anyone got an imprinted concrete driveway?

libbyc3

as the title suggests, does anyone have or know much about imprinted concrete driveways?
I have a shared driveway in the most ridiculously poor condition - used to be gravel and cement but now mud and holes! it is 210 square metres and we have been getting quotes.
for 10K we can have the whole lot block paved - but I have concerns having seen too many sunken block paved drives.
I like the imprinted concrete drives and have yet to see one that has cracked or sunk. The quote for that is 8.5k.
can anyone tell me the pros and cons of each to compare?
The imprinted concrete quote is valid for only 6 weeks as the bloke said he will offer that while work is slow at this time of year.
thanks for any info

McAzrael

Imprinted concrete is a nightmare if you ever need to get to anything underneath it. Where do your services come in?

GT60

There is a few Imprinted concrete drives round here that have cracks in them and hair line cracks, they are less than a year old.
Yes they look nice but give it a few years and ............
Block paving is easier to repair and if you dont let a presure washer near it it should last.
Ours was okay and had a motorhome on it then when i jet washed it a few times OH dear it appears to sunk in places
Thats what all that sand was for! OPPS

angelavdavis

I must admit, I second block paved drive. Another good reason for going with block paving is that the fact that the blocks aren't cemented in means that rain can drain away too, whereas with concrete, it has to have a drain built into it. Mind you, we are down south so probably don't get as much rain as some parts of UK.

mikey72

I know ones that have cracked, gone very dull, become really slippy and had to be coated, ones where they have filled all the service access, like the the water.
Then again I know tarmac ones that have crumbled and sunken, and block pavers that have sunken as well.
Not a good time to put concrete down though, shouldn't be allowed to freeze.

ormus

i think they look awful.
real footballers wives stuff.

libbyc3

lol ormus. me and posh separated at birth!
seriously, my preference is only based on walking round and seeing more rough block paving drives than concrete ones but most of the concrete ones have been done relatively recently. I don't want to save 1500 now just to pay out in 5 years time because the drive has collasped

Mrs_Imp

If you get one, make sure it's done properly. My Dad just slipped on one and broke/cracked his ribs. The surface was too smooth and had no grip at all.

ritesh

The imprinted concrete drives are also known as Stenciltech (think I spelt that right).

We were looking into having our driveway done using stenciltech but after our research decided against it due to the points above (cracks, not able to get to services underneath, slippery).

We eventually went for block paving using tegula blocks. Understandably likeyourself we were concerned about the "Sunken block paves". However, this is avaioded if you have a good depth of sub-base (ca 150mm) whacked down in two layers followed by 50mm of screed (sand). Whoever you employ tell them that you want to check the works at stages i.e after they have dug out your driveway to ensure they have gone deep enough, after they have layed the sub base just dig out small holes to ensure correct depth and after they have laid the screed.

By following this your drive will not sink.

Oh, you might also need a soak away to get rid of surface water from your driveway.

Hiope this helps

fluffymuffy

If you've got £10K to spend on a driveway how about getting a lorry load of gravel delivered and then go on holiday somewhere fantastic for a couple of weeks.

emmell

Someone near us has had what looks like gravel set in resin and I think it looks good, better than my faded tarmac.
ML.