Worn out gravel driveway

So my driveway is now mostly 1/4 minus and mud. I don't think I can just add new gravel on top of it because I think most of it will end up in the grass. The driveway is already higher than most of the surrounding land. Do you take a few inches out with a bobcat or what?

I added recycled asphalt to mine and love it. No mud and it is hard as a rock.

Many of my neighbors have done this and like it.

Keith

if you find it mostly mud now , take out 6-8 inches , then add back 2-3inch stone for about 5 inches then go over the top with a 3/4 to 1 inch common driveway gravel.

Take off 6-8" and add crushed concrete to finished height. Will compact over time but will crust over any soft areas you may have.

I would not take anything off of it. You want it to be above grade. Sounds like you just need to add gravel, crown it and install lead off ditches. Your main goal should be to get the water off the roadway after rains.

7/8 crush over what you have 1 inch good for a pickup.

Im in the same boat. I added and the holes all washed out. A couple spot i broke up the “shoulders” of the hole and then added some gravel. Those stayed pretty good. Can crushed concrete just be added to the holes without doing anything to the edges?

When they repave roads often they "mill" out the old aspahalt and haul it to be recycled. Get hold of an asphalt company. Buy a load or two of millings. Put it down now before it gets hot and spread it. It will set up real nice after it gets a few days of heat and sunshine.

Millings work great. My neighbor got a load last week for his driveway, turned out great but pricy($500/load).

Rent a skid steer for a day, pay a thousand for millings, driveway problems solved for 20 plus years does not sound expensive to me.

hit the lottery and pave it.

Crushed concrete - if available locally for a reasonable price is my recommendation. My brother got some and seems to like it pretty good. Crushed concrete is the base material to keep you out of the mud. You can topdress with something fancier.

Around here RCA, recycled concrete aggregate, is common and cheap. It doesn't seal like asphalt but settles into a strong firm base.

Put a grater on it center it high and slope the shoulders down I use 3/4 clean do it all every 3 years and I have no problems

I put a 600-foot long driveway along the back of my property so I could access planned buildings back there. It’s a low area bordering woods. I dug out a foot of topsoil, it’s very important to remove all organic (topsoil) material when installing a driveway.

I was left with a clay base. I hauled many loads of 4-6” rip rap and leveled it at about 10” deep. I had access to free blacktop millings and had five tri-axle loads hauled in. It was dumped hot and I spend it with my backhoe then compacted it with my ten-ton dump truck loaded with dirt. Those loads only did about half the driveway and the rest I topped with 2A modified.

It was finished twenty-plus years ago and still looks good.

There are too many variables to comment on your situation. Is there organic matter present? What is the sub soil? What is the grade, etc.?

Personally, I would not advise using any crushed concrete. My lane is 1000' and I can tell you, there are MANY things in it you will have to deal with and pick out, especially after any rain. Eg. wire, re-bar fragments, glass, nails, metal shavings, junk metals, etc. Think of those punctured tires! My suggestion is rent a Bobcat, take out the mud down to a SOLID base, DO NOT put down any "fabric" as it will eventually slide and become lumpy. Truck in some #57 stone for a subbase, pack it down by running over it with skid, when it firm, put down crusher run on top. It will take time to settle but be worth it in the long run. :-)

In my area many of the local township have millings that are given away or are sold at a very reasonable price And you might b able to get them hauled to your location And it they are used properly will last as long as any thing else you would buy with the possible exception of aspaht I know two local farmers that use them on their driveways around their farm equipment sheds and they really are nice

Might be surprised at what just running a tooth bucket over it will do.

I’ve always added to the driveway during the spring breakup then I have all summer to pack it down then I think it makes for solid packing. Best to have it on hand to avoid spring load limits.

X2

I end up plowing all the stone off mine every winter. I made a drag to pull behind my tractor that tears up the top coup!e inches and after a rain I have gravel again.

Contractors are using RCA here and adding bulk cement on the top to bind the RCA together.

I don't know about the soil where you guys are, but around here we have patches of some nasty clay and even our "good" dirt turns to crap when it gets wet

Doesn't matter what type of driveway surface material you use, after a couple years you have inevitable potholes/low spots/bumps and ruts.

Best thing to do is put down a layer of Mirafi 500x fabric for separation and strength before putting down your surface material. Years and years of use with no rutting or potholes in the driveway and it preserves the surface material so you don't need to add a load or two every few years

Looking for a land plane with rippers to try to salvage mine.

I bought a landplane with rippers and after three years of using it and putting gravel down, it has improved my drive immensely.
After working it up now, I will take my scraper blade and pull what little outside gravel left by the landplane back to the center. I will still have to put gravel down but not as often.

Russ

I will add: The best piece of equipment I've found that you can tow and grade behind a tractor, ATV, lawn mower, etc. to maintain a lane / driveway is the DR Power Equipment Grader. Been using one for years! Various sizes available. Check out their website for all info :-)

The Amish make a heavy duty model for use with tractors and skid loaders.