Driveway Aggregates

Hello from Mediterranean Greece!
I hope you are doing okay in these crazy times...

I am in the process of making a driveway, as well as paths around the house. Classic Mediterranean style. What do you think of the materials in the photo as a driveway, where you have a foundation layer of mixed material and then the coarse sand on top? The sand is a mix of very fine powder up to pieces of about half a centimeter in size or so, and makes for a pretty hard surface. I am digging to a depth of about 15 - 20 cm. How does this sound? Any potential problems? It's a very common material here and easy to get your hands on. Let me know what you think.

Thank you!

The mix of fine sand and coarser pieces is good for stability - my driveway is similar with totally different kinds of sand and stone -  and if it is commonly used and makes a hard surface, go for it. You don't have to worry about freezing there, so as long as the ground is solid it should be strong with a base layer of coarse rock.

It may pay to ask around your area.
Sometimes only particular materials are available in locations, so people answering from another part of the world.

Glenn Herbert wrote:The mix of fine sand and coarser pieces is good for stability - my driveway is similar with totally different kinds of sand and stone -  and if it is commonly used and makes a hard surface, go for it. You don't have to worry about freezing there, so as long as the ground is solid it should be strong with a base layer of coarse rock.

Thank you! Thats was my thinking too.

Alex,

I broadly agree with Glenn.  My driveway is similar.  The driveway itself rests on clay, and the base layers of the driveway are limestone that has been crushed into a powder and laid down very thick and worked into the clay by driving heavy vehicles over it.  After the initial application of lime dust, I added a 50:50 mix of lime dust mixed with approximately 1 cm limestone rocks.  Several layers of this helped to build up the base (I built my own house, so I had a lot of heavy traffic packing and working this material together.  Eventually I added 2 cm clean (meaning no dust) limestone rock to the top as a finishing layer.  I occasionally need to add more layers as the driveway continues to pack into the ground, but it has been several years since I added a layer.

I don't know how this works in your area, but at least it is a partial guide to building a gravel driveway.

Good luck!

Eric

Thank you for sharing, Eric! I appreciate it.
Sounds very similar to my site. So in terms of stability it should be okay, with a bit of work. Now for some research of the top layer in terms of water management, estetics and upkeep.

Most of the locals here are not sophisticated on this topic, and the fact that I'm not pouring a concrete driveway is somewhat controversial. That being said, I do ask around as much as possible about most things as there usually is something valuable to learn, even if I don't agree with the conclusions.