# Cost to put in a gravel driveway??



## jbishop

I am interested in putting in a single lane 300' gravel driveway. I am curious how much others have paid to have a driveway installed. I know these costs vary but trying to have an idea before asking for bids. For reference I am in upstate New York in a rather low cost area.

I am really hoping to spend under 5k but have no idea how much gravel/stone/crusher run this would require.


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## CKelly78z

My wife works for a busy homebuilder in NW Ohio, and does most of the sitework, and engineering. She says $1.20 a sq ft, so a 12' wide driveway would be $14.40 a linear foot, or roughly $4400 for 300'. Now this might not include the larger base stone.


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## crehberg

jbishop said:


> I am interested in putting in a single lane 300' gravel driveway. I am curious how much others have paid to have a driveway installed. I know these costs vary but trying to have an idea before asking for bids. For reference I am in upstate New York in a rather low cost area.
> 
> I am really hoping to spend under 5k but have no idea how much gravel/stone/crusher run this would require.


A lot of how much you will need depends on conditions...and if there's already an existing open area for the road. Tree work and brush grubbing adds up quick!


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## Qwertyuiop

My driveway is 1500 feet long. I paid $32.00 per ton , delivered and spread. The first 400 tons were 3" rock. It still needs more.


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## jbishop

crehberg said:


> A lot of how much you will need depends on conditions...and if there's already an existing open area for the road. Tree work and brush grubbing adds up quick!


I have access to an excavator and will be doing the prep work. You are absolutely right about those costs adding up. I will be looking for someone to haul the material, spread it, and compact it.


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## jbishop

Qwertyuiop said:


> My driveway is 1500 feet long. I paid $32.00 per ton , delivered and spread. The first 400 tons were 3" rock. It still needs more.


I could not imagine how much a 1500' driveway would cost to keep plowed here in upstate NY but sounds really private.


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## jbishop

CKelly78z said:


> My wife works for a busy homebuilder in NW Ohio, and does most of the sitework, and engineering. She says $1.20 a sq ft, so a 12' wide driveway would be $14.40 a linear foot, or roughly $4400 for 300'. Now this might not include the larger base stone.


Thank you sir. This sounds pretty close to what I was thinking.


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## po boy

How close is the nearest rock quarry? In 2014 I bought about 10 tandem truck loads that ran about 23 ton per load at a cost of $380 a load. The driver spread it and took very little work on our part. This was new rock on existing driveways. If your land does not require clearing, you may just need someone with a dozer remove top soil and level.

NY Rock Quarry locate one near u and call for prices.


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## GTX63

I pay about $40 per ton. Haul it myself, use a tractor to unload, spread and level. It is about 5 miles to the rock company and I haul about 4 tons at a time.
Your initial post mentioned having it installed, so yes, delivery and site work by a contractor will add significantly to the costs.


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## kilgrosh

Has anyone tried to cut the cost of gravel by only installing the tire tracks? I read somewhere that is a cost effective method. You do end up with a grass strip in the middle that needs to be mowed every so often. Just a random thought...


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## farminghandyman

also what type of soil are you working over, for example our ground is sand, the gravel, is just topping, but I went to my SIL place there base would be a much more of a clay, to make a drive that would not jstu be a bunch of pothole in a few rains, one would have to build up a base of rock and more likely some ditches to drain off the water, then topped with a gravel for tire protection,

Big difference between topping some dirt, and road building, and is there any leveling or other earth work needed,


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## CKelly78z

Where we live, if you laid down a 4" layer of driveway gravel in a field, or treeline, it would disappear in a matter of a year if it didn't have large base stone laid down first. This time of the year, you will sink in 4" deep just walking across bare ground, and possibly lose your boot to the suction. I would build up a driveway above the surface, rather than dig out dirt to then lay stone...you will need drainage.


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## Fishindude

A cubic yard of stone weighs roughly 3,000 lbs. If you do 300' LF x 12' wide, that equals 3,600 SF.
If 6" thickness it will require 66.7 CY of material or approx. 100 tons of stone. If 9" thick 150 ton, if 12" thick 200 tons.
How much does stone cost per ton, delivered and spread in you area?

On a brand new drive you are much better off if you start out with a base layer of large aggregate topped by a layer of fine aggregate. 10-12" thickness would not be out of line at all.


