Asphalt driveway in two phases

I have a rental property in need of a driveway. The property borders wetlands, thus, the ground is very soft in the spring. I would like to install an asphalt driveway, but I'm afraid it would fail in a short amount of time due to ground conditions.

I am wondering if I could do the driveway in two phases. The first phase would be to dig out the soft ground and fill with gravel or other suitable material for the base. In the spring after the winter thaw, if the ground settles, I can top off the base with additional gravel and re-compact. Phase two would be to lay the asphalt after all/most of settling had stopped. Is this feasable? Thanks...

Reply to
lanman
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Sounds like a reasonable plan. You may have to remove a lot of soil. You want to get the topsoil off and any soil with organic material content since it will eventually decompose. They make geotextile fabric (kind of weed block on steroids) that you should lay down before the gravel to help keep the base from sinking into the soil. If the finished height can be somewhat above the surrounding ground level that will help with drainage, and you may need drains along the sides to keep water out of the base. Start with large size gravel on the bottom. Spread and compact the gravel in no more than about 4" thick lifts or it won't compact well.

You need a good asphalt contractor that knows how to build a good base in wet areas.

Good luck,

Paul F.

Reply to
Paul Franklin

if the area freezes use drain pipe to get any water away from under and in the gravel.

on initial dig out go very deep and use lots of gravel.

see how it looks in the spring, if it moves a lot then go with tar and chip.

Reply to
hallerb

The idea of removing the soft material until you get to solid earth and then backfilling with appropriate material is correct. And waiting 6 months to then do the ashphalt can't hurt, but if the material is properly compacted as it's put down, it can be done right away. This is done in construciton all the time. Depending on how deep your soft layer is, this could be quite expensive. Also, as someone else pointed out, there is the question of groundwater. If the natural water table of this is very high, you may still have a problem, if the water is high enough that it comes up under the asphalt and then freezes. Mention was made of adding drains and that is good, assuming there is somewhere for the water to drain to.

Reply to
trader4

You will need to install a drain first, this is a must. As an owner of a sealcoating company I have seen the damage from the water seeping through many times. Over time this will create potholes and large cracks. You will need several inches of gravel and then the asphalt. Shop around and get several bids as they can vary quite widely. After about 90 days you will want to get your driveway seal coated.

-- John

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Reply to
John

I would suggest just going with "phase 1."

What do you expect to gain from paving the gravel road? If the sub-soil conditions are marginal the asphalt will crack. If you just have gravel, you can just pile on a little more stone. If you pave it, you have to start over.

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Reply to
John Gilmer

Yes, depending on the soil and surface water conditions in the area, that may be the best approach, especially from a cost/benefit standpoint. I'm not a big fan of loose stone or gravel driveways, but in some cases in may be a good alternative. Depending on how long the driveway is, you could do pavers or asphalt near the house and leave the rest crushed stone, etc.

Reply to
trader4

the trouble with gravel driveways is dirt ALWAYS migrates into the gravel:( its sad and amazing:(

My neighbor fixed his over 20 years ago and although he moved out over

10 years ago his gravel driveway still looks great NO DIRT AND MUD AT ALL!

he had it dug out deep, at about a foot down layer of gravel then cheap layer of asphalt, then 8 or 9 inches of gravel.

it worked amazingly well, his driveway is perfect.

Reply to
hallerb

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