Tarmac driveway or block paving?

greensalad

We are in sore need of repairing our "driveway". It is not really a driveway at all, was a DIY concrete pour and must have not been redone for 30 years as it's totally cracked and awful. It is slightly sloped.

We had a quote for block paving, even at the cheapest type it was quoted at around £8k. We want to save up to do it but it's a fair way off until we can do so.

I have been considering whether black tarmac with a block brick edging might be cheaper and easier. I understand it will need drainage in this case, but I think that will be doable. 

What are your opinions on tarmac? Are they OK for sloping drives? Do you think they look ugly? Most people on our close of 12 houses have either block paving or very old concrete. I'm a bit worried black tarmac will stick out like a sore thumb.

JGB1955

We have black tarmac and I much prefer it to block paving.  Our neighbours seem to spend an inordinate amount of time jet washing their paving, then replacing the sand and weeds that are (by then) spattered all over their downstairs windows.  Seems far too much like hard work!  (The tarmac will fade to grey after a while).

aoleks

have you thought about resin as an option? looks good, adds value, maintenance free and might not be that much more expensive than tarmac.

greensalad

aoleks said:

have you thought about resin as an option? looks good, adds value, maintenance free and might not be that much more expensive than tarmac.

It would be my preference but the prices are astronomical. We were told £10k+ easily.

FreeBear

The biggest cost in doing a driveway properly is in the preparation. Regardless of the finish you go for, you will need to dig out ~200mm of concrete & soil and dispose of it. Then put back ~150mm of well compacted hardcore before laying the final surface. That is a lot of grunt work (easier with a mini digger & grab hire), and something you do not want to skimp on.

If you go for a non-permeable surface, you may need to apply for planning permission - https://www.planningportal.co.uk/permission/common-projects/paving-your-front-garden/planning-permission

koalakoala

block paving for me every time

TELLIT01

My concern about tarmac is that if you ever need to access the drains it's going to be a lot messier and harder to repair cleanly than block paving.  That said, we haven't had any problems with the drains in the 30+ years we have been in the house.

Tarmac will require less maintenance but, whichever route you take, a proper subsurface is critical.  You need to find a reputable company, not some guy with a funny accent knocking on the door saying they can do a cheap job "But we will do it properly"

EssexExile

We had block paving for years but eventually changed to tarmac. At last! Block paving looks great when it's newly installed or newly cleaned, the rest of the time it doesn't look anything special. Tarmac never looks anything special but it's a practical surface that needs hardly any maintenance. If block paving sinks or moves, gets oil on it or in some other way gets damaged it looks awful. Tarmac just looks like tarmac.

FreeBear

EssexExile said: If block paving sinks or moves, gets oil on it or in some other way gets damaged it looks awful. Tarmac just looks like tarmac.

But if a block gets damaged, it is usually a fairly simple task to lift it out and put a new one in. Similarly, sunken patches can be lifted and relaid.

Edging blocks that have been bedded in on a layer of concrete, not so easy to deal with. 

victor2

We had our drive block paved about 10 years ago. Every spring I jet wash it, which removes all the sand and weeds from between the blocks, and brush fresh sand in. It looks great for about a month and new weeds start sticking their heads up. For another couple of months I pull up the new weeds, and for about a month after that will just squirt them with weed killer, until I admit defeat!

Have thought about sealant, but it is very expensive and even then, gets mixed reviews.

However, the drive does look nice and I probably notice the weeds more than anyone else. No regrets, as the old tarmac drive it replaced was really showing its age.

greensalad

TELLIT01 said:

My concern about tarmac is that if you ever need to access the drains it's going to be a lot messier and harder to repair cleanly than block paving.  That said, we haven't had any problems with the drains in the 30+ years we have been in the house.

Tarmac will require less maintenance but, whichever route you take, a proper subsurface is critical.  You need to find a reputable company, not some guy with a funny accent knocking on the door saying they can do a cheap job "But we will do it properly"

I don't believe our drains run under the portion we intend to tarmac.