driveway advice needed

[scotty t]

sorry this is going to be a little long winded,i recently rearranged my fence so that i have to enter my back garage through my yard from the front/street. i also converted it from storage to being my main shop. my original idea was to have a gravel drive, but now i'm hedging on that. i've got a three legged dog and gravel is not good for her only front paw. you can see in the picture what the concrete truck did, i have since leveled that and put large gravel in there and it has firmed up real well. it's normally pretty firm in the whole driveway area but the concrete was poured in the monsoon season after it was soaked. the truck left big ruts that hold water when it rains, and they are too far apart to just fill with gravel for a two rut driveway. i'm thinking mulch might work for a short term solution. i've seen it used over sand and it worked well. it would fill the ruts, be easy on the dog, be easy on the mower and be relatively cheap and easy. oh yeah, they cut over time at work so money for projects has to be rationed out carefully

the muddy bad ruts end about where the red truck is

 

[Kaizen]

for the grass area a pitchfork and a few hours of use can get those ruts better. you could also just fill with sand and the grass will grow up through it. the res of it start raking.
you think about using softer stone? so like a pea gravel that won't hurt the pups feet?

 

[chops101]

I'm replying b/c you have a 69 and deserve an answer, I also vote for pea gravel.
Pea gravel and come behind that with a plate compactor and your canine should be happy.

Grass will eventually grow over that if you don't keep it sprayed but you'll have a solid base.

 

[lynnbilodeau]

Hmm... must be a 69 Camaro party.

Personally, I think a nice 69 should get concrete.... but we can't always do concrete.

Still, if you have a couple of strong backed friends, at least check out what it would cost to put in a drive (even if it is just the two strips). It isn't that expensive if you do it yourself. Gravel around grass *****. Mulch isn't much better. You get another monsoon, and the mulch is all of a sudden in the neighbor's yard, or worse, running down the street.

 

[Kevin54]

A load of fill dirt and some new grass if it is only going to be drove on occasionally. If it is going to see some extended us, then I would opt to have it dug down, some crushed stone, compacted, then some asphalt.

The only reason I say asphalt is that it is cheaper than concrete, and seeing that you are in Indiana, the asphalt will melt snow and ice when it is 20 degrees out and sunny. Concrete won't do that.

There are other options that you could go with also. Gravel, pea gravel if you have a border so it don't roll out, or depending on how deep your pockets are, you could go with the geotextile grids that leaves a checkerboard of grass squares.

Then if money is no object.......a stamped concrete drive all the way back to your workshop with a built in heating system.

Very sorry to hear about you dog. Gravel wouldn't be a good thing with only one paw putting pressure on sharp stones. Hopefully though the pet is young enough that you will have many years of enjoyment with him/her.

 

[Kevin54]

I think all of you Camaro guys need to post up a side pic of your rides for us non Camaro people to enjoy

 

[kd3pc]

a small load of screened top soil would be my choice, cheap and a few evenings with a rake and some grass seed, you will never know it was damaged. Even the pickup loads would be easy to handle and not make ruts, if the weather is decent.

best of luck.

 

[Firebird 1]

I second the geo grid. Don't know the name off hand, but I have installed a couple drives with the stuff and its great. You could lay it in the track area only if you want to save a bit. Basically it is a plastic honeycomb looking tray that is installed over a compacted subsoil. It is then filled with top soil and seed. Once the seed sets you have a grassy yard that can be driven over with no ruts. I did an overflow parking lot at a private school with a higher tech concrete version but the plastic ones work great. I will dig one out of the barn and see if I can find a name and post a pic.

 

[pablo94sc]

That geo-grid is an awesome idea.

 

[scotty t]

i'm going to look into that grid thing. all summer the grass is just fine, but in the spring and fall it gets soft.

the car pic is before the RS conversion.

 

[scotty t]

after a quick search all the geo grids that i liked, the thick "web" that you fill in, were in Europe. all i found in the US was the mesh/screen type. if any one has a source let me know please. here's the dog, she has a deformed front leg from birth and walks on three legs. doesn't even slow her down! and she digs like a back hoe

 

[accordfreak]

what do you think of this one? http://www.landscapediscount.com/NDS-EZ-Roll-Gravel-Pavers-GP4X150-p/gp4x150.htm

 

[scotty t]

what do you think of this one? http://www.landscapediscount.com/NDS-EZ-Roll-Gravel-Pavers-GP4X150-p/gp4x150.htm

thanks

 

[351cmach]

The honeycomb style pavers is what I'm ganna do.
http://www.ndspro.com/permeable-pavers/grass-pavers/ez-roll-grass-pavers

 

[pablo94sc]

If you go with the geo grid stuff, please post pics and give a good write up of the install.

 

[lynnbilodeau]

I think all of you Camaro guys need to post up a side pic of your rides for us non Camaro people to enjoy

Already showed you the right side. Here is one of the left side. No front bumper yet, and not rocker spear in place. It still had the original rallye wheels and the bias ply tires on it.

 

[DR99]

Some crushed lime stone with a few inches of dirt on top would help with your rutting problem. A friend has done it before on areas around his area with good results.

 

[WanderingSol07]

Depending on how much driving you will do on it, I've seen decorative type concrete blocks, 4" x 16" x 16" that are mostly open laid on their side and filled in with dirt so grass will grow in them. From a distance looks like the rest of the yard, but will support a light vehicle even when the ground is moist. Not something you can plow though in the wintertime.

 

[wssix99]

+ 1 on the GeoGrid

A friend installed one and it's made for a perfect, driveable lawn for several decades, now.

 

[Git]

I have a 55' x 10' area that I use to access an rv pad in the backyard. It has worked well for over 10 years now - but with the drought is S Cal, I think it is time to pull out the grass and go with something else

 

[mtwaterguy]

after a quick search all the geo grids that i liked, the thick "web" that you fill in, were in Europe. all i found in the US was the mesh/screen type. if any one has a source let me know please. here's the dog, she has a deformed front leg from birth and walks on three legs. doesn't even slow her down! and she digs like a back hoe

Our neighbors have a "tri-pod" also. Great dog and he doesn't let his disability effect his quality of life at all.

 

[Rookie2]

Geo-grid takes a lot of gravel, I would find some fill dirt and top soil.