Hobby_Man22
Well-known member
Every culvert I see is just wide enough to fit a compact car. Why do they make them so narrow? You have to pull a few tricks if you want to pull a trailer onto the culvert.
Why are driveway culverts so narrow?
- Thread starter Hobby_Man22
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Dustball
Well-known member
People are cheap? Mine's about 20 feet wide.
OP
Hobby_Man22
Well-known member
How sad. I don't see how an extra wide culvert would ever cost you more in the long run. It would surely add to the property value.
Wanna Ride
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People cheap out on the dumbest ****.
Local, young couple, hard working, good people. Bought a great lot a few years ago, did a ton of excavating, waited a couple years and built a great house, nice landscaping, etc. Waited another year or so and finally graded all the gravel, and added concrete to their driveway. I drive by there to check it out and low and behold... their damn concrete is barely seven feet wide. All the way from the garage door, to the street... about a hundred feet or so. No margin of error... and no shoulder space for clearing snow without some lawn damage. Yes, it costs a little more initially, but to go larger is just a small percentage more, while all the trouble of grading, forming, pouring, and finishing is already out on the table. To each their own, I suppose.
I know, I know. I get it, there’s a lot of costs in buying property, and building a home. But some things just aren’t worth going cheap. When I built my two-car garage, I built it eight feet wider than most two-car garages, and I also poured the driveway wider, so there’d be plenty of space on the edges, to clear snow in the winter, to allow plenty of “walk-around” space with all the doors open on both vehicles, etc. Did the same thing on all my sidewalks, I poured all of them four feet wide. Two people can pass without stepping off into wet grass, snow, etc. But maybe that’s because I’m just a big guy (6’3”) and hate being crowded in normal-sized spaces.
Local, young couple, hard working, good people. Bought a great lot a few years ago, did a ton of excavating, waited a couple years and built a great house, nice landscaping, etc. Waited another year or so and finally graded all the gravel, and added concrete to their driveway. I drive by there to check it out and low and behold... their damn concrete is barely seven feet wide. All the way from the garage door, to the street... about a hundred feet or so. No margin of error... and no shoulder space for clearing snow without some lawn damage. Yes, it costs a little more initially, but to go larger is just a small percentage more, while all the trouble of grading, forming, pouring, and finishing is already out on the table. To each their own, I suppose.
I know, I know. I get it, there’s a lot of costs in buying property, and building a home. But some things just aren’t worth going cheap. When I built my two-car garage, I built it eight feet wider than most two-car garages, and I also poured the driveway wider, so there’d be plenty of space on the edges, to clear snow in the winter, to allow plenty of “walk-around” space with all the doors open on both vehicles, etc. Did the same thing on all my sidewalks, I poured all of them four feet wide. Two people can pass without stepping off into wet grass, snow, etc. But maybe that’s because I’m just a big guy (6’3”) and hate being crowded in normal-sized spaces.
OP
Hobby_Man22
Well-known member
You should see my 7000 pound boat 2" away from the ditch when I pull into my drive. lol You have to start off on the shoulder slightly, then turn off the road like 12" to make sure the trailer makes a wide enough turn.
nadogail
Well-known member
As the OP noted, we are surrounded by the "Penny Wise and Pound Foolish" . Hopefully they will get it better, next time around.
spudley
Well-known member
I had no choice in width as our zoning dept determines culverts by size of garage. 26' wide for 80' flaring out to 34' at the garage.
Many highways are narrower than my driveway.
Many highways are narrower than my driveway.
TractorJeff
Well-known member
Stuart in MN
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Most people don't have giant trucks or big trailers, so it's not an issue for them.
gnpenning
Well-known member
Delivery people hate them. Gives the owner a chance to say GET OFF MY LAWN.
You can extend culverts down the road.
I drive trucks and pull trailers and ask customers if there is turn around room. You would be amazed at the answers and descriptions of what others have had to do to get into their location. I like to know that before I bid a job. If you want to cheap out and make it as difficult as possible for trades people to access your place that is your choice, don't be surprised if you find out later all your bids were higher than someone else.
