Driveways

[Jeremy]

Our driveway needs some attention. It is currently laid with red chips but doesn't look very attractive and is starting to break up in places.

I'm not sure whether to lift the chips and replace with a more attractive chip or bite the bullet and go monoblocks. Or lay tarmac. Or even the printed concrete stuff you get which looks like stone/brickwork.

Are there any other options which I've overlooked ? Anyone have any personal experience of any of the above and would recommend we get or recommend we avoid ?

Regards,

Jeremy

[jj]

If I was doing a driveway, I would go resin bonded. A couple of clients have had them and had nothing but praise. Look good too.

[j2 lot]

stuff

Watching with interest as we need our drive/ front garden done too as its all red chips just now

Is Resin bonded the 'printed concrete' stuff ?
How does that compare to Monoblock for pricing and durability?

[Doc883]

Nice bit of decking

[flyingscot68]

If you go down the mono-block route you need to make sure the base is solid or they will move about and sink here and there.
Mono-block is a pain for weeds growing between the bricks, I've never been able to stop it on ours. You really need to scrape out accumulated soil/weeds etc. every year and replace the sand - quite time consuming.

I wouldn't use it again TBH, the 'printed' type looks a better bet to me but I've no experience of it.

[Dominic]

Monoblock if laid properly, should be weed and trouble free for years. Problem is, most "monoblock specialists" cut corners- they do not put the correct depth of hardcore (if any) and the correct depth of sand. They often also use cheaper thinner blocks that are not designed to take the weigh of cars. My drive was done before we moved into the house by the previous owners - and ours suffers from some sinkage. My parent's was done over 20 years ago my dad's construction company, and is still perfect - no weeds, no sinking.

Monoblock will need jet washing every couple of years, unless you apply some sort of sealant to it. You can also treat it with "pathclear" weed killer every couple of years, which should keep the weeds a bay...

The concrete print can be quite expensive, and again, if not done properly it comes with problems, namely it can crack. If it is a painted finish, that can wear off over time too.

Tarmac can seem like a cheap and appealing option, but cheaply done tarmac won't last long. I guess the message is, you get what you pay for,... and make sure you get a good reputable installer.

[Mikie711]

If you go down the mono-block route you need to make sure the base is solid or they will move about and sink here and there.
Mono-block is a pain for weeds growing between the bricks, I've never been able to stop it on ours. You really need to scrape out accumulated soil/weeds etc. every year and replace the sand - quite time consuming.

I wouldn't use it again TBH, the 'printed' type looks a better bet to me but I've no experience of it.

I agree with this, and Dom, your right but even when it is laid properly over time it can still move. Ours does especially during winter when the ground freezes and heaves. Then in spring when it thaws out the underlying ground id a different shape so you driveway changes also. Not always the installers fault.

[point n squirt]

If you go down the mono block route then theres bargins to be had on Marshels Ebay shop. One a week they auction off lots that are test batches, only they tend to be for large areas 100 meters sqr or so also do garden slabs.Had no probs with ours apart from weeds but i did skimp a bit on hardcore as i was remodeling the drive so as to fit a Elise in the garage so every £ saved went to the Lotus fund.

[sendmyusername]

My mate got the printed concrete, black finish, looks perfect, he has an 'urban vehicle' not quite sure of the model, but a big ford thing, plus his caravan. Got it done about five years ago, still looks as good as new, no sinkage or brakage, i'd like it, and recommend it, but cost is too much for me.
The only problem he had with it was when it is wet, it was ridiculously slippy.
He had them back twice to roughen it up, it's a lot better grip wise than it was, but he still moans about hkw slippy it was (he had chuckies before, so he might just be a bit of a whinge)
Think a lot were like that originally, may be sorted now with it being more popular

[jj]

Resin bonded is the small shingle type stones stuck together with resin.

Loads of contractors about but as an example http://www.flintstonesolutions.com/

[bertieduff]

This site has good information on the various options, and how to do things properly...

http://www.pavingexpert.com/home.htm

[scott_e]

I have a mono blocked drive , its been there since 2007. Only issues are weeds , pressure wash the drive annually keeps it good enough for me. Got a strip of grass I am planning to use for extra parking. I have a few tonnes of red chippy stone I was thinking of using for this. I think in an ideal world tarmac would be my preference everywhere simply due to the lower maintenance. Interested to read any quotes you get for different solutions.

[Dark]

We had our driveway block paved 6 years ago by one of the Marshall's approved contractors.

No issues with sinking although I agree weeds are a problem. No weeds where the cars drive & park but the unused sections get weeds & moss. It's not helped by choosing a circular design which means the gaps between the blocks are sometimes larger.

Paving Expert is a great website!

IMG_5037 small.jpg

[Jeremy]

Thanks for the replies folks.

The resin bonded stuff is an interesting one which I hadn't considered but I have a feeling it would be megabucks and I can't see any reputable sounding local contractors although that was just a quick punch into google. Also unsure about long term durability. Will research this more because I like the look of it.

Monoblocks not my first choice either I have seen too many examples rippled and full of weeds, although the point about getting what you pay for is very valid.

Good old fashioned tarmac is quite appealing too but again it's a case of finding someone to do the job right and not some gypsy looking to skim a couple of cm over the top for a quick buck.

The printed concrete looks good but if it cracks then it has to get ripped up I guess. Not ideal.

Regards,

Jeremy

[Mikie711]

Preparation is the key to all of them. I had a tar drive at one house that we had laid to support a 7.5T LWB merc van. They dug out about 8-10", hardcore and 4" of tar on top the only place it sank a bit was where they had dug deeper to lay in drains. Wasn't cheap and being tar will still be susceptible to frost over the years but would certainly do a drive that way again rather than Loc Block.