Excavation And Installation Preparation For Your New Asphalt Driveway
When you are planning for a new driveway or to replace an old driveway for removal to make room for new pavement, it is essential that you follow some basic preparation and installation guidelines to make sure your driveway is excavated for a good solid foundation and also for the proper slope to the entire pavement. Here are some considerations to remember when you are planning to install an asphalt paved driveway on your home property.
Excavate and Prepare the Site
Whether your driveway is a new installation on the site or you need to remove an old failed driveway, you will need to excavate from the area either soil or old asphalt and foundation materials. It is recommended to excavate enough soil from the site to make room for all the necessary layers of your new asphalt, which can be anywhere from several inches to a foot in thickness. Excavating the soil will ensure your new asphalt driveway will be flush with surrounding surfaces and to avoid having a driveway that protrudes several inches from the surrounding lawn or walkway.
It is a good recommendation to excavate so you can install at least three to four inches of gravel for good drainage and protection to your asphalt. Then, a standard asphalt surface is going to be two inches in thickness, so you will need to excavate at least six inches of soil to prepare the area.
Calculate a Gradual Surface Slope
As you excavate the area for your paved driveway, you need to calculate and prepare the area to have the right slope. A slope to your pavement is going to allow for good drainage from off the surface of your asphalt and also around your property's foundation. You don't want to have foundation and basement problems with moisture intrusion because water and precipitation on your pavement flows toward your home instead of away.
It is recommended to plan for at least a two-percent slope for your asphalt driveway, with a drop of at least two feet over one hundred feet of pavement length. So as you excavate for the foundation layer, remove and supplement soil over the site for it to have this appropriate slope.
A well-built and excavated driveway will slope gradually away from your home to help divert moisture down into the street and its drainage gutters. This also helps moisture drain below your pavement and not remain within the soil for it to cause erosion or freeze damage in the winter. As you excavate and grade the soil for your foundation, consider adding in a good slope to also prevent moisture from pooling on the surface of your asphalt. Surface pooling will cause water to get into tiny cracks of your asphalt and eventually widen them through erosion, causing the eventual failure of your pavement.
Contact local excavation contractors to learn more.