. My favorite are the city folk moving out to the country and buy that special mountain property during the summer. Finding out how expensive it is to cut in a road only go for a 8' road winding through the trees. All shaded and beautiful during the summer on that 4% grade they plan to plow with a 4 wheeler even though they have know place to push the snow. Brilliant. The first 20" snow storm and nobody wants to chain up every day to get in and out of the luge track they created. It's amazing how much longer a snow packed drive will hold ice into the summer in the shade of the trees.
Pay me now or pay me later.
You can extend culverts down the road.
I drive trucks and pull trailers and ask customers if there is turn around room. You would be amazed at the answers and descriptions of what others have had to do to get into their location. I like to know that before I bid a job. If you want to cheap out and make it as difficult as possible for trades people to access your place that is your choice, don't be surprised if you find out later all your bids were higher than someone else.
. My favorite are the city folk moving out to the country and buy that special mountain property during the summer. Finding out how expensive it is to cut in a road only go for a 8' road winding through the trees. All shaded and beautiful during the summer on that 4% grade they plan to plow with a 4 wheeler even though they have know place to push the snow. Brilliant. The first 20" snow storm and nobody wants to chain up every day to get in and out of the luge track they created. It's amazing how much longer a snow packed drive will hold ice into the summer in the shade of the trees.
Pay me now or pay me later.
bwringer
Well-known member
'Nuff said. If some upgrade that will improve your QOL every day and save you thousands of dollars in the long run costs $50 more, 9/10 people aren't going to do it.
When one of my Uncles built a house a while back, he insisted on larger than normal doors throughout the house, a wider than normal stair down to the basement, wider hallways, wider sidewalks, and several other dimensional improvements. There were quite a few other basic upgrades as well, like more outlets and lighting than the bare minimum standard.
It was astonishing how wonderfully open and usable that house was. There was nothing the least bit fancy about it, just... more room and more options.
He had to really stay on top of the builders, especially the electricians, to get them to pay attention to the plans and install what he had paid for.
Ing3018
Well-known member
Because metal and plastic culvert pipes are sold in 20' long pieces. Concrete pipe comes in 8' lengths but is more costly to install. Most driveway approaches with moderate depth ditches really work fine for maneuvering with 30' of pipe. But, then you need to pay for 40' of pipe to get the length you should have.
One of those things the owner should specify with their contractor.
One of those things the owner should specify with their contractor.
Yes on culverts coming in 20ft lengths, so at most you can get an 18 ft driveway at road. SHould be wide enough for homeowner vehicles but deliveries maybe not.
Cheap out on a driveway in Maine and you will regret it when frost comes out
Cheap out on a driveway in Maine and you will regret it when frost comes out
Higgins
Well-known member
It may boil down to what the local township requirements are. Here in TN all we need is a 24'. When the supplier dropped off our new culvert, they dropped off a 30Fter. Turns out the 30 was cheaper than the 24 just due to the volume.
AL
Jinks
Well-known member
Last house was on a cul-de-sac, but not in the middle. Young couple bought the "flag lot" next to us & built a house. Nearly 300' on the "pole" part of the lot to reach the "flag" portion. They did put in a wide slab in front of the garage with a "turn around area", but never used it. The drive was 7 or 8 ft wide, winding through trees on the way up to the house. They'd invariably drive up, but back down! None of them could back...
They clipped half the trees, & dented their cars, but mostly they backed over the buried cable pedestal near the end of the drive...
I had satellite at the time so I didn't care......
They clipped half the trees, & dented their cars, but mostly they backed over the buried cable pedestal near the end of the drive... I had satellite at the time so I didn't care......Higgins
Well-known member
LOL How true. We live in a mountain community on a dead end road with a large culdesac, so building can be a challenge at times. When we moved in, the mover just parked in the middle of the road, when finished he just turned around his 53ft trailer without problems.
Another neighbor
had a problem with truss delivery, as the trusses were shipped upright. (don't as me why, as I don't know) So the are going up a hill with a sharp right turn. Cant go any further as the phone cable is in the way. The following day, the crane showed up, and lifted the trusses up and over the cable. Just wonder what that little ops cost!!jkeyser14
Well-known member
I have a 900' long driveway. I don't have an extra $100k to make it 16' wide and it would be money wasted for a pile of gravel that just sits there all day getting under-utilized. Instead I made the driveway 8' wide and I bought a $20k tractor with a snowblower. The entire driveway can be cleared in 30 minutes. But hey, you are free to piss away your money however you see fit.
