How to Use Pavers & Loose Stone in a Driveway

Creating a driveway with pavers and loose stone is an economical way to achieve an entirely new look for your property. The front of any house often gives the first impression to a visitor and a well-designed driveway adds to the perception of your home. In addition, gravel driveways provide a degree of security above hard-standing driveways because walking or driving across gravel makes a distinctive crunching sound, so it can be a useful deterrent against unwelcome visitors. Using pavers and loose stones in a driveway requires an easy preparation methodology to proceed successfully.

Measuring tape
Calculator

Instructions

- 1
  Choose a driveway design by looking at gravel driveways in your neighborhood to get ideas. Some driveways use lines of block pavers to provide a hard-standing surface for the tires of vehicles, with adjacent loose stones. Others have a gravel surface with pavers set along the edges to provide a pathway to the property.
- 2
  Work out your budget for the amount you want to spend on the project. Concrete pavers are the lowest cost paving stone, followed by brick paving and the more expensive natural flagstone pavers. Make enquiries to builder's merchants to cost the gravel topping for a driveway. Coarse-shaped stones tend to be the cheapest and round stones the most expensive.
- 3
  Order the type of gravel based upon the level of vehicle usage on the driveway. Pea shingle is the most cost effective but if you have heavy vehicle usage on the driveway, then granite may be a better alternative because of its durability. Stones larger than 3/4 inch will displace with tire tracks and stones smaller than 1/4-inch will break apart with constant wear.
- 4
  Measure the width and length of the driveway with the measuring tape and measure to a depth of at least 8 inches or to the depth of firm ground. Use a calculator to multiply the width and length, and multiply the measurement by the depth to give you the volume you need for the base. This will help you determine the volume of aggregate base material you require to prepare the driveway for installing pavers and loose stones.
- 5
  Multiply the width and length multiplication by 2 inches to give you the volume required for the top layer of loose stones. Order the aggregate and top stones when the weather is dry because wet stone weighs more and this affects the volume-to-weight conversion that the builder's merchant calculates.

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