How to install new asphalt driveway over gravel

[@ConcreteTVAsia]

7:55 Great tutorial! Installing an asphalt driveway over gravel can seem daunting, but your step-by-step instructions make it easy to follow. I appreciate the tips on preparation and ensuring a solid foundation. This will definitely help many homeowners looking to enhance their curb appeal. Thanks for sharing such valuable information!

[@srmcontracting]

Glad it helped! Thank you

[@bradleyklingaman7431]

I've been around black-top asphalt paving my whole life (I'm now retired 73) when I first realized they were putting in this whole driveway by hand I was real skeptical - you have to be REALLY good at raking hot mix to make it smooth and level and these 2 guys were GREAT! I thought the first layer they did looked good and when he said now for the top-coat I thought "Holy Crap" their really doing this up right-super fine job guys-I'd hire you all to work for me any day-keep up the good work.

[@andrewmclaughlin9951]

You sound experienced, if you weren’t retired I’d have a job for you

[@srmcontracting]

Thank you, I appreciate that. Those guys have been doing blacktop since they were teenagers.

[@jakem.6359]

For doing it by hand .....it came out really nice .....better than I expected...and I work in asphalt. 😆

[@srmcontracting]

Thanks I appreciate it

[@Kevin-is-here]

Never seen this done by hand before, turned out nice

[@srmcontracting]

Thank you

[@baxtronx5972]

By hand? Were we watching the same video?

[@Kevin-is-here]

@@baxtronx5972ok, slinging the asphalt by hand if you need to talk, have a good day

[@rixxroxxk1620]

At first I was leery of the results, but man! That turned out great!

[@srmcontracting]

Thank you

[@thomasbarrett2812]

That's a good looking driveway. Thanks for posting.

[@srmcontracting]

Thanks for watching!

[@dcwshoreline5416]

excellent Job Sean and Crew!

[@srmcontracting]

Thank you

[@leonardcrisci7254]

Great way to start my Saturday

[@davidgray2653]

What's going to stop edging breaking away?

[@bp5558]

The backfill he mentioned at the end of the video

[@mp-xt2rg]

Looks great good work.

[@srmcontracting]

Thank you

[@cd1168]

You did a great job. Especially the compaction

[@srmcontracting]

Thanks compaction is key!

[@surryhill9693]

You put down 2" of Base but how many inches did you put in the final top layer? Thanks, Tom

[@srmcontracting]

We ended up with about 3" of base and 2" of top

[@whithaggerson1]

Why no turn outs at end of drive?

[@branchandfoundry560]

Newer high tech cars all make perfect 90* turns now 😉👍 I wondered the same thing. Otherwise it's a great looking driveway.

[@arstudio2274]

would it be the same if its cold asphalt pre mix?

[@aaronweintrob]

Thats one sturdy wheelbarrel

[@affordablelawns]

How many tons was that. Whats the price per ton ?

[@The_Home_Pros]

Looks great how much does a job like this cost? How much money do you have in materials? I’ve been thinking of doing the same thing and extending a parking area over.

[@srmcontracting]

Thanks, A driveway like this in my area would be about $5000. Materials were $1500

[@leonardcrisci7254]

@@srmcontracting and what about if it was done with concrete

[@NewsChannel-y4g]

​@@leonardcrisci7254 20-30k by a company 15-25k done by you

[@gunnerranch]

Hi thanks for posting! How much did you charge for this job?

[@dudleydorite7678]

Oh i remember them days. How many tons total

[@srmcontracting]

15 tons

[@EAAmin]

I live on a gravel road, which is about 0.4 miles from the highway way. We just moved into our new build about 3 months ago. The dust from the gravel road has been too much. The county (Hill County, Texas) is not thinking of pouring asphalt on the road any time soon. Any idea on how much it will cost to do something like what was done in this video over a distance of 0.6 miles? Any suggestions on how to get asphalt poured on a gravel road will be appreciated.

[@srmcontracting]

We don't do large scale paving but if I had to guess maybe $25-30k. I would find someone who has asphalt millings and put those down. Sometimes you can get them for free if you can find the right people. Fun fact farmers used to spray old dirt/gravel roads with used motor oil to keep the dust down. Good luck with your project.

[@EAAmin]

@srmcontracting Thanks a lot! This is helpful. I will keep an eye out for your message.

[@mikeh8047]

Why the water with the roller at the end?

