Re-Gravelling drive and garden areas

Beckyy

I was wondering if anyone could advise us on regravelling our shared driveway and garden please?

We are due to be moving house and will be renting this property out once we have left. Our neighbour works away, and is rarely ever here so we are happy to cover the costs ourselves.

The driveway (used for access, but not big enough for cars) is around 7.5m x 4m, there is also a patch around 3.4m x 4m, and a triangle 1.8m wide by 2.7m long. The current gravel is patchy and old - barely a couple of cm's deep now. There is no membrane or lining underneath, and as a dog owner some areas are reularly peed on and hosed down.

What would be the correect way to regravel? Do we put a membrane or lining down underneath? Are big chains like B&Q good value for gravel?

We are happy to pay for all costs, just don't want to spend more than necessary. Thank you for any replies!

Beckyy

Is it possible to put down a layer of smaller stones instead of a membrane? Weeds have never really been much of a problems.

jennifernil

Would it not be enough just to top it up with more of the same gravel?

Take a sample handful to your local builders' merchant with your sizes and they should be able to advise on how much you need to give a particular depth

Most will deliver in the big 1 tonne bags, or tip direct from the lorry.

Ebe_Scrooge

I'll second what Jennifer says - ask at Jewsons, Travis Perkins, other local builder merchants, for a price. If you're buying a reasonable amount, they'll usually be quite a bit cheaper than the more traditional "DIY" places like B&Q or whatever. That said, it doesn't hurt to get a quote from as many places as you can. Don't forget to account for delivery costs - judging from the area you've described you're going to need it delivered, rather than picking up a few bags in the back of your car :-)

The "proper" way to do the job would be to remove what's there, lay a membrane then lay gravel on top. That obviously involves quite a bit more work. Do you have a problem with weeds at the moment ? If not, I'd be tempted to go with Jennifer's suggestion and work out how much you need to top up what's there.

SailorSam

You may find this useful, calculate the amount of chippings you're going to need to do the job.
Material Calculator

Itismehonest

As with most things, it all depends on how thorough a job you want to make of it.
Terram is the best thing to lay before chippings. It allows water through but suppresses weeds & is strong enough to withstand the weight of cars pushing down on the chippings. Cheaper alternatives are available but they will puncture much more easily.
Your best way to buy chippings is direct from the aggragate & gravel industry & cut out the middle men of the builders merchants who will charge their own 'cut'. If it comes in bags it will always be dearer.
You need something like 20mm. If you don't know a quarry or supplier locally who can deliver & tip for you then ask your local Highways people who they use or if they know anyone.
You may also need to kerb the edge next to the drive (where it meets the road) to stop the gravel ending up all over the roadway as cars drag it out, which would be a waste of money for you.

Beckyy

Thank you for the replies! We've never really had a problem with weeds come to think of it. I was considering starting from scratch because teh gravel that is down is very old, and the area has become a bit uneven - the driveway 'dips' a little in the middle.

I'm going to pop down to the local builders merchant and see what they can offer. Maybe evern removing the old gravel (there's not a lot of it!), ensuring the ground is flat and even, then putting down fresh gravel might do it.