Welcome back to the Sunrise Asphalt blog! Spring is officially here -and hopefully, it sticks around for a little while! Spring has got us thinking, of new beginnings, fresh starts, and all those projects we have been putting off through the winter. But now, summer is just on the horizon and if we don’t get started soon it will be entirely too hot to do it! If you are anything like us, you are probably feeling the same and looking out at your yard longing to get that next project done. While we can’t help you much figuring out how to start your herb garden (though that sounds fun) we can help you when it comes to driveway designs!
Driveways can be built in a number of ways, from various materials, for many reasons and made to fit exact specifications. Say you have a tiny strip of land between the road and your garage, you can make the exact shape you require. Want to increase the property value of your home? A nice driveway can go a long way to making the home appealing. Whatever your reason, here are some tips and tricks for great driveway design.
Budget
Before you begin drawing up your plans and sourcing materials, remember that the price of installation and over the lifespan of the driveway can vary on materials. For instance, a paver driveway may not be the most expensive to maintain but it has high installation costs up front. Gravel is the cheapest option to install but requires very specific, regular maintenance. Asphalt is a lower upfront cost but with proper maintenance can last a long time.
Plan Accordingly
If you are building your driveway from scratch, you will want to make sure you are going to have enough room for the vehicles that will be using it on a daily basis. A good rule of thumb is, if able, allow for minimum 18 feet of length for each normal sized vehicle, 10 feet minimum for width per vehicle. Give an extra 2 feet to allow guests to get out of the car comfortably. This is to allow access to garage easily (you don’t want kids grabbing a bike and scratching up anything.)
Remember, unfortunately, not everyone who parks at your place is a professional driver. If you make them to fit your vehicle exactly be prepared to have to handle a lot of maintenance issues as tires tear up your yard and the edge of the driveway.
How About This Weather?
Your climate may have a lot to say when designing your ideal driveway. If you experience heavy rainfall (you obviously aren’t in Arizona!) then gravel is not ideal as that will erode much more readily. Asphalt meanwhile endures the cycles of freezing and thawing much better than concrete can.
While we have talked about how to create and resurface concrete driveways in the past that is further down the road. If you opted for a concrete driveway you have a few years (at least) with proper maintenance before it gets to that point. If you went with asphalt – nice! Wait a little bit and then get that sucker sealed!
If all that sounds like a bit more of a hassle, remember there are experts, like us, who can help you get it done.
You have your dream driveway! Now it’s time to maintain it! We’ll catch you back here next time on the blog where we will go over how asphalt is made! It’s all asphalt, all the time here at Sunrise!1