[@rustrtal]

So it doesn't stick

[@srmcontracting]

So it doesn't stick and helps it start to harden

[@FunctionalFitPDR]

And to keep the morale up with the team! Hahah

[@anonymous-tn6ij]

It was the homeowner pissing on him because he didn’t put an adhesion promoter between the binder and the topcoat

[@srmcontracting]

​@@anonymous-tn6ijtack isn't needed over fresh binder

[@JonathanAshworth50]

How many yards of asphalt and what was the total length of the driveway? Also curious how long the asphalt stays hot enough to work with? I’m currently quoting a job that requires some asphalt repair. Can’t get an asphalt guy to come out and look so trying to figure out how I can do it my self

[@srmcontracting]

52 ft, It was 9 tons of base and 8 tons of top coat. If its real hot out and in the sun you have more working time probably 30-45 min before you need to compact.

[@FunctionalFitPDR]

Do you have different plate compactors for gravel and asphalt? Thought I noticed two different models used. Did you rent the roller for this job specifically? You guys picking up more and more asphalt jobs?

[@srmcontracting]

Yes the asphalt compactor is lighter then the gravel compactor and it has a water tank. Corey owns that roller and we do a few asphalt jobs a year.

[@Craig-n5x]

😅the water cools it, and keeps it from sticking to the roller

[@TheBBoyPain]

Whats the timeline of this project? Was it done in a single day?

[@srmcontracting]

Yes, it can be done in 1 day

[@TheBBoyPain]

@@srmcontracting Holly. That`s some serious commitment

[@elirentals5306]

What do you charge per sq foot for this

[@mp5kfisher241]

What does a driveway like this cost $? Im wondering if i want blacktop or concrete.

[@srmcontracting]

This was about 6k, generally blacktop is about half the cost compared to concrete.

[@Oscars5.9]

What did you use on the skid steer bucket? So it doesn’t stick

[@dirtmoney8740]

Diésel

[@bp5558]

Diesel helps with the non-stick goal. However, it also breaks down the binder in the asphalt.

[@theimprovementsguy8871]

Use some timber for a edge... looks nice tho

[@matteoricci19]

great project whats the next job?

[@srmcontracting]

Thank you, Next video will be a concrete foundation removal. I appreciate you following the channel

[@matteoricci19]

@@srmcontracting best content nice roller what year?

[@srmcontracting]

@@matteoricci19 Its from the 90s but still runs great

[@jacobbelfield9835]

Looks smooooth! How many inches of asphalt can you compact at a time (is it the same as ab3 at 1”/1000lb cf?)How long do you have to plate compact/roller the asphalt before it wont compact/cool off to much?

[@srmcontracting]

Thanks! I'm going say up to 3" at most. Generally you compact and roll the base, then compact and roll the top coat. We compact and roll it as we go, but it all depends on the weather. If it's in the 90s I wouldn't wait more 45 mins to compact a section

[@sawyerdavis23]

Anything SRM cannot do?

[@Eds2025]

Good job buddy’s 😎

[@srmcontracting]

Thanks man

[@LKSLKSLKSLKS]

Good work

[@srmcontracting]

Thanks

[@avontaprice2]

When you spray in the Bobcat skid steer bucket attachment does that really diesel fuel for a diesel lubricant for asphalt to not stick to the bucket attachment on that skid steer?????🤨🤨🤨🤨🤨🤨🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔

[@dirtmoney8740]

Diesel helps the asphalt not stick on. It also helps when digging in mud.

[@avontaprice2]

@@dirtmoney8740 oh ok. it really works with mud also???????🤨🤨🤨🤨🤨🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔

[@dirtmoney8740]

@@avontaprice2 yes, it makes a difference when digging in mud. I pair it with a welded chain attached from the bucket to the arm and it will push all the mud out of the bucket when I do a full curl with the bucket.

[@Chestnut0923]

Don’t say diesel lol EPA doesn’t like that. I probably would have done a thicker coat of asphalt. Other than that it looks great! I would have dropped the grade before I placed it. You do great work though!

[@srmcontracting]

Thanks I appreciate that! This was about 5 1/2 inches, most guys are only doing 4 these days.

[@SunChips24]

Was gonna say. This was one of the thickest driveways I've seen! ​@@srmcontracting

[@Chestnut0923]

@@srmcontracting my driveway is just shy of 4.5 and it’s just falling apart. I’m redoing it with concrete. Around here we do around 6” total 4 base 2”-3” of top. And pack the crap out of it.

