Asphalt Millings

[notabmw1]

Well, after having a few bids for asphalt come in, I don't think we can afford it at this point of the project. I currently have a driveway that goes from front of house and ends 6" shy of the left door on the garage. I wanted to expand the driveway to be able to get into the right bay door. Approxiamet size of coverage is about 450 sq ft. Most prices came in average around $2400 for that area.

My question is, with millings, what does the sub-base need to be. I have left over gravel that is graded in front of the garage and is about 2-3" lower than the height of the concrete floor. Can I use the millings to bring up the level of the existing asphalt driveway to get to grade? The driveway is 4" low on the left side.

I found a source for $150 delivered of 21 tons. I assume I can just spread it by shovel/rake, and rent a compactor from home depot? Cheers.

Here are a few pictures:

 

[flat tire]

as long as your base is solid you will be ok. it is just like paving a highway if they pave over a soft spot, you will have a hole
I recommend after you level/grade the millings(allow for compaction) to spray a light coat of diesel fuel on the millings before you try to compact. this will help keep the material from sticking to your compactor and will actually help nit the cold material together

 

[notabmw1]

I was just concerned the gravel was too "loose" for a sub-base. I have no experience with millings. I could kind of visualize it gluing the gravel together. I'm trying to figure out how to get a nice edge on the right side since it drops so much. Maybe some of that 4" steel edging trim?

 

[Lx460]

The millings will compact down with use. Slower or faster depending how hot the weather is at the time. The slight misting with diesel will help them homogenize into a nice "slab". As long as you have some kind of base, you'll be ok otherwise they will settle into the underlying soil.

I don't know why they sell it by the ton? It is much easier to figure how much you need by the yard. It's approximately 2 tons per yard, so you should be getting 10 yards...don't let them rip you off.

Just for reference a truck bed 12' long x 7.5' wide x 3' tall filled level is 10 yards.

 

[Hpozzuoli]

I work with a new home builder from time to time. He makes large houses out in the woods. He always uses millings and never paves. He just drops the millings on the compacted temp road and calls it a day. He grates it, but aside from that doesn't do any additional compacting beyond what the trades did driving over the road.

 

[txvwnut]

Roll your sub base in good then lay the millings and roll them in too and you should be just good. If you could get some asphalt "tack" and spread the millings in layers putting tack down on the base then a thin layer of millings another layer of tack and work your way up to your final surface and roll in that stuff shouldn't move at all then.

 

[matt_i]

If you want ultimate solidity, the woven geotextile fabric is the way to go. More or less it forms a "basket" which keeps the aggregate from smashing into the subgrade. Its not a miracle cure that will let you build an aggregate road over a swamp but it will help bridge across problem soils or soft spots.

 

[rustyjames]

I my opinion, since you have a youngster, I would use something more organic such as stone DGA and then compact. Millings can be dusty and nasty.

 

[BassProCamaro97]

Compact your sub base first. Then use the grindings to bring it up to grade. Compact grindings and repeat. A mechanical hand tamper should be able to complete this job. In my years of road construction I've never seen diesel used to bind grinding material. I suggest you do not use diesel. IMO a prime coat b/w the sub base and grindings is not necessary either since the grindings are basically just another aggregate and not a hot mix surface. Grindings will yield less per truck load since they don't "self compact" in the truck like hot mix but the basic rule of thumb is :

(SY * 122lb SY/in * (thickness of material in)) / 2000 Lb/ton = Tons required

Hopefully that all make sense.

 

[f150skidoo]

Asphalt grindings are awesome for a drive way base. At my brothers house we got 7 tri-axle dump truck loads of grindings for $400. I spread the grindings out with my skid steer and the weight of the machine packed the millings down to being almost as hard as a paved driveway.

 

[Rookie2]

Go look at them before you buy ! I've seen loads dumped on the ground that looked too large to compact with a plate compactor. I would use gravel for a few years then decide.

 

[volleyball]

I think you would want to start with crusher run rather than 3/4". I have 3/4 rock and used some of it in my driveway over the old gravel. Then I got 5 yards of millings and spread it out. It covered and stuck to the gravel initially but then it separated and no longer stuck. Where I used driveway sealer held up much better.
I do like millings better than rock for the topping. It lays well yet isn't solid. You can shovel back into place if you get a tire rut.
I would think doing without any fabric as if it sinks into the ground, it will give a stronger base for concrete in the future.

