As someone said recycled asphalt is a cheap way to firm up a muddy area. I have a pile we use to patch the dirt driveway. I add some to the areas outside my doors that get deep mud. It squishes in and after a while you don’t even know it is there, but it does make it less deep. We got if for free from a contractor that just wanted to get rid of it.
I’m curious for more detail about dumping several bags of dry concrete mix into the slurry, if I even understood that correctly, then raking it in? I too have an area outside one gate in particular that fills up with mud every year. I don’t feed there, the horses don’t congregate there and the water trough is not there, yet that corner is where the runoff goes to and horses coming and going twice a day to be fed is enough to turn it into a quagmire for 3 mos out of the year. However, let it get dry for a few days and it dissipates pretty quickly so I’ve just ignored it as a winter nuisance and not worth spending money on. But a cheap fix I would be interested in and have several bags of dry concrete mix just sitting around. Thanks.
I was coming over to ask exactly this same question. My main gate is horribly muddy right now. My plan was to wait for it to solidify this Spring/Summer, then put landscape fabric down, then 4"-6" crusher run on top of that. I also plan to do the same for an area around the back door which has been pretty churned up by the dogs. It’s nowhere near as bad as the pasture gate, but it makes getting to work with clean shoes impossible.
My local quarry will deliver a dump truck load (approx. 20 tons or 25 cu yards) of crusher run gravel for $300, which seems reasonable to me. Do I really have to dig out the muddy areas? That seems like it would be a huge job.
StG
I think you still do. Once the frost leaves and/or it rains, the mud is still there and will just suck the rocks down into the mud. You need to remove the mud to remove the problem.
Sueby - In my case, it’s rock hard and solid half the year. I could get a couple bags of quikrete and pour those in.
StG
[QUOTE=StGermain;8057856]
Do I really have to dig out the muddy areas? That seems like it would be a huge job.
StG[/QUOTE]
Not removing the topsoil worked for me. It’s been about 3 years. The area has taken a very small amount of material (a few shovelfuls) to re-level. It’s in the middle of a runoff and the surrounding are gets very muddy.
fredsaid2 - When you say you boxed it in, what do you mean, exactly?
Mine’s like yours, I think. The gate’s in the middle of a downward slope and the water runs down the whole thing. The rest of it is pretty marshy right now, but will firm up with a couple day’s sunshine. The gate is just so broken down that it’ll be a good bit longer before it dries up.
StG
[QUOTE=StGermain;8058218]
fredsaid2 - When you say you boxed it in, what do you mean?
StG[/QUOTE]
We used 4x4s to frame the area on both sides of the gate. It created a bit of a raised ‘sandbox’. It helps keep the stone dust in place. I wanted to dig out the soil first, hubby didn’t. He won and it worked out!