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## Qwertyuiop

jbishop said:


> I could not imagine how much a 1500' driveway would cost to keep plowed here in upstate NY but sounds really private.


Most of the time it's not to bad. Sometimes , like now, it's horrible. I can almost watch the gravel disappear in the mud right before my eyes. Here is Kansas it seems like it's been raining for months. Everything is mud.


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## hiddensprings

I'm sure it depends on the current condition of the road, the property (high land, low land, mixed), will you need culverts, etc. It doesn't usually cost anything to get the bids, I'd start there


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## oldtruckbbq

It cost me $1400 for a culvert, 250' drive, and clearing the house site. That included a load of clay/gravel base on the drive. I'll have another layer of base added when it dries enough he can get to it, then put down some gravel. He figures that work will cost me another $600. Unfortunately, I don't think he travels from SEMO to NY.


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## siberian

kilgrosh said:


> Has anyone tried to cut the cost of gravel by only installing the tire tracks? I read somewhere that is a cost effective method. You do end up with a grass strip in the middle that needs to be mowed every so often. Just a random thought...



Not sure. Would be scared incase I went off the tracks, but this is Ohio. Once the driveway is in we found it better to fill holes rather scrape of backfill again


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## melli

jbishop said:


> I have access to an excavator and will be doing the prep work. You are absolutely right about those costs adding up. I will be looking for someone to haul the material, spread it, and compact it.


There are so many variables involved with putting in a driveway. Type of existing soil, slope, drainage (culverts?), how far from gravel pit, trucking costs, etc. If you can clear the driveway with excavator, why not build it. 

Occasionally, I run into excavator jobs and they are looking for someone to take the spoils (blasted rock to overburden). Cost me $50-$100 per load depending on material. 
From pit, $250-$400...

Really isn't that difficult to make a driveway (some good literature online on how). Although, my driveway was blasted in decades ago, I've had to do an overhaul. Since my driveway is all slope, I go for crushed rock (stuff that locks together). And since I've had nearly 200 loads delivered to property, the trucks have compacted it very well. I have a compactor, which I've been meaning to use on it, but since I have a mini-ex, I just regrade it a couple times a year. One day, I'll just concrete the sucker. Mixed feelings on concrete given the snow we had this year...gravel driveway offers some traction.


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## jbishop

po boy said:


> How close is the nearest rock quarry? In 2014 I bought about 10 tandem truck loads that ran about 23 ton per load at a cost of $380 a load. The driver spread it and took very little work on our part. This was new rock on existing driveways. If your land does not require clearing, you may just need someone with a dozer remove top soil and level.
> 
> NY Rock Quarry locate one near u and call for prices.


I am about 15 miles to the nearest quarry. The land requires some clearing but it is mostly small diameter trees.


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## jbishop

GTX63 said:


> I pay about $40 per ton. Haul it myself, use a tractor to unload, spread and level. It is about 5 miles to the rock company and I haul about 4 tons at a time.
> Your initial post mentioned having it installed, so yes, delivery and site work by a contractor will add significantly to the costs.


By installing I mean any dozer work, dumping, and preferable compacting. Can I ask what size trailer you use to haul material?


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## jbishop

kilgrosh said:


> Has anyone tried to cut the cost of gravel by only installing the tire tracks? I read somewhere that is a cost effective method. You do end up with a grass strip in the middle that needs to be mowed every so often. Just a random thought...


My house driveway is on hardpan so it is just like you describe minus the gravel. While I need a full driveway I would love to do something similar to what you describe on a future project using gravel.


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## jbishop

hiddensprings said:


> I'm sure it depends on the current condition of the road, the property (high land, low land, mixed), will you need culverts, etc. It doesn't usually cost anything to get the bids, I'd start there


The land is rather dry. This will be a new driveway. The driveway would slope downhill and be set on the highest spot available so I don't think drainage will be an issue. No culverts. I am going to ask for some bids but was hoping to better educate myself at the same time.


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## jbishop

oldtruckbbq said:


> It cost me $1400 for a culvert, 250' drive, and clearing the house site. That included a load of clay/gravel base on the drive. I'll have another layer of base added when it dries enough he can get to it, then put down some gravel. He figures that work will cost me another $600. Unfortunately, I don't think he travels from SEMO to NY.


