I'm considering adding a one-car parking space adjacent to the driveway in
the front of my home (where I'm having trouble growing grass anyhow). I
initially thought I'd pay someone to pave it for me but am now thinking that
I could just throw some gravel down, bordered by railroad ties. I'm thinking
that this would:

1. be more aesthetically pleasing
2. require less maintenance (i.e., no cracking concrete)
3. be better for drainage (our front lawn slopes downward to our house)
4. be cheaper and something I could do myself

Any thoughts on the pros and cons of pavement vs. gravel? If I were to go
w/the latter, is it as simple as dumping some gravel on the lawn (after
killing weeds/grass)? Any helpful comments are appreciated. Thanks!

W.D.

On Mon, 6 Sep 2004 19:21:31 -0400, "W.D." wdanis at NO SPAM yahoo dot
com wrote:

I'm considering adding a one-car parking space adjacent to the driveway in
the front of my home (where I'm having trouble growing grass anyhow). I
initially thought I'd pay someone to pave it for me but am now thinking that
I could just throw some gravel down, bordered by railroad ties. I'm thinking
that this would:

1. be more aesthetically pleasing
2. require less maintenance (i.e., no cracking concrete)
3. be better for drainage (our front lawn slopes downward to our house)
4. be cheaper and something I could do myself

Any thoughts on the pros and cons of pavement vs. gravel? If I were to go
w/the latter, is it as simple as dumping some gravel on the lawn (after
killing weeds/grass)? Any helpful comments are appreciated. Thanks!

W.D.


Concrete is better than asphalt.
Asphalt is better than gravel.
Gravel is better than dirt.

I guess what is most pleasing is subjective. Concrete is less
maintenance than gravel. A concrete area will direct water towards a
drain, gravel will allow muddy water to flow wherever. Gravel is
cheaper than concrete, and you'll know that if you ever sell your
house. Concrete offers more use than gravel (riding bicycles, playing
basketball, dumping mulch, etc.)

Consider your neighborhood as well- if there are other gravel drives and
rain is infrequent, than maybe gravel is the way to go.
My personal preference is brick pavers...


"W.D." wdanis at NO SPAM yahoo dot com wrote in message
...
I'm considering adding a one-car parking space adjacent to the driveway in
the front of my home (where I'm having trouble growing grass anyhow). I
initially thought I'd pay someone to pave it for me but am now thinking
that I could just throw some gravel down, bordered by railroad ties. I'm
thinking that this would:

1. be more aesthetically pleasing
2. require less maintenance (i.e., no cracking concrete)
3. be better for drainage (our front lawn slopes downward to our house)
4. be cheaper and something I could do myself

Any thoughts on the pros and cons of pavement vs. gravel? If I were to go
w/the latter, is it as simple as dumping some gravel on the lawn (after
killing weeds/grass)? Any helpful comments are appreciated. Thanks!

W.D.

If I were to go w/the latter, is it as simple as dumping some gravel on the
lawn

No, you'll wind up with rocky mud every time it rains. Do it right, dig out
about 4" of the dirt and use it to fill in low spots on your lawn. Then get a
load of unwashed crushed white rock and fill in the area. The limestone fines
in the gravel set up almost like concrete after some time and make a very
sturdy driveway. Our local contractors use it a lot in road building. HTH

Joe

osspam (Joe Bobst) wrote in message ...
If I were to go w/the latter, is it as simple as dumping some gravel on the
lawn

No, you'll wind up with rocky mud every time it rains. Do it right, dig out
about 4" of the dirt and use it to fill in low spots on your lawn. Then get a
load of unwashed crushed white rock and fill in the area. The limestone fines
in the gravel set up almost like concrete after some time and make a very
sturdy driveway. Our local contractors use it a lot in road building. HTH

Joe


What is the existing driveway made of? If it's paved, then I'd
definitely pave the parking spot. I've never been a fan of crushed
stone for this application. The stones wind up in the lawn, in the
street, migrating to paved areas, etc. And if you live in an area
with snow, either blowing or plowing moves stones around too. I'd go
with asphalt, cement or pavers.

W.D. wrote:
I'm considering adding a one-car parking space adjacent to the
driveway in the front of my home (where I'm having trouble growing
grass anyhow). I initially thought I'd pay someone to pave it for
me but am now thinking that I could just throw some gravel down,
bordered by railroad ties. I'm thinking that this would:

1. be more aesthetically pleasing
2. require less maintenance (i.e., no cracking concrete)
3. be better for drainage (our front lawn slopes downward to our
house) 4. be cheaper and something I could do myself

Any thoughts on the pros and cons of pavement vs. gravel? If I were
to go w/the latter, is it as simple as dumping some gravel on the
lawn (after killing weeds/grass)? Any helpful comments are
appreciated. Thanks!

Another possibility is washout...what is washed out of concrete trucks.
Around here (central Florida) it is free for the hauling. Once spread, it
sets up a bit and is much more consolidated than crushed rock will ever be.
Not nearly as good as concrete of course.

--
dadiOH
_____________________________

dadiOH's dandies v3.0...
....a help file of info about MP3s, recording from
LP/cassette and tips & tricks on this and that.
Get it at http://mysite.verizon.net/xico
____________________________

"W.D." wrote:

I'm considering adding a one-car parking space adjacent to the driveway in
the front of my home (where I'm having trouble growing grass anyhow). I
initially thought I'd pay someone to pave it for me but am now thinking that
I could just throw some gravel down, bordered by railroad ties. I'm thinking
that this would:

1. be more aesthetically pleasing
2. require less maintenance (i.e., no cracking concrete)
3. be better for drainage (our front lawn slopes downward to our house)
4. be cheaper and something I could do myself

If you've got the money, there's a new, specially porous pavement
that they use where they don't want a water-impermeable surface.
Gravel isn't really low mantenance.

