Farm Driveways

[DHCarrotfeeder]

[QUOTE=Guilherme;8174630]
Asphalt is not always “slick.” Most mixtures are because the oil helps hold the aggregate together. But you can ask for a less “slick” mixture. Our barn aisle is asphalt and not at all slick. So is our driveway. We told the contractor this need when we started and he did the mix accordingly.

Good luck in your project.

G.[/QUOTE]

The aggregate has a lot to do with grip also. Our barn aisle aggregate looks like river pebbles - I’m not sure if it’s due to years of wear or simply the aggregate itself. But it’s not grippy and especially when wet.

David

[Mosey_2003]

If it looks like smooth pebbles it most likely is river rock. I don’t think crushed limestone would smooth to that degree. Although, if it were especially soft I suppose it might. One semi-local quarry here is notorious for soft rock. It mostly breaks up and disintegrates over time though.

[keatssu]

We are having a “chip and seal,” also know as macadam driveway put in at this very moment. Google it for the specifics, it might work for you and be affordable. Our driveway is almost 1/2 mile. Maintaining the gravel driveway was very time consuming and frustrating. Fix one week, get heavy rain the next week, fix again…

[ellisrun]

Keatssu - would love to hear how that turns out. Any word on maintenance on that type of drive?

Thanks everyone for your input.

[Ambitious_Kate]

[QUOTE=Jealoushe;8174663]
How about woodchips?[/QUOTE]

Never. Never, never, never use biodegradable materials for footing - here’s a hint - outslide the barn doors where the horses congregate? Deep mud? Its hay thats decomposing.

Woods chips will decompose into dirt, mix up into mud.

A road base with fine crushed stone over that works reallyl really well.

[Ambitious_Kate]

I would advise against crushed limestone or ‘marl’ it is extremely sharp. Certainly no barefoot horses could walk on it, nor humans. Crushed limestone is nasty stuff, although people in N carolina use it alot, because its so available, I always hated it, because it hurt my bare feet so much. I’m always on the lookin out for it, to make sure I avoid it.

[TrotTrotPumpkn]

I have had to rebuild my driveway due to flooding twice. Crusher run/gravel road mix was fine, but the recycled concrete packed a lot tighter and I don’t have as much maintenance (potholes forming, etc.). YMMV.

My friend has recycled asphalt and likes it a lot as well.

[keatssu]

[QUOTE=ellisrun;8175148]
Keatssu - would love to hear how that turns out. Any word on maintenance on that type of drive?

Thanks everyone for your input.[/QUOTE]

I’ll let you know. According to the contractor it is quite low maintenance, which is consistent with what I read about it. He said after 10 years or so you might need to have to do a little maintenance, but nothing extensive. Apparently asphalt is higher maintenance.

[Mosey_2003]

Chip seal/tar and chip is nice. It’s what most of our county highways are, I’m selling chips right this minute that are going to “the chippers.” It will bleed until it’s set though.

[ellisrun]

Reducing maintenance when possible is definitely a goal.

[Ambitious_Kate]

[QUOTE=Mosey_2003;8175240]
Chip seal/tar and chip is nice. It’s what most of our county highways are, I’m selling chips right this minute that are going to “the chippers.” It will bleed until it’s set though.[/QUOTE]

Mosey, that sounds really nice, and I personally loooovvvee the (what we called) tar and gravel roads, loved the way they smelled when first laid. But Mosey, I have no idea what you just said. LOL! You’re talking Tarspeak!

[Mosey_2003]

[QUOTE=Ambitious Kate;8175260]
Mosey, that sounds really nice, and I personally loooovvvee the (what we called) tar and gravel roads, loved the way they smelled when first laid. But Mosey, I have no idea what you just said. LOL! You’re talking Tarspeak![/QUOTE]
Haha! When they make tar and gravel roads they come buy chips (or sometimes tiny pea gravel, depending on price and the county engineer’s preference) and then they put down tar, and spread the chips on top of it while it’s hot. As the chips get worked into the tar from being driven on it sets up into a hard, smooth road. But, when it’s new and it’s hot out outside, the tar will “bleed” up through the chips sometimes. That’s why country roads often have the lines where tires mostly drive show up darker than the rest, it has bled there.

