# Surface Treated Driveway?



## jgerni (Nov 10, 2003)

Just wondering if any of you have or know anything about surface treated driveways? I am considering putting one in. We have around 720sq yards of driveway so using asphalt would cost around 8k and the surface treating cost around 3k. What are the pros and cons of Surface treating and how hard is it to maintain?

Thanks for any info.


----------



## hatcityhosehauler (Feb 13, 2004)

Forgive my ignorance, but what is a surface treated driveway? Our driveway is asphalt.

Tim


----------



## jgerni (Nov 10, 2003)

Surface treating is really pea size gravel then tar then pea size gravel. Then they use a roller to smooth it out. For large driveways its cheaper to use this method than to use asphalt. Its usually about 1/2 the cost or less.


----------



## hatcityhosehauler (Feb 13, 2004)

Ahhh, more regional differences. In CT, we call that chip sealing. The City does that with a lot of the less traveled (so they think) roads. They don't bother rolling it though, so until it gets a good bit of travel, you get alot of gravel ratter on the under side of your vehicle. I wonder if that's why they call it chip sealing. All the paint chips from your car seal the road....


----------



## BigBadBrain (Aug 26, 2004)

Over here we call it oiling. Put down a bed of rock chips and poor oil/tar on it. Mix it back and forth (if you are doing what is called 'road mix') and then blade it smooth and roll it. It looks like conventional asphalt if done right but is much cheaper to put on.

If you aren't doing road mix, then the oil is applied and the rock chips are poured onto it and the traffic acts as the roller (just like hatcityhosehauler called chip sealing). Usually there is a sign that says 'fresh oil' at the beginning of the job to indicate that the paint is about to be peeled from your car.









I don't think anyone does that for driveways over here. If you do have it done, I'd recommend a good sub-base before you put it down. It has no strength to it and will easily breakup if the soil/rock underneath shifts. More prone to potholing too. If you have shifts in tem that are extreme or frost, think hard about asphalt.

I used to work on a road crew in Lincoln Co. Washington during College. My brother is now Superintendent of Public Works in Lincoln Co. and is also the County Engineer. He designs (well, his guys do anyway) all of the roads in the county and uses road mix and oiling on the majority.

A good base would consist of a bed of 4in. minus rock with 1in. minus layer on top of that and a 3/4" minus on that. With oil on top of that, it will carry almost any load and will last years. Alternately, if you have fairly stable ground, a base of inch and a half minus with the oil on top will do almost as well. Asphalt would aslo require a good base to assure it lasts and can handle loads. Ask the contractor what loads the proposed treatment will handle, you might be better off doing a good base and asphalt with higher cost and having to do it much less often over the years.

One more consideration; if you are using oiling (chip seal) the surface will be extremely rough as the chips are simply set into the oil. If you have kids using the driveway, a fall that would result in a minor scrape can turn into a major injury. You said they use pea gravel which might be better and more like concrete aggregate - but still a concern - we hate our concrete exposed aggregate for those reasons.


----------



## jgerni (Nov 10, 2003)

Thanks for the info. Yeah it looked like a termnology diffence.

We have a good base to work off, we have no problems with pot holes now and have good water run off. Believe me I would love to have asphalt but its just to costly for that size driveway for me right now.


----------



## hatcityhosehauler (Feb 13, 2004)

> 4in. minus rock with 1in. minus layer on top of that and a 3/4" minus on that.


It must be more regional terminology, but what do you mean by "minus"

In the northeast, we would use a base process. Might be the same stuff, 3/4" aggregate, mixed with sand, and crushed stone. When rolled out, it becomes almost as hard as concrete.

Tim


----------



## GlenninTexas (Aug 11, 2004)

I have a chip seal (seal coat as its called down here) driveway. Many of the county and state roads are fininshed in seal coat because of the costs. I checked with the State Engineer office and they indicated that seal coat is actually better for lower traffic roadways because traditional asphault needs a certain amount of traffic to keep it from "rolling" and buckling. Seal coat is a variation of asphalt and is different than the oiled road. The oiled road is agenerally used oil that is sprayed typically over gravel or dirt roads to keep the dust down. If your applying over a good solid base, it is a very effective alternative to cold rolled or hot rolled alphalt. Make sure they include a sealer as a final spray.

Glenn


----------



## BigBadBrain (Aug 26, 2004)

4"minus indicates rock (usually from a rock crusher) that is anywhere from 4" to sand. The fines (sand , etc.) are not removed from the crushed rock out of the 4" crusher. One and a half inch minus would be the same thing with anything larger than incha nd a half rock screened out of the mix.

Glenn,
We use both kinds of treatments - used oil for dust control and the 'oiling' process I described above for the 'chip seal'. The two are , as you point out, not the same at all. The difference in the seal coat is that it isn't a used oil product and is more like a heated liquid tar. The oil for dust control is a cold application over existing dirt roads (stinks and causes your car to become filthy). I didn't mean to indicate the dust control method. I'm not sure what you are referring to with the sealer as a final spray. That isn't done on the roads here anyway.


----------



## hatcityhosehauler (Feb 13, 2004)

Sounds like the same stuff. It does come in different sizes here too, I just listed the 3/4" as that is the most common.

Tim


----------



## shake1969 (Sep 21, 2004)

I've got a concrete drive off an asphalt city street. No curbs.

In Oklahoma, for the most part, you either gravel, ashpalt, or concrete driveways or roads. Many rural county section line roads are still dirt/gravel, or mud if it has rained. Bumpy when dry.

A term I picked up in Montana was "frost hoaring" . Still unsure what that means. Anybody know?

"Surfacing" sure sounds messy to me. Messier than gravel.

My two cents: I was always told to beware of people selling asphalt, when they say they have some "left over" from a project. Mainly because if it is not installed right or thick enough, (I suppose) your nice drive will turn to mush in time. Also, I understand you need to "re-oil" asphalt periodically, and seal the cracks in freezing areas of the country, to prevent water damage. Old Wives Tales? Maybe. Glad I have concrete. Good luck on your choice.


----------



## BigBadBrain (Aug 26, 2004)

Frost Hoaring (the type found on the ground) is when moisture in the ground slowly turns into ice and grows crystals that can stick up out of the ground (It looks very odd). Frost heave is a term used to describe water freezing slowly under a paved surface causing buckling or potholes in the surface. Frost heave can also affect buildings and decks if a footing isn't poored deep enough.

Hoar Frost in ground:









Frost heave in soil:


----------



## Paul_in_Ohio (Sep 29, 2004)

Cool Pics BBB! I never heard of Frost Hoaring. Thanks for the lesson.


----------



## shake1969 (Sep 21, 2004)

Thanks for the pics. Now I know what they all were talking about!


----------

