Paving a crushed sandstone Driveway / Carport

[Tenex]

I have a very odd driveway that is made of crushed sandstone. I would imagine the previous owner has poured it in and compacted it at one point.

I use this driveway / carport quite a lot to park the car and drive in an out. It is located right next to my front yard lawn. Happy to post pictures if needs be.

The trouble is a lot of the sandstone ends up in the car and into the house which is not ideal and also it doesn't look good.

I don't want to turn it into concrete because I am planning to build a duplex here and want to spend too much on it.

I was hoping to pave it myself with recycled brick to save money and it also helps me learn how it is done.

Firstly I need to know if paving will be a good option for a carport / driveway and is not going to quickly move or break under the weight of the car and the pressure.

Secondly what is a good place to start and learn how to get it done properly?

The driveway is slightly higher than the land at the next door neibour but there appears to be some sort of retaining wall in place. I just have to ensure I reinforce it.

 

[datto]

Check youtube for info on paving.

To support the weightof a car I think you will need about 100mm of compacted road base, then 30mm of sand on top of that, then your pavers.

I'd use timber to reinforce/hold the job in place. Alternately, you could use concrete.

 

[nww]

I recall there was a clear spray developed to hold the top layer in place for crushed driveways.

 

[Scott No Mates]

dig a little bit out to check the depth of the crushed stone. As per Datto, should be 100 mm thick. Then run a vibrating compactor over the top (plate compactor or roller). 30 mm screeded weak sand/cement mix with sprinkling of cement over the top. Lay pavers.

Don't forget about providing adequate drainage, assume 99% runoff.

 

[Tenex]

dig a little bit out to check the depth of the crushed stone. As per Datto, should be 100 mm thick. Then run a vibrating compactor over the top (plate compactor or roller). 30 mm screeded weak sand/cement mix with sprinkling of cement over the top. Lay pavers.

Don't forget about providing adequate drainage, assume 99% runoff.

Didn't quite understand what you were suggesting.

I will have to dig out the entire driveway / carport in order to put in the base and bricks / pavers and have it level with the actual land outside of my property, otherwise it wont look good.

I am wondering if recycled brick is going to be good enough for the job? could it break under the pressure?

Whats the best way to retain the sides of the driveway / carport? Do you need any form of reinforcement like you do if you were pouring concrete?

Also do I need some form of concrete poured in between the brick in order to make them stick together and not move around?

In order to create drainage I'm thinking have the top end of the driveway higher the the bottom end so that water runs onto the street.

I have to bear in mind that I don't want to over-capitalize on this. I can have the whole thing done with concrete for around 6k finished so to do this I cannot go over 1k.

 

[wylie]

If you are going to build a duplex and rip it up, why spend anything at all?

 

[INVSTOR]

I recall there was a clear spray developed to hold the top layer in place for crushed driveways.

If you are going to build a duplex and rip it up, why spend anything at all?

I agree with these two comments. I would see if you can improve what you already have as I'd imagine it would all be ripped up again after building.

 

[Tenex]

Well the duplex may not happen for a few more years, depending on when I get the budget for it. I still need to get approval as well.

The sandstone is visually not pleasing and also ends up all over the car mat and into the house.

I thought if I can manage it at a budget then I have improved the driveway and also it is a form of learning / exercise for me as I am trying to get into renovations in general.

Would be great if you could give me some pointers in terms of the questions I have asked.

 

[pinkboy]

Rough numbers here:

$6k to concrete = $80m2 x 75m. So we are looking at 75m2.

75m2 paved under $1k = $13.30/m2.

Can you get materials to do 75m2 for under $10/m2? Lets assume you have to spend the other $3.30/m2 on tools/incidentals/topsand/cement.

I think a trip to Bunnings to get a couple good quality mats, a couple dust brushes and a broom would cost less than $50, and the time inconvinienced by brushing your feet will far outweigh trying to pave with little experience and inferior materials to keep the costs low.

pinkboy

 

[wylie]

Would be great if you could give me some pointers in terms of the questions I have asked.

I feel a little like I've been chastised, but seriously, the questions you asked may be the "wrong" questions. Perhaps the question should have been "is it worth spending anything on a driveway that will be trashed when a duplex is built on this block?"

My answer is "no".

I think a trip to Bunnings to get a couple good quality mats, a couple dust brushes and a broom would cost less than $50, and the time inconvinienced by brushing your feet will far outweigh trying to pave with little experience and inferior materials to keep the costs low.

pinkboy

Excellent advice.

I agree with these two comments. I would see if you can improve what you already have as I'd imagine it would all be ripped up again after building.

Someone else agrees with us.

 

[sanj]

Can you retain the house when you do the subdivision? Assuming it costs 20-25k to do the subdivision you're throwing away a good chunk on the driveway instead of just getting on with the subdivision

 

[Tenex]

We have done a lot to keep the car / house clean, including trying to brush, vacuum etc.

The duplex is a 5 years from now plan (or within that timeframe), so if I can get a driveway in place for now it would be great.

I am planning to do majority of the work myself. It will be worth the fact that our property will look a lot better for the next few years if I can manage this within a 1 k budget.

Now the question is, is it possible and will recycled bricks hold or are they likely to break under pressure?

I appreciate the good advice in terms of the costs vs benefits but it is something that I want to do and I am trying to find out how I can do it.

 

[pinkboy]

F Truck or Carolla?

pinkboy

 

[vaughan]

we recently looked at concreting our drive and front car space. Is currently meant to be lawn but is actually dirt and dust. Price for concrete, just coloured, was $12,000.

The challenge is that crushed granite and similar are quite cheap but always drift around and get tracked into house, cars etc.

In the end, in desperation, we dumped a couple of cubic metres of euchy mulch onto it, and killed what little grass was left. Looks good, smells nice, does not get muddy and does not track too much into house or cars. Needed re-doing after 6 months and we changed to the pine bark fines used for soft fall, this is making even less mess.

 

[Tenex]

F Truck or Carolla?

pinkboy

Its a bigger car and from time to time it will be two cars if thats what you are asking.

I dont think that they are any heavier than most other cars

 

[Tenex]

we recently looked at concreting our drive and front car space. Is currently meant to be lawn but is actually dirt and dust. Price for concrete, just coloured, was $12,000.

The challenge is that crushed granite and similar are quite cheap but always drift around and get tracked into house, cars etc.

In the end, in desperation, we dumped a couple of cubic metres of euchy mulch onto it, and killed what little grass was left. Looks good, smells nice, does not get muddy and does not track too much into house or cars. Needed re-doing after 6 months and we changed to the pine bark fines used for soft fall, this is making even less mess.

The trouble that I have is not just the dirt. It is how it looks. It looks as if I live on a farm and also all kinds of weed grown on it. I was actually planning to do nothing about it but I don't think I can just ignore it for a few more years.

 

[sanj]

Any reason the subdivision is a 5 year plan? I've found a lot of people hold off on it when really it is easy money

 

[pinkboy]

What colour bricks are you looking to go with?

pinkboy

 

[Tenex]

Any reason the subdivision is a 5 year plan? I've found a lot of people hold off on it when really it is easy money

Money to build is the main thing.

 

[AlmostBob]

crushed sandstone = sand into everything
but it, with some aggregate cement water, and a rented mixer ... ... I know no concrete

I cheated on several gravel drives, spread crusher dust, water in, instant porous concrete
looks terrible, looks like sand
so does sandstone
but the sand stays put and water still passes