Dan's Papers - August 