That sir is a great price.


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## jbishop

Fishindude said:


> A cubic yard of stone weighs roughly 3,000 lbs. If you do 300' LF x 12' wide, that equals 3,600 SF.
> If 6" thickness it will require 66.7 CY of material or approx. 100 tons of stone. If 9" thick 150 ton, if 12" thick 200 tons.
> How much does stone cost per ton, delivered and spread in you area?
> 
> On a brand new drive you are much better off if you start out with a base layer of large aggregate topped by a layer of fine aggregate. 10-12" thickness would not be out of line at all.


I am waiting to hear back on prices. I remember paying 250 for 10 yards of sand and 380 for crusher run but that was a longer drive from the quarry than this one. Pretty sure it was 10 yards and not 10 ton.

I agree on the larger aggregate on the bottom. Really I just need to be able to get a few cement trucks back there so I am hoping to do the minimum for now if possible and come back later to make it a "nice" driveway. So base stone, smaller gravel, and then crusher run.


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## GTX63

jbishop said:


> By installing I mean any dozer work, dumping, and preferable compacting. Can I ask what size trailer you use to haul material?


I use a 22' equipment trailer with 14k axles. 
I had the local supplier deliver a load to me once and their was a surcharge per ton on top of the $150 to deliver.
I can be there in 10 minutes using the backroads, bring back 4 tons at a time, or more and keep the money in my pocket.


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## potter28

Where at in New York are you located ? I’m in the southern tier, 400’ long driveway on an old farm . Already had a pretty hard base un when we bought it in 2016. I topped it with crusher run , seems to be holding up well . Whatever you do put in a good base , such as #3’s, about the size of railroad ballast for construction and then top coat with crusher


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## AmericanStand

kilgrosh said:


> Has anyone tried to cut the cost of gravel by only installing the tire tracks? I read somewhere that is a cost effective method. You do end up with a grass strip in the middle that needs to be mowed every so often. Just a random thought...


 I can’t see how it would save significant money if you are building a foot thick see you would only save one cubic foot of material per foot of driveway I would rather have that e clean rock rather than something else that would complicate maintenance.


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## AmericanStand

GTX63 said:


> I pay about $40 per ton. Haul it myself, use a tractor to unload, spread and level. It is about 5 miles to the rock company and I haul about 4 tons at a time.
> Your initial post mentioned having it installed, so yes, delivery and site work by a contractor will add significantly to the costs.


Cough spit sputter choke did you say 40 a ton?

$7 to $10 here at the pit.


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## AmericanStand

I would trench in drainage tile on both sides of the drive as deep as I could get it and have it still drain.


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## Fishindude

Wow, those prices are crazy.
We pay $10 - $15 per ton, depending upon what type of stone, then another $3 - $4 per ton on top of that for hauling and spreading.


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## farminghandyman

I saw this some time back and you may find this interesting it is called mechanical concrete, basically it is tires with the sidewalls cut out and filled with crushed stone,





,


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## weaselfire

Sister just did this a week or so ago. $3,200 for land clearing and tree felling, another $1,300 for gravel spread. About 140 feet by 20 feet. Clearing left bare soil, no roots, gravel guy compacted soil somewhat and spread gravel. Don't know gravel depth, eventually the house guys will do a complete site prep and more permanent gravel drive.

Looks like about $26 a ton if my math is right for the gravel, road base, or whatever it's called in your area.

Jeff


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## Txyogagirl

Not trying to jump in on post but I need help too. I had 2 bids for my driveway. One was 9,800 and the other was 5,100. Same driveway pretty much. So I do need more bids but my question is if I have a low spot mud pit and they are talking about putting one load large rock them rest of 600ft filling in with crushed concrete how do I know the water won’t wash it away. The more expensive bid made it seem as if he would dig in dirt and build up then add rock while the other guy seemed to just wanna add rock I should mention I was giving the cheaper guy from a trustworthy referral the other I found in yellow pages. I have 730ish ft of sandy loam soil no trees or anything in the way


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## oldtruckbbq

Txyogagirl said:


> Not trying to jump in on post but I need help too. I had 2 bids for my driveway. One was 9,800 and the other was 5,100. Same driveway pretty much. So I do need more bids but my question is if I have a low spot mud pit and they are talking about putting one load large rock them rest of 600ft filling in with crushed concrete how do I know the water won’t wash it away. The more expensive bid made it seem as if he would dig in dirt and build up then add rock while the other guy seemed to just wanna add rock I should mention I was giving the cheaper guy from a trustworthy referral the other I found in yellow pages. I have 730ish ft of sandy loam soil no trees or anything in the way


If you have sandy loam soil, it will rut up quickly and gravel, even big stuff, will end up being pushed down into the dirt, in my experience. Removing some of the sandy loam soil and putting in something with clay and gravel that will pack hard would be the way contractors do it when they put in a road. They take out the top layer of soil with all the organics, bring in something that will pack hard, then put the road on top.

Our neighbors all put gravel right on top of sandy clay loam soil. Their drives are in terrible shape. I had the top few inches of mostly decomposed leaves and branches (called duff) scraped off, then a clay/gravel fill put in. It packed hard, has held up well to a very wet fall and winter, and I haven't even put gravel on it yet. IMHO, gravel isn't a base, it is a top coat.


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## melli

Txyogagirl said:


> Not trying to jump in on post but I need help too. I had 2 bids for my driveway. One was 9,800 and the other was 5,100. Same driveway pretty much. So I do need more bids but my question is if I have a low spot mud pit and they are talking about putting one load large rock them rest of 600ft filling in with crushed concrete how do I know the water won’t wash it away. The more expensive bid made it seem as if he would dig in dirt and build up then add rock while the other guy seemed to just wanna add rock I should mention I was giving the cheaper guy from a trustworthy referral the other I found in yellow pages. I have 730ish ft of sandy loam soil no trees or anything in the way


If you really trust the cheaper referral, I'd go with them. 
Building up low spot with rock sounds like a plan. Ideally, you don't want any low spots, as they become collectors for 'fines' (these spots don't drain, remain wet, so fines migrate upward when you drive over it because your pushing down rock/gravel with tires). Roads rut when wet because the moisture acts like a lubricant allowing the topcoat to mix with underlying layers and/or flooding deposits fines. As OTBBQ noted, if spot has duff (organics), scraping that off first is helpful, as organics will float to top. 

Really hard to get a sense of what you are dealing with, without pics, and soil profile. Loam is typically 40-40-20 (Sand, Silt, Clay). In essence, Loam is good farmland, good for growing crops, but not so good for a driveway. Back in farm days, all our roads and driveways were built up to facilitate quick drainage. Ditches were huge (you could drive in them). They were gently sloped so shoulders would not rut after heavy rains, nor sluff off. These huge ditches main purpose was to keep the road layers dry. A dry road is less likely to rut. 

You can google gravel road construction to get a sense of what is involved. Granular sub-base, road-base, binder, topcoat...each layer gets finer (smaller diameter) as you build up. You want granular (preferably crushed) material, as it locks into place and packs well. I've had a few discussions about material for roads with heavy equipment operators, and one thing you don't want is rounded/weathered rock/sand for roads/driveways (especially on slopes). I live in an area that has a couple of monster aggregate suppliers, that export gravel to places like California because our gravel is angular - similar to crushed rock (not rounded). Tires are less likely to spit/displace the gravel and rains can't wash away fines as easily (stuff that locks in topcoat). 

Road building is a bit of a science, and you are limited to your locales material availability. I'd see what works in your hood, and go with that. Check out driveways that look sound, maybe even chat with owners to see what they did. Nothing is flat in my hood, and gravel driveway repair is what keeps heavy equipment contractors busy. Heck, I have to repair/regrade my driveway every year because the rains wash away the fines (steep slope), leaving loose gravel. Then I drive on it, which 'washboards' the driveway.