[@davidgray2653]

Good job didn't put wearing course on top that skidsteer would rip it to bits

[@iveneverdonethisbefore8390]

Well….i don’t know what I think of this one. I’m not sure how long this will last but I’m going to guess the homeowner knows that and wanted to save some money. I will say that, it’s an impressive looking job for doing this without an asphalt machine.

[@srmcontracting]

Thank you! A lot of guys make a big fuss about not using a paver, as long as you can get it down evenly and compact it before it starts to set up it's fine. There are tons of driveways and parking lots that have areas the paver can't maneuver so that area gets done as we did here. It will hold up just the same, like anything else it mainly comes down to the base.

[@iveneverdonethisbefore8390]

@@srmcontracting yes, the base is why I’m not sure it will hold up. Just cause you didn’t start from scratch and excavate. Anyways, been a subscriber for a few years, enjoying the channel very much.

[@manny53o]

@@srmcontractingbecause you tend to get a lot of segregation when you rake asphalt by hand. A lot of guys tend to over work the mix and bring the larger aggregate to the top which creates voids for water to intrude. It looks like you had a good raker and were able to compact and seal it up after it was laid down. Crushed concrete is a great base material I wouldn’t worry about this falling apart from not totally excavating down.

[@rickh9507]

Dont you hate when its windy and your boot gets all the pink or orange marking paint

[@wolfpacva]

why dont you use a Lo Boy to put an even coat of asphalt down

[@HughDuncan-zb6xl]

Not a bad job at all

[@srmcontracting]

Thanks

[@shanestamball1886]

I thought I've seen it all, but this is ridiculous, you have a 5ton with a door. But not a poor man's paver box? Makes no sense

[@leonardcrisci7254]

Please, next time put up cones and funnel that traffic

[@srmcontracting]

Cones would have been a good idea. Naturally there was no traffic until we started working.

[@leonardcrisci7254]

@@srmcontracting towards the end, I seen a couple cars coming pretty quick

[@TimMeyer-o1x]

No Asphalt is Perfect...Want perfection, get concrete.

[@dudleydorite7678]

Don't saw cut it, fix it with some top soil

[@user-pg6jr9gu5h]

Black shirt has the WORST hand singles Ever

[@AdamOsso77]

Those people drive fast through that work zone. What’s wrong with people.

[@johnjones9642]

It can be done. You don't need a million dollars worth of trucks & equipment

[@lastone1269]

No tack oil won't last !

[@roncarver6106]

I guess you have to start somewhere

[@johnjones9642]

A lot of these companies are rip offs. They charge waaay too much. You should see the vehicles they own & the homes they live in!!😂

[@roesmith5492]

🤫🤫Them aren't pavers, them are gypsies,, I've been one for 43 years😂😂😂

[@johnjones9642]

I wish I could get reasonable price on my drive. It's little & these chumps in this area want thousands!!

[@TheEpoxyExpert]

Why are they chumps because they charge a lot?

[@johnjones9642]

@@TheEpoxyExpert yes!! Most were chumps even back in school. You must be one of the chumps that charge ridiculous prices too.

[@roesmith5492]

​@@johnjones9642🤔🤔if I give you a cheap price are you gonna complain about the quality of work to🤭🤭

[@johnjones9642]

@roesmith5492 I get what you're saying but these companies here want wayyy too much money. Price gouging I'd say. And some won't do a good job. These companies here like to do restaurants churches etc. Driveways in rich areas. My small drive they frown on. Wayy over priced. And if you're not white they tack on even more.

[@dennishubbard5597]

At least rent a drag box for the day.

[@dvljet]

First off your not allowed to use diesel has a releasing agent anymore you now need to use a special approved releasing agent . secondly you forgot the tack so this blacktop will not last very long and has for county roads if you have permits you can saw cut a straight clean line no issues . you should removed at least 2 inches of that over large base and replaced it with smaller base then compacted it with a heavier roller then tacked the entire thing and using a skidsteer with tracks bad idea a proper paver would have been much better and smoother finish .

[@chefbuc]

And what’s your asphalt company called?

[@roesmith5492]

​@@chefbuc😳😳gotta love those Karen's, the only tack they get from me is on the bill when the customer's a Karen 😂😂