A nice T-shaped pad at the end makes turning around anything but a 40ft. tractor trailer easy. And I really don't want a 80,000 truck on my driveway tearing it up anyway.
PWC Repair
Well-known member
Guess that depends on the area. Here in the backwoods, EVERYBODY has giant trucks and big trailers.
Wanna Ride
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Always going to be that one guy who gets offended, and somehow thinks everyone else cares how he justifies it, and his decisions. If the shoe fits, I suppose.
No one said everyone with a 900’ driveway should make theirs, extra wide. We were specifically talking about shorter driveways, where the additional cost would be nominal. But thanks for telling us you have a driveway that’s nearly the length of a dragstrip. We all look up to you now. Go on... type your lengthy and witty reply, because we know you’ll feel the need to put us in our place.
F451
Well-known member
Seriously. 6'5" here, same thing. I HATE being cramped. Hate crowds. Moved from a big 3 car garage place to a 2 car garage (really 1.5), I f-in' hate it. Constantly tripping over things, knocking my elbows.
One of the reasons I love my pickup trucks, lots of interior room.
And small culverts, tiny garages, small driveways, same. What the heck?
My driveway BARELY fits two cars side by side, forget about getting into them from in between them, smacking the other car with the door, contorting your body. Its ridiculous.
gnpenning
Well-known member
AZ Pete
Well-known member
I had a narrow (short) culvert in one of my houses, so I just bought a couple of collars and two short sections of culvert and extended both ends. Fortunately it was corrugated galvanized steel, so very easy to extend.
48windsor
Well-known member
I also will say people never plan on a truck coming down their driveway!
As a truckdriver I always think about what if I ever need a truck to come through whenever I make gates ,driveways.
Pay now or be sorry later.
I agree with comments above
As a truckdriver I always think about what if I ever need a truck to come through whenever I make gates ,driveways.
Pay now or be sorry later.
I agree with comments above
whitetrash1
Well-known member
my town controls what we can do for them. and if you wanna make any change at all you have to get city council approval. which costs a few hundred on top of the cost of changes.
mine is 16-18 wide. i haven't measured it. but i can swing my truck and trailer in without much of an issue so its not a big deal. the previous owner though apparently almost lost his boat a couple times based on the damage i have to the end of it.
mine is 16-18 wide. i haven't measured it. but i can swing my truck and trailer in without much of an issue so its not a big deal. the previous owner though apparently almost lost his boat a couple times based on the damage i have to the end of it.
Negen
Well-known member
What is a culvert in regards to a driveway? Google suggests it is the storm pipe under the driveway that sends water to a drainage ditch. Where I live it is not all that common to see these types of drains but most driveways are the width of the garage or slightly wider. Most people that have long private roads to their house are normally wide enough for two way traffic. I haven't seen driveway's longer than 1 mile but that paved only about 1/2 the rest was dirt.
Sent from my ONEPLUS A6013 using The Garage Journal mobile app
Sent from my ONEPLUS A6013 using The Garage Journal mobile app
48windsor
Well-known member
well when concrete comes just hire a pump.
santagary
Well-known member
What the hell are you guys calling a culvert? A culvert in our neck of the woods is a corrugated meal pile 1 to 4' in diameter to all ditch water to pass.
santagary
Well-known member
metal pipe
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isb cornbinder
Well-known member
The culverts are made short so the DIY crowd can better haul the pieces. Stop complaining and buy two lengths.
reader2580
Well-known member
The width of a culvert is usually way down the list when someone is looking at a house. It certainly wasn't a consideration for me, but I was also buying a house that needed a $100,000 renovation before I could move in. My driveway is 12 feet wide with the entrance being about 16 feet wide. The city had a requirement that I pave the dirt driveway and I couldn't afford another $4000 additional to get to say 18 or 20 feet wide. I would have also have to remove some mature trees to go wider.
