How To Grade A Driveway

[gettinaclue]

DH and I have just been talking about our driveway and community road. They are both gravel and in need of grading. (There are only 4 of us living on about 1400')

It's getting to be that time of year again where pot holes are showing up and we want to repair them, but we want to do it without having to buy expensive equipment.

How do you take care of this problem? Your friends? Your family?

Any input would be appreciated.

 

[miss_thenorth]

Will the county not do your community road? Our graders have been by twice already this spring. Our driveway, though, we use the skidsteer. Before we had the skidsteer, we borrowed a neighbour's tractor with a bucket that had down pressure (not sure if that is the correct term), and just went back and forth.

eta the "et" on buck =bucket

 

[gettinaclue]

No, the county won't do it for us. Any repairas and up keep are left to us.

We had a guy come out and do it for us last year. He graded it and regraveled it. All of us split the cost - AND IT SURE DID COST!

None of us have a tractor, but all of us have riding lawn mowers LOL.

I'll look into what a skidsteer is. Thanks!

 

[patandchickens]

I hate to say it, but I truly believe this is a job for heavy equipment. Nine families with nine riding mowers <g> just do not have the WEIGHT and united RAW POWER of a grader or even a measly skidsteer.

You could *try* getting a load of roadbase or screenings (ask advice of aggregate company you order from) and laboriously wheelbarrow the stuff into the worst ruts and potholes then rent a large vibrating tamper or preferably one of the ride-on roller thingies, and see if you can get it packed in there solid enough... but quite honestly I think there is a real good chance all that work and money would be down the drain after the first few good rains.

Sorry, good luck,

Pat

 

[miss_thenorth]

Oh yeah!! Just to clarify--we use the skidsteer for our driveway only. I wouldn't think of doing a whole road with that.

If you have to pay for it, I would put up with the potholes until rainy season is pretty much over--then hire an actual grader.

 

[gettinaclue]

Sigh

I think you're right Pat.

I went and priced tractors today and I almost cried! 10,500 for the cheapest one!

Maybe we can rig something up to put on the back of the pick-up? My fingers are crossed so hard they are twisting around themselves!

 

[patandchickens]

I went and priced tractors today and I almost cried! 10,500 for the cheapest one! Maybe we can rig something up to put on the back of the pick-up?

Sorry, don't think back of pickup jury-rigging going to get you anywhere.

But wow, I don't think you'd *want* to buy a *tractor* just for seasonal road maintenance. For one thing a tractor is not necessarily the really appropriate implement anyhow (except perhaps a really BIG tractor, which is totally not an option). (although if you just want something you can put a blade on and that has some weight, gee, most places I've lived you can get an old '50s beater for a lot less than $10k although you do have to know how to keep it running)

You'd be better off with a skidsteer (bobcat) IMO, although that still isn't going to do a stellar job. (e.t.a. - sometimes you can rent one.) Maybe find someone selling a small 'dozer, if you and your neighbors are mechanically inclined (anything even remotely affordable may need a certain amount of attention to get and keep going).

Or just bite the bullet and either put up with potholes, or find a way to afford it done properly. If there's only 4 families living there, btw, it is possible that, er, a change in driving habits might help prolong the life of whatever repairs you end up doing.

Good luck,

Pat, needing to have about 800' of driveway regravelled this year, sigh

 

[gettinaclue]

Actually, I don't want to buy a tractor just for seasonal road maintenance.

I had never inquired about them before and really didn't have any idea of costs or some functions. It was more of an educational fieldtrip.

I don't like having to hire someone every year at such a high cost (to us anyway-1000.00) and wanted to know how this was handled by the people here. I was thinking we could come up with something more economical.

The guy at the store did give me some names of some rental places here. I think I'll call some numbers and see what I can come up with.

DH says he wants to see what he can come up with. He has a buddy at work that has a welding shop at home.. So maybe we'll get lucky that way. Maybe not.

I just can't swallow $1000 a year for this..or rather, I refuse to do so LOL.

The driving practices can't be done to much about I'm afraid. My closest neighbors have 3 teenage boys - 'nuff said on that subject I think LOL. They are better drivers than they used to be, but they aren't the only problem either.

We'll figure something out. Thank you both for your help!

 

[FarmerChick]

Actually, I don't want to buy a tractor just for seasonal road maintenance.

I had never inquired about them before and really didn't have any idea of costs or some functions. It was more of an educational fieldtrip.

I don't like having to hire someone every year at such a high cost (to us anyway-1000.00) and wanted to know how this was handled by the people here. I was thinking we could come up with something more economical.

The guy at the store did give me some names of some rental places here. I think I'll call some numbers and see what I can come up with.

DH says he wants to see what he can come up with. He has a buddy at work that has a welding shop at home.. So maybe we'll get lucky that way. Maybe not.

I just can't swallow $1000 a year for this..or rather, I refuse to do so LOL.

The driving practices can't be done to much about I'm afraid. My closest neighbors have 3 teenage boys - 'nuff said on that subject I think LOL. They are better drivers than they used to be, but they aren't the only problem either.

We'll figure something out. Thank you both for your help!

Rent the equipment and do it yourself is cheaper than hiring. But of course you must know what you are doing.

We maintain our dirt and gravel road to our barns. It is approx. over 1/2 mile long. We use our backhoe and front end loader and tractors and dump truck for gravel etc. We own all the equipment to keep the road in good shape.....and boy do they always need work!!!! UGH I feel for you cause I have to maintain a very very long road also.

Don't buy unless you need the equipment for other use. Like you said, road maintenance wouldn't warrant the cost.

Best of luck and hope it goes cheap and smooth for you!!

 

[sylvie]

A friend owns a store with a huge gravel-dirt parking lot.
A couple times a year he drags some old metal box springs around and it smooths all the pot holes. It does an amazingly good job. They are double bed springs that he picked up at an auction for $5. He uses either his pickup or his tractor to drag, which ever he has close by. He only does this when it is dry. He doesn't pack it down, either and after 19 years this continues to do the job. That's about the cheapest (and most clever)thing I've ever seen.