Gravel Base for New Driveway

The builder mentioned excavating the area where the new driveway will be placed and placing the sub base/gravel now to prevent a huge muddy mess (the entire yard has been stripped). Is it a good idea to lay gravel now or should they wait? The foundation was just completed and the garage slab still needs to be poured. For them to put the gravel down now and still have large trucks parking on it seems like it would make a mess of the gravel and mix mud/clay in with it, which doesn't sound good. I would like them to put something down to minimize the mess during construction, but not the final subbase for the new driveway. Maybe they should lay some larger stone on grade temporarily that will be stripped away later when it comes time to do the driveway?

 

IMO the gravel should go down now .... and again later if needed. You don't want the trucks to get stuck or encourage more mud to be tracked around by the workers.

 

But won't all that traffic compact the stone unevenly and require more stone to be laid later when it comes time to pour the driveway? I want the soil and the gravel base to be compacted evenly, which is why I hesitate to pour the final gravel base now. I would think it would be ideal if they would dump some larger stone down temporarily to control the mud, then strip it out and put down the final gravel base later just before pouring. They can return the temporary stone to be washed and re-sold couldn't they?

 

I usually see the gravel spread twice, once shortly after the driveway is cut and then again over top of that gravel to level and clean it up. No need to remove the first layer of gravel. Nothing better than heavy trucks to compact the ground.

 

I see. As long as they pour another layer on top and tamp it down prior to pouring the driveway, that would be fine. I've definitely seen job sites where they have large coarse gravel on grade that is later removed. Maybe I'm thinking of the main entrance to the job site though--not to each lot.

 

Usually the larger rock is used when the ground is soft and becomes a base for the smaller rock.

 

Okay. Well, the soil is mostly clay, so can't get any softer than that right?