 

[Super Mech]

A friend of mine did a large construction yard with millings. I think he just laid them over the dirt that was there after he leveled it out. The stuff was like iron. For years he drove large dump truck and front end loaders filled with cobblestones over it. Had cranes in there and many other machines. Stuff was pretty tough.

 

[TommyK]

Well, after having a few bids for asphalt come in, I don't think we can afford it at this point of the project. I currently have a driveway that goes from front of house and ends 6" shy of the left door on the garage. I wanted to expand the driveway to be able to get into the right bay door. Approxiamet size of coverage is about 450 sq ft. Most prices came in average around $2400 for that area.

My question is, with millings, what does the sub-base need to be. I have left over gravel that is graded in front of the garage and is about 2-3" lower than the height of the concrete floor. Can I use the millings to bring up the level of the existing asphalt driveway to get to grade? The driveway is 4" low on the left side.

I found a source for $150 delivered of 21 tons. I assume I can just spread it by shovel/rake, and rent a compactor from home depot? Cheers.

Here are a few pictures:

Listen to me.

I have done 100's of thousands of tons of milling.

The only people on earth capable of shoveling, spreading and grading 21 tons of millings by hand in a reasonable period of time are Portuegese laborers. After they are done they will beat you to death with their shovels for making them do it. They will expect to be paid before you die.

Compacting millings with a plate compactor is frankly a joke.

The base requirements for a millings wearing course are far in excess of those for a bit wearing course if you want equal life expectancy.

Millings are a great low buck TEMPORARY alternative to asphalt.

 

[ishiboo]

A friend of mine did a large construction yard with millings. I think he just laid them over the dirt that was there after he leveled it out. The stuff was like iron. For years he drove large dump truck and front end loaders filled with cobblestones over it. Had cranes in there and many other machines. Stuff was pretty tough.

It seems to make sense... I would think asphalt millings would be not much different than spreading gravel if you do it as thick as you would the gravel + surface material. Sure the millings are a bit smaller, but they also stick together and form a more solid structure than gravel. (It compacts well but doesn't "stick" as much.)

 

[Bookworm]

Listen to TommyK. I also do this sort of work for a living.

First off - around here "asphalt millings" are just that; the asphalt just as it comes off the belt of the milling machine. These millings range in size from 1/2" to 6" across. It would be almost impossible to tamp that with a plate compactor, never mind spreading it by shovel and rake.
Better for your purpose would be "crushed asphalt" or crushed millings. That is just what it sounds like, the millings are crushed to a consistent size. Much easier to work with, and a smoother surface is possible.
That being said, I wouldn't recommend using millings, crushed or not, over a substrate that is not hard-packed. To much movement.
I would lay and tamp gravel, let it pack in fora year or so, then consider the millings.

Something to consider- I can get asphalt cheaper than most, and I have a gravel driveway.

 

[yucholian]

Be sure to go and check it out in person before you buy.
I found out the milling comes in variety of quality and age. The ones I got were old and couldn't compact down to any hardness, acted like regular gravel.
Don't get me wrong, it was cheap and is like having gravel, but much cheaper. Not all millings are the same.

 

[Moose02]

my driveway is 350 feet long and I had the county dump 15 dump trucks full of road millings down about 12 to 15 ft wide. My only problem is there are several ruts after being down for 2 years so I have to figure out how to address them now. But overall it was free so it was for me

 

[Muttly]

my driveway is 350 feet long and I had the county dump 15 dump trucks full of road millings down about 12 to 15 ft wide. My only problem is there are several ruts after being down for 2 years so I have to figure out how to address them now. But overall it was free so it was for me

You need one of these:

or an old metal box spring mattress works in a pinch, drag it behind the truck with the angle iron just off from perpendicular to the drive, add weight 'till it starts to dig in and move gravel around. Finish drag with less weight, or flopped over to the other side.

 

[hoppsxc140]

The sizing issue is why they should only be sold by the ton not the cubic yard. I would only buy grindings if they are coming straight off the grinder from a city or state project. We will usually never sell these as we crush, screen and run up to 40% recycle in our different mix designs. What we will sell is the the piles that come from our slab asphalt pile when it gets contaminated with dirt or rock. Typically about $5.00 a ton, sometimes it packs together and sometimes it has too much contamination it never binds up.