I need to get my driveway resurfaced. At the moment it is half turf and half very badly broken concrete block. Ive had a few quotes in varying from 2k to 5.5k for varying types of finish.

What is the cheapest, hard surface finish to go for ?? (tarmac, block etc. not loose stone)

There are 3 cars in the house, and the parking on the 'turf' section turned into a bigger mud bath than I was prepared for last winter. Not a problem in my FL2 but my daughters little Vauxhall Adam almost disappeared in the mud more than once

Just going through the same process myself. I have loose stones which get everywhere so looked at the alternatives. I have uncracked concrete as the base so investigated the options :-

Tarmac - could be top dressed and was the cheapest option - however, easily damaged by the use of jacks and axle stands - and i do not like the look much.

Block paving - would require existing base to be broken and relaid to give adequate depth - I explored the thin blocks available but would still need digging up looks nice but works out very expensive, quite low maintenance provided no oil leaks

Pressed/textured concrete - layer of concrete which is then embossed/patterned to look like blocks - I think it looks a bit rubbish and requires re-sealing every couple of years as the passage of traffic wears it off. Can be quite slippery (a friend has it and he's been down once or twice). Not that cheap (but cheaper than blocks)

My favoured solution is resin bonded gravel - there are two ways they do it - one is to spread a layer of resin and then chuck gravel on it, this sticks it down and is then sealed with a further layer of sealant. The other is to thoroughly mix the gravel and resin and then lay it down. This ensures that all the gravel is coated and soilidly bonded. There are two types of resin, UV stable (expensive) and the cheaper one which discolours (OK for darker gravel colours). The result looks like a gravel drive but without the loose stones getting everywhere. Costs more than tarmac but less than blocks. Maintenance is just a rinse down with a jet wash. Can be DIY but I will get a contractor to do mine.

Hope that helps. FL2 Metropolis, Loire Blue, ebony/ivory

I have a mixture of tarmac and block paving as I have a long drive and a what I decided to do was use blocks in the areas where you can see them from the house and tarmac in places that matter less. Tarmac is a lot cheaper per sq metre. My advice

1. Be prepared for a lot of disruption for a week or two. You will need thousand of blocks and they come in pallets on huge lorries so if you have an access problem your contractor will need a forklift. You will then find that your house is surrounded by pallets of blocks so you need somewhere to park your cars.
2. To do it properly needs a lot of ground preparation ie it very disruptive and messy. Think diggers and lorries. Wives get stroppy
3. If you put blocks down then don't spend too much time fretting over what colour blocks and fancy patterns, after a couple of years they all look the same.
4. Don't do the job in the winter, you need at least 5C for the tarmac to go down so you end up waiting for the weather.
5. You will probably need to put some draining channels in.
6. If your property abuts a public road you might need to check on local building regulations about surface draining. 3 x FL1 2 manual + 1 auto
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Cheers for the responses, I have been told a few different things from the guys that have been out to measure up.

I like the idea of the resin bonded as I like the look of stones but dont want the hassles of sweeping them up every day. Just need to get the site dug out and prepped up for it.

1. Be prepared for a lot of disruption for a week or two. You will need thousand of blocks and they come in pallets on huge lorries so if you have an access problem your contractor will need a forklift. You will then find that your house is surrounded by pallets of blocks so you need somewhere to park your cars.
Drive is around 90 sq m so should take about a week hopefully, access not a problem nore is parking elsewhere.
2. To do it properly needs a lot of ground preparation ie it very disruptive and messy. Think diggers and lorries. Wives get stroppy
Dont have a wife !
3. If you put blocks down then don't spend too much time fretting over what colour blocks and fancy patterns, after a couple of years they all look the same.
Blocks isnt at the top of my preference list but if the cost is right4. Don't do the job in the winter, you need at least 5C for the tarmac to go down so you end up waiting for the weather.
Do we ever hit 5C for a week+ in this country?
5. You will probably need to put some draining channels in.
Drainage channel to soak away across the garage and leading edge of drive already discussed with potential contractors
6. If your property abuts a public road you might need to check on local building regulations about surface draining.
drainage channel across the lead edge directly against the residential road should be sufficient but worth checking as you say

In the road where I live 5 out of the 6 houses adjacent to me have block paved drives the latest one of which was installed 3 years back.
Every one of them has 2 depressions the width of the vehicle which belongs to the household including the one laid over a previous concrete drive.
I have (says he with a smug look) a drive surfaced with heavy duty paving flags and no grooves and still looks as good as the day it was put down 20 years ago.

Hope this helps.

Bill Life Honorary Member of Wallasey Motor Club.
Licenced MSA Radio Operator for 35+ years.
Rallying is the only sport.

I'm in a very similar situation too!

Painted my house last year which looks great but now the drive looks really scruffy... I have a similar mix of broken up tarmac, concrete, weeds and bits of gravel on soil. A right mess!

I've been looking at resin bound/bonded, artificial grass, indian stone, gravel or some mix thereof. Resin seems to have the most advantages (and flexibility with colours etc.) but also probably most expensive. I've read you need to get it done well though - there are lots of cowboys getting in to resin who cut corners and you'll have problems with in a few years.

I like the idea of artificial grass for bringing some 'natural' colour and it *seems* it can be durable enough to drive and park on. Although I'm not sure how it would stand up to a higher traffic use.

My drive...
 FL2 2011 SD4 XS in Galway Green

A proper firm will charge in between £80 -£100/ m2 so your 90 m2 will cost up to £9000. But this cost include the preparation of the base from virgin land where as your drive is already compacted. However the drive still requires the preparation for the base properly, this page shows the work involved:
http://www.pavingexpert.com/home.htm
My drive is 250 m2 and I have it done several years ago at about £50/m2. Despite insisting on base thickness, materials and preparation, there are places of blocks sinking lower especially the wheel track.

Last edited by paxman on 14th May 2015 1:08 pm. Edited 1 time in total

RogB wrote:

Wives get stroppy
Dont have a wife !
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''Probably one of the best accessories you can get, provide all sorts of useful services such as cooking, cleaning, clean socks every day etc although running costs can be high with some models.''

I must have had a Friday late shift model, either that or a very low spec one as I had none of those extras lazy

Long term tested another slightly higher spec but the running costs were definitely way too high... robbing

paxman wrote:

A proper firm will charge in between £80 -£100/ m2 so your 90 m2 will cost up to £9000. But this cost include the preparation of the base from virgin land where as your drive is already compacted. However the drive still requires the preparation for the base properly, this page shows the work involve:
http://www.pavingexpert.com/home.htm
My drive is 250 m2 and I have it done several years ago at about £50/m2. Despite insisting on base thickness, materials and preparation, there are places of blocks sinking lower especially the wheel track.

You can actually keep turf and make it so you can park a vehicle on it without it getting all chewed up and a mud bath.
Theres a plastic honeycomb type matting you can get that allows the grass to grow in it but the vehicle and its weight is taken by the matting, looks like a lawn from a distance too, nice if you dont want it all concrete and tarmac?

Yeh ive seen that before, and its shown on the link provided earlier in the thread. Nice idea but would still need mowing etc. and Im not green fingered at the best of times.

Im not going for a total kerb to kerb solid top, im planning on flower bordered edge and feature on it to break up the view. Restricted though as covenants dont allow for hedgerows or fence lines.

They do allow me to keep sheep and chickens though

Think you can do that with artificial grass too, so much less maintenance FL2 2011 SD4 XS in Galway Green

Just sent you a PM RogB with a recommendation and some pictures as you don't live far from me  LL.B (Hons) - University of Derby
LOT (Lord of Time) - University of Gallifrey