How to Build a Steep Driveway

Building driveways on a steep slope is a challenge, and can result in a dangerous, slippery construction if the surface is not laid properly. Using pavers cast from concrete or cut from stone allows you to interlock each individual piece to ensure the stability of the whole driveway. Excavating the site and building up a solid foundation is important for any driveway, but even more so when you're working on a slope. Plan several days to a full week to complete this project, depending on the length of the driveway.

Ropes
Measuring tape
Landscape spray paint
Excavator machine
Compactor machine
3/4-inch aggregate
Grit sand
2-by-4-inch board
Metal edge restraints
Hammer
Lawn spikes
Interlocking driveway pavers
Rubber mat
Polymeric sand
Stiff shop broom
Sealant
Roller brush

Instructions

- 1
  Outline the driveways site with ropes and measure the area with measuring tape. Adjust the width to a minimum of 10 feet wide where the course is straight, and 14 feet wide to accommodate curves. Trace the ropes using landscape spray paint.
- 2
  Excavate the area inside or the painted lines with an excavator machine. It's possible to do this with a shovel, but the process is long and laborious. Excavate until all of the topsoil is removed from the site, which is typically about a foot deep. You need at least 8 inches for the base, 1 inch for the sand bed and 1 1/2 inches to partially bury the driveway pavers.
- 3
  Make several passes over the bottom of the site with a compactor machine to stabilize the subbase.
- 4
  Pour a layer of 3/4 inch aggregate over the dirt, spray it with water and compact the rocks until they don't shift beneath the machine. Pour another 4-inch layer of gravel on top, spray it and compact it.
- 5
  Pour grit sand over the aggregate beginning at the bottom of the slope. Use a long 2-by-4 to spread the sand into a 1-inch thick sand bed. The sharp edges of the sand add traction beneath the pavers.
- 6
  Fit metal edging restraints against the inside edges of the site. Hammer metal spikes through the pre-cut slots into the aggregate and ground.
- 7
  Place the pavers in a 90 degree herringbone pattern starting at the bottom end of the slope. The interlocking pattern enables pavers to resist pressure from all directions as heavy vehicles turn and travel over the pavers daily. To create this pattern, the first paver should be set vertically in one corner, and the next paver should be flush against it, laid horizontal. Alternate the direction of each paver, and cut the end ones to fit, with a splitter or masonry saw.
- 8
  Roll a rubber mat over the bottom section of pavers to protect the surface. Go over the pavers with the compactor machine to press them into the sand bed.
- 9
  Sweep polymeric paver sand between the paver with a stiff shop broom. Moisten the surface lightly so the sand hardens in the joints like cement.
- 10
  Coat the driveway with a paver sealant, using a roller brush, to conserve the sand joints, slow fading and repel water.

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