What is a deal breaker for me is if the road is paved or not. That definitely affects the value of the property. The "paved" road in front of my house was in bad shape when I moved in. I contacted the city a year later to find out when the road was scheduled to be repaved. I was told it would never be repaved as it wasn't technically a paved road. The city dumped millings on the road as it was gravel. They said when the millings fail it will likely go back to gravel. I was PISSED to say the least. I wouldn't have bought the house if I knew that. Gravel roads are hell on vehicles and almost impassable during the spring around here. Gravel roads turn to sheets of ice in early spring and in late spring they turn into mud pits.
reader2580
Well-known member
The bigger issue for me and big long vehicles is the narrow street out front although I guess a wider driveway would help with that.
I have a 12' driveway now and had a 10' driveway at my previous house. It was easier to back my 43 foot motorhome into the ten foot driveway because the street out front was probably eight to ten feet wider.
reader2580
Well-known member
I suspect the reason people don't build good roads/driveways is because they don't realize the costs in doing it right if the driveway is really long. They buy the property and then find out how expensive that mile long driveway done right will cost so they do it half assed.
A local Boy Scout recently redid a 100 foot loing section of gravel road and it cost around $40,000! The road has a 15 MPH speed limit and is maybe 20 feet wide. They needed to replace a large septic system and the drain field had to be placed on the other side of the road. They decided to redo the road since they had to dig it up for the pipes anyway and it was in bad shape to start with.
I don't think people realize that a proper road/driveway can cost tens of thousands of dollars.
A local Boy Scout recently redid a 100 foot loing section of gravel road and it cost around $40,000! The road has a 15 MPH speed limit and is maybe 20 feet wide. They needed to replace a large septic system and the drain field had to be placed on the other side of the road. They decided to redo the road since they had to dig it up for the pipes anyway and it was in bad shape to start with.
I don't think people realize that a proper road/driveway can cost tens of thousands of dollars.
egnorant
Well-known member
My Dad taught me about false economy a long time ago. 45 years ago we built a shop building and he was told that 4 inches of concrete would be fine so he asked for 8 inches.
I installed a 2 post lift 25 years later with confidence and it has held up with all our abuse.
The year after it was built he bought a trailer wider than the doors he "settled" on installing. He told me to get what you want or you end up with what you don't want. His other lesson on this was that he was going to go make some more money tomorrow, but those door will piss him off forever!
Bruce
I installed a 2 post lift 25 years later with confidence and it has held up with all our abuse.
The year after it was built he bought a trailer wider than the doors he "settled" on installing. He told me to get what you want or you end up with what you don't want. His other lesson on this was that he was going to go make some more money tomorrow, but those door will piss him off forever!
Bruce
reader2580
Well-known member
At some point you can't keep waiting to build the perfect building, or you'll be eventually be retired and realize that you don't have the energy to do anything in a building if you build it during retirement.
I'm planning to build a large stick built garage in 2022. It won't have a concrete floor to start with to save at least $10,000. I'll be 50 years old in early 2022 and don't want to wait another couple of years to build just so I can have a concrete floor on day one. I won't skimp on stuff like wide and tall doors as those are very expensive to change later.
johnnyradiant
Well-known member
Yep. Our municipality just shrunk driveway width at the street but they didn't make the streets any wider, so now my 1 ton Chevy has no hope of a single point turn into or out of a lot of these driveways if there are cars parked around the driveway, even if they are the required distance from the driveway.
OP
Hobby_Man22
Well-known member
I wonder if thicker concrete eliminates spider cracks.
ezover
Well-known member
sometimes it's a over site, when we built our house i forgot to add a 8" tall garage door thankfully the builder added it in.
2nd dumb thing i did was only went with a 2 car garage instead of 2.5, property had a 32x 48 pole barn so i thought eh' we can save a few bucks i have the barn. pfftttt dumb dumb dumb,
3rd mistake was not having a extra car turn off in the drive way, again i thought i have a 2nd driveway to the barn we don't need the added cost, in hind site that was a mistake also.
to be fair to myself we were trying to control cost as they were adding up but the added cost would not have killed us.
could be cost, lack of importance to them or lack of experince/ knowledge.
the one thing i did not think of and would add in if we ever build another home will be doors and hallways wide enough for a wheel chair, mainly because i like the extra space and who knows what the future holds.
jkeyser14
Well-known member
Actually, that is exactly what was said...
spudley
Well-known member
Not Sure?
But this sounds "F'ed" up!
Rules is rules, all my neighbors are similar widths.