[Valentina_32926]

For my Florida barn we used a shell/sand mixture. No problems with horses feet and lasted for years. After about 20 years we had to add some more to “low” spots and use tractor to smooth out ruts, but otherwise worked just fine.

[Valentina_32926]

[QUOTE=keatssu;8175140]
We are having a “chip and seal,” also know as macadam driveway put in at this very moment. Google it for the specifics, it might work for you and be affordable. Our driveway is almost 1/2 mile. Maintaining the gravel driveway was very time consuming and frustrating. Fix one week, get heavy rain the next week, fix again…[/QUOTE]

How is that for ice and snow? Can vehicles still “get a grip”?
Just moved to Kentucky and have a winding gravel drive (up hill) and SO had some issues with gravel road this past winter.

[ReSomething]

[QUOTE=Valentina_32926;8179610]
How is that for ice and snow? Can vehicles still “get a grip”?
Just moved to Kentucky and have a winding gravel drive (up hill) and SO had some issues with gravel road this past winter.[/QUOTE]

A lot of what happens with your driveway in the ice and snow has to do with the solar orientation and shade cover. Mine’s north facing with a curve into the hill and it doesn’t melt off naturally very rapidly. Even cement or blacktop won’t cure that, but we’d be able to plow it without taking the box grader to it. The box grader takes the snow off (gravel) but tears heck out of it doing so, unless you have a thick new layer of gravel I can’t recommend it.

[bathsheba8542]

Love love love recycled asphalt. It’s soft, great for horses to walk on, doesn’t move in hard rain, and was cheap cheap cheap compared to everything else. Our driveway might be a 1/4-1/2 mile long and I did it myself with dump truck loads and a tractor.

[Valentina_32926]

[QUOTE=ReSomething;8179976]
A lot of what happens with your driveway in the ice and snow has to do with the solar orientation and shade cover. Mine’s north facing with a curve into the hill and it doesn’t melt off naturally very rapidly. Even cement or blacktop won’t cure that, but we’d be able to plow it without taking the box grader to it. The box grader takes the snow off (gravel) but tears heck out of it doing so, unless you have a thick new layer of gravel I can’t recommend it.[/QUOTE]

ReSomething - I have the same situation - driveway faces North, is long, winds partially through the forest. Currently have gravel which we’ll have to fix once new barn is built and we stop tearing up existing driveway. SO had issues at a turn (this past winter) - even with AWD he slid into slight bank, but at least he stopped before the creek.

[clanter]

If you are to pave the entrance, get some 4" PVC conduct and put at least one complete conduct across the drive at the entrance… so often when people want to put up automatic gate systems there is the need to get wiring across the drive and the only way is trench or shot a cable under the drive… either way $$$.

AND if you build columns… don’t hang the gates in the center of the column as that type of mounting limits the type of gate operator system you can use due to lack of clearances

[ReSomething]

[QUOTE=Valentina_32926;8180864]
ReSomething - I have the same situation - driveway faces North, is long, winds partially through the forest. Currently have gravel which we’ll have to fix once new barn is built and we stop tearing up existing driveway. SO had issues at a turn (this past winter) - even with AWD he slid into slight bank, but at least he stopped before the creek.[/QUOTE]

Two winters ago we had a deep freeze and a layer of ice, DH did a 180 with the 4wheel drive, fell off the driveway entirely, backwards, and then had fun in the small snow pack getting up to the paved road. That part was actually easy.

The driveway was a skating rink at certain hours of the day. I never had an issue with the old Camry going in or out, my one time per day. Well, I take that back, if the snow turned to slush at about 2 in the afternoon I could get part way up and that was it.

[stb]

We have slag for our very long driveway. It is very course out by the road (wish it wasn’t, actually) and gets more fine as it approaches the house/barn. There is a courtyard/turnaround in front of the barn that is very fine slag. The horses are fine walking across that. The majority of my driveway from the house to the road is slag of about 1". The horses do tiptoe across that if they are barefoot, but the way my farm is set up they do not often have to cross that part of the drive.