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## Txyogagirl

melli said:


> If you really trust the cheaper referral, I'd go with them.
> Building up low spot with rock sounds like a plan. Ideally, you don't want any low spots, as they become collectors for 'fines' (these spots don't drain, remain wet, so fines migrate upward when you drive over it because your pushing down rock/gravel with tires). Roads rut when wet because the moisture acts like a lubricant allowing the topcoat to mix with underlying layers and/or flooding deposits fines. As OTBBQ noted, if spot has duff (organics), scraping that off first is helpful, as organics will float to top.
> 
> Really hard to get a sense of what you are dealing with, without pics, and soil profile. Loam is typically 40-40-20 (Sand, Silt, Clay). In essence, Loam is good farmland, good for growing crops, but not so good for a driveway. Back in farm days, all our roads and driveways were built up to facilitate quick drainage. Ditches were huge (you could drive in them). They were gently sloped so shoulders would not rut after heavy rains, nor sluff off. These huge ditches main purpose was to keep the road layers dry. A dry road is less likely to rut.
> 
> You can google gravel road construction to get a sense of what is involved. Granular sub-base, road-base, binder, topcoat...each layer gets finer (smaller diameter) as you build up. You want granular (preferably crushed) material, as it locks into place and packs well. I've had a few discussions about material for roads with heavy equipment operators, and one thing you don't want is rounded/weathered rock/sand for roads/driveways (especially on slopes). I live in an area that has a couple of monster aggregate suppliers, that export gravel to places like California because our gravel is angular - similar to crushed rock (not rounded). Tires are less likely to spit/displace the gravel and rains can't wash away fines as easily (stuff that locks in topcoat).
> 
> Road building is a bit of a science, and you are limited to your locales material availability. I'd see what works in your hood, and go with that. Check out driveways that look sound, maybe even chat with owners to see what they did. Nothing is flat in my hood, and gravel driveway repair is what keeps heavy equipment contractors busy. Heck, I have to repair/regrade my driveway every year because the rains wash away the fines (steep slope), leaving loose gravel. Then I drive on it, which 'washboards' the driveway.


I will take some pics. So 2 neighbors used the cheaper guy one of them is the man I originally purchased my land from. He hasn’t had anything done to his driveway in 4 years it looks good don’t flood does have small patches of grass in middle which I would hate. The cheaper guy build his. Here is a pic of him working on another driveway down the road he would be putting 1 load of these big rocks on mine at gate then 15 loads of the rock mixture everywhere else. We did choose a high spot that has had some extra dirt piles pushed up over the years. We had a beautiful pasture of Bahia last summer when we bought the place. Water well drilled yesterday said it’s sandy clay I think what he said. Looked like reg mud to me lol


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## 3SRanch

jbishop said:


> I am interested in putting in a single lane 300' gravel driveway. I am curious how much others have paid to have a driveway installed. I know these costs vary but trying to have an idea before asking for bids. For reference I am in upstate New York in a rather low cost area.
> 
> I am really hoping to spend under 5k but have no idea how much gravel/stone/crusher run this would require.


I'm in the process of building a 400' driveway myself here in Texas. I'm having the trucks deliver road base (crushed limestone) and I'm spreading it myself with the blade on my tractor. I'm a little over halfway, doing a few loads whenever I have some free time. A load of road base runs $350 here and I estimate that when I'm done it'll cost me between $5 and $6k. About $5k to finish and another 3 or so loads to topcoat after driving on it a few months to pack it down.

The spreading is pretty quick and easy.

Good luck!


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## Txyogagirl

3SRanch said:


> I'm in the process of building a 400' driveway myself here in Texas. I'm having the trucks deliver road base (crushed limestone) and I'm spreading it myself with the blade on my tractor. I'm a little over halfway, doing a few loads whenever I have some free time. A load of road base runs $350 here and I estimate that when I'm done it'll cost me between $5 and $6k. About $5k to finish and another 3 or so loads to topcoat after driving on it a few months to pack it down.
> 
> The spreading is pretty quick and easy.
> 
> Good luck!


Where In Texas this sounds expensive. My driveway needs to be 720ft and I’m not doing any work myself and mybid was same as u


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## DarcyT

Happy to find this thread. 
Anybody have any idea of of how much it might cost to put a gravel driveway in on a already cleared lot? The area is about 220 feet. I think 3-5 in depth is ok. So concalc says it's 2000-3000 cubic yards of material = 3 tons. Local supplier asked for a $35 per ton. Is it ok?


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## Alice In TX/MO

Who is going to spread it and pack it?


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## AmericanStand

At $35 a ton for gravel wouldn’t it be cheaper to have a concrete driveway put in?


