I have a downhill blacktop driveway with a turn around. I would like to make the driveway look better. I got to wondering if I could make my own 4x4x 2 inches concrete "tiles" and place them in a bed of mortar on top of my blacktop driveway? I have been wanting to buy a concrete mixer and thought of mixing my own concrete (Portland cement, sand, and gravel). Is this possible? Can I do this myself?
I appreciate it!
2 inch too thin, they will crack. plus if the asphalt base driveway is cracking or falling apart, your tiles will break bad in those areas. bed of mortar? asphalt must be really bad?
probably cheaper better and less work to either patch the driveway as best a possible, and seal it, with the filler type sealer.
it may not be perfect but it will look tremendously better
Don't do it.
In rain or snow they will be hazardously slippery and on incline even worse. Blacktop gives good traction and if it's in bad shape, you can put sealer on it and if applied properly will make it look like new again.
make the driveway look better. I got to wondering if I could make my own 4 x4x 2 inches concrete "tiles" and place them in a bed of mortar on top of m y blacktop driveway?
n concrete (Portland cement, sand, and gravel). Is this possible? Can I do this myself?
Let me ask this, if I were to keep the blacktop, since it is in fairly roug h shape, can I "overlay new asphalt on top of the old? I have a hot mix asp halt plant nearby and can get it for 69 dollars a ton in my trailer. I woul d have to make something to roll it or rent one of those vibratory compacto rs that looks like a lawn mower.
Depending on the degree of slope you may have a problem stabilizing the pavers.
I know of a driveway with only a very slight slope where this was done (pavers over asphalt) and it has held tight for nearly ten years. The underlying asphalt was in good condition, the owner is a car nut and just wanted a classier looking driveway to complement his new three-car garage and workshop. But I don't know about pavers holding tight on a surface with a definite pitch, especially in areas where the freeze/thaw cycle is a regular thing.
There is no way that I know of to put another layer of asphalt down using the "do it yourself" method. You'd need a highway paving machine.
OTOH: You can apply sealer yourself. It will fill in the cracks and give you a nice smooth surface.
I'm not endorsing any particular product but am just posting this an an example:
How thick is the asphalt and what sort of a bed is it on? Pavers need a decent bed, about 6" IIRC, well compacted.
What condition is the asphalt in? Regardless, I would be thinking about getting it ground up and used as a bed for the pavers. I wouldn't try to mortar them in, even if the bed were not asphalt (won't stick to it).
How much of a slope? Pavers need restraints on all sides, not just downhill. _________________________
You could make your own pavers but it would be a ton of work. Two ways come to mind...
If you like grey, you are home free. If not, you'd have to add color. Two ways...
Regardless of how they are colored, concrete pavers will wear and weather allowing the aggregate to be very obvious. That's why I use clay bricks at my house, no aggregate and the color is "forever".
I cannot imagine how long it will take to make enough blocks. Your life will be consumed by mixing small batches of concrete. Can be qujite a job to lay them securely too.
to make the driveway look better. I got to wondering if I could make my own 4x4x 2 inches concrete "tiles" and place them in a bed of mortar on top of my blacktop driveway?
own concrete (Portland cement, sand, and gravel). Is this possible? Can I d o this myself?
rough shape, can I "overlay new asphalt on top of the old? I have a hot mix asphalt plant nearby and can get it for 69 dollars a ton in my trailer. I would have to make something to roll it or rent one of those vibratory comp actors that looks like a lawn mower.
Can you not just shovel the hot asphalt, spread with a rake, and rent a vib ratory tamper to tamp it?
I suppose you could but I predict it would start breaking up pretty soon. It would be a lot of work and there are too many ways it could go wrong.
With the sealer, you should be able to do it yourself without having to rent extra equipment.
you don't understand my driveway is in not that good a shape it has been rough textured from the beginning and lots of cracks bird baths and other depressions a sailor is not going to cover these up I don't believe
If a "sailor" can't do the job, then get a soldier to do it!
All kidding aside, if it's get cracks in it, the sealer will fill them.
If it's got deep depressions, the sealer may only partially fill them.
rough shape, can I "overlay new asphalt on top of the old? I have a hot mix asphalt plant nearby and can get it for 69 dollars a ton in my trailer. I would have to make something to roll it or rent one of those
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That "carry your own" asphalt is made for potholes and patches. Trying to re-do a whole driveway seems like a big hassle without machinery. By the time you shovel it in place it will be cold. The trucks that do it on roads, have a heater inside the machine that applies it. Before applying it, they coat the old asphalt with a hot spray on tar to make sure it adheres. The machine that applies it, not only heats it, but levels it, and makes it smooth. Then another guy drives a large roller machine over it, which shoots out a spray of water, so the roller dont adhere to the asphalt.
I have seen asphalt applied over old asphalt and over concrete. The method is about the same.
I like to DIY most stuff, but this is one of those thing best left to the professionals. Actually, you really dont need to know much, you just need the proper machinery to do it.
As far as your paver idea, I'll just agree with that others have said. That is just too much work....
I doubt it.
I suggest you measure your driveway and divide the total area by 16 square inches. (The size of your 4x4 paver.)
You'd be making those pavers for a really long time.
Pavers are a good solution for people that can afford them.
Blacktop is one of the cheaper solutions, but it makes no sense to do blacktop as a DIY project.
+1
Even if you quickly spread the asphalt out and used a compactor on it, I would think it would come out very uneaven compared to what you get by rolling it. But then, who knows? I've never tried it or seen it done. How big is the driveway, how many loads would it take, can it all be done at once, etc are other considerations. I DIY on a lot of things, that is one that I wouldn't attempt.
The city repairs the pot holes in the alley behind my house each year. Within a month or so, all the patching just works loose.
This year we are finally slated to get an all new alley.
Worst still (as I mentioned) is lack of traction when wet.
They are downright dangerous.
I don't think traction is an issue with most commercially available pavers. They are widely used for driveways, approach aprons, patios, etc. and I've never heard of them being slippery, unless you apply a sealer. The surface of all the ones I've seen is relatively rough.
Plus, the guy is proposing to roll his own pavers out of concrete. Concrete is widely used for driveways, roads, etc. Why would concrete pavers be slippery?
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