If you go the gravel route, dig out all the topsoil, and put in a
bed of mixed larger and smaller rock, and cover that with
gravel.

On Mon, 6 Sep 2004 19:21:31 -0400, "W.D." wdanis at NO SPAM yahoo dot
com wrote:

I'm considering adding a one-car parking space adjacent to the driveway in
the front of my home (where I'm having trouble growing grass anyhow). I
initially thought I'd pay someone to pave it for me but am now thinking that
I could just throw some gravel down, bordered by railroad ties. I'm thinking
that this would:

1. be more aesthetically pleasing
2. require less maintenance (i.e., no cracking concrete)
3. be better for drainage (our front lawn slopes downward to our house)
4. be cheaper and something I could do myself

Any thoughts on the pros and cons of pavement vs. gravel? If I were to go
w/the latter, is it as simple as dumping some gravel on the lawn (after
killing weeds/grass)? Any helpful comments are appreciated. Thanks!

W.D.

Kids throw gravel.


*-------------------------------*
NEVER FORGET!!!
http://www.cnn.com/interactive/us/01...toyen.amy.html

On Mon, 6 Sep 2004 19:21:31 -0400, "W.D." wdanis at NO SPAM yahoo dot
com wrote:

I'm considering adding a one-car parking space adjacent to the driveway in
the front of my home (where I'm having trouble growing grass anyhow). I
initially thought I'd pay someone to pave it for me but am now thinking that
I could just throw some gravel down, bordered by railroad ties. I'm thinking
that this would:

1. be more aesthetically pleasing
2. require less maintenance (i.e., no cracking concrete)
3. be better for drainage (our front lawn slopes downward to our house)
4. be cheaper and something I could do myself

Any thoughts on the pros and cons of pavement vs. gravel? If I were to go
w/the latter, is it as simple as dumping some gravel on the lawn (after
killing weeds/grass)? Any helpful comments are appreciated. Thanks!

Put a weed block down before the gravel, and plan on higher
maintenance. Gravel moves, and edging it is impossible. Get a load
of gravel delivered, not the bags from your local box store.

Jeff

I'm considering adding a one-car parking space adjacent to the driveway in
the front of my home (where I'm having trouble growing grass anyhow). I
initially thought I'd pay someone to pave it for me but am now thinking that
I could just throw some gravel down, bordered by railroad ties. I'm thinking
that this would:

1. be more aesthetically pleasing


Concrete is way more aesthetically pleasing than gravel.

I needed a pull around on my driveway. (Two drivers, don't want to
block the other car in....)
The ground is under shade and didn't have much vegetation...
I used concrete bricks to make parallel "tire" paths.
Just dug them in and put them in place. The plan was to reset/level
them after using them compacted them in the ground. Havn't really
needed to do that yet. A few cracked when i was trying them out
before burying. None that are set in place have cracked though.

I originally wanted to go with bricks, but the price was too high.

Concrete is way more aesthetically pleasing than gravel.
"Bricks" are way more aesthetically pleasing than concrete.

Of course, you can always stamp the concrete to make it nice looking.


--
be safe.
flip
Ich habe keine Ahnung was das bedeutet, oder vielleicht doch?
Remove origin of the word spam from address to reply (leave "+")

Since no one mentioned this... It makes using your snow blower real
interesting; if you use one.


"W.D." wdanis at NO SPAM yahoo dot com wrote in message ...
I'm considering adding a one-car parking space adjacent to the driveway in
the front of my home (where I'm having trouble growing grass anyhow). I
initially thought I'd pay someone to pave it for me but am now thinking that
I could just throw some gravel down, bordered by railroad ties. I'm thinking
that this would:

1. be more aesthetically pleasing
2. require less maintenance (i.e., no cracking concrete)
3. be better for drainage (our front lawn slopes downward to our house)
4. be cheaper and something I could do myself

Any thoughts on the pros and cons of pavement vs. gravel? If I were to go
w/the latter, is it as simple as dumping some gravel on the lawn (after
killing weeds/grass)? Any helpful comments are appreciated. Thanks!

W.D.

"W.D." wdanis at NO SPAM yahoo dot com wrote in message
...
I'm considering adding a one-car parking space adjacent to the driveway in
the front of my home (where I'm having trouble growing grass anyhow). I
initially thought I'd pay someone to pave it for me but am now thinking
that
I could just throw some gravel down, bordered by railroad ties. I'm
thinking
that this would:

1. be more aesthetically pleasing
2. require less maintenance (i.e., no cracking concrete)
3. be better for drainage (our front lawn slopes downward to our house)
4. be cheaper and something I could do myself

Any thoughts on the pros and cons of pavement vs. gravel? If I were to go
w/the latter, is it as simple as dumping some gravel on the lawn (after
killing weeds/grass)? Any helpful comments are appreciated. Thanks!

W.D.

Another consideration: Some localities require a permit for new driveways
or aprons to the street. Mine in particular requires "dust free" surfaces,
so gravel isn't allowed. They also require a bond for the apron
construction.

My preference for beauty and durability? Concrete pavers:
www.cambridgepavers.com or www.ephenry.com there are other brands also.

Will Niccolls

Next time a woman steps on gravel in spikes, make sure your home
insurance is up to date.