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## AmericanStand

Darcy I’m not sure where you’re located at the key to any good gravel driveway is drainage. As long as the dirt underneath is well drained and dry it will hold quite a load. 
Waterlogged soil will hold nothing


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## AmericanStand

Darcy I’m not sure that your figures agree
If your driveway is 220 feet long and you’re putting it down about 12 feet wide in about a half a foot of material that works out as follows.

220x12 X.5 =1360 cubic feet
Or about 50 cubic yards
Or about 70 tons


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## snowlady

The landscaper I work for sells CA 6 for $18 a ton.


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## Bearfootfarm

Gravel is much cheaper than concrete in most locations.


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## AmericanStand

But you don’t usually need as much of it


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## CKelly78z

If I were installing a long driveway, I may consider buying a used dump truck, and driving it myself. Much of the cost of delivered stone is paying for the driver/truck use. Buy a decent D truck for $5000-$10,000, use it hard for a month, or two, and sell it for $5000-$10000.


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## AmericanStand

CKelly78z said:


> My wife works for a busy homebuilder in NW Ohio, and does most of the sitework, and engineering. She says $1.20 a sq ft, so a 12' wide driveway would be $14.40 a linear foot, or roughly $4400 for 300'. Now this might not include the larger base stone.


 As a rule of the song in my area I plan on a ton per foot. 

So I’m guessing that’s pretty close.
How much is stone at the quarry where you were at?


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## Elevenpoint

DarcyT said:


> Happy to find this thread.
> Anybody have any idea of of how much it might cost to put a gravel driveway in on a already cleared lot? The area is about 220 feet. I think 3-5 in depth is ok. So concalc says it's 2000-3000 cubic yards of material = 3 tons. Local supplier asked for a $35 per ton. Is it ok?


I put down 51 tons on our driveway.
First I ran a pipe under the driveway for drainage under the one part.
Another part that is up an incline I sloped slightly to the right so it drains to a ditch.
One load of 1" clean which I used part on a basement waterproofing project and the rest on the drive. Two loads of 1" minus on top of clean gravel. Delivered price was $535, I had a track bobcat to spread it, wet it down and track it in. I had an ok base of creek gravel.


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## secuono

12ft widening to 15ft, 30ft long, was about 2,000...3k for tar n chip, we thought I'd be better. Wrong. Should of spent the 5k on asphalt...
Location drastically changes price.
Call all the companies in your area.


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## 3SRanch

Txyogagirl said:


> Where In Texas this sounds expensive. My driveway needs to be 720ft and I’m not doing any work myself and mybid was same as u


Sorry for the late response... we're pretty remote, Franklin, Texas. Largest city nearby is College Station and that's about a 40 min drive. Location affects the cost of just about everything out here.


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## maeganbriones

In general, you can expect to pay anywhere from $1 to $3 per square foot for gravel driveway installation. This means that for your 300' driveway, you could be looking at anywhere from $3,000 to $9,000. However, since you're in a lower-cost area, you may be able to find a deal that fits within your budget of $5,000.


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## mithudas9797

Depending on the area that you live in, the cost of materials and the labor for installation can vary greatly. It's always a good idea to get multiple bids from local contractors and compare prices. When I got mine, I worked with the guys from paveallohio.com. They had the best prices. In general, it's possible to get an estimate of the cost of materials from suppliers in your area. Contact local suppliers and ask for an estimate for the amount of gravel, stone, and crusher run you'll need based on the length of your driveway. Once you have an estimate of the materials cost, you can add in the cost of labor for installation to get a rough idea of how much the project will cost.


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## Danaus29

maeganbriones said:


> In general, you can expect to pay anywhere from $1 to $3 per square foot for gravel driveway installation. This means that for your 300' driveway, you could be looking at anywhere from $3,000 to $9,000. However, since you're in a lower-cost area, you may be able to find a deal that fits within your budget of $5,000.


This thread was started in 2019, many months before covidflation hit the world. Prices are not only much higher, but more variable by location. When discussing prices, it pays to check thread dates.


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## fishhead

If you can afford it a layer of 3" minus crushed rock will be very stable. I spread a thin layer of 3/4" minus over some mud holes in my driveway. It was amazing at how well the rock meshed together and stopped the growth of the puddles. I've seen experienced drivers spread it as they dump it.


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