the can saw-cut the edge of that square so there's no concern about how it will meet that new work.

 

[Streetbu]

Looks nice!

 

[NUTTSGT]

Looks nice!

I'll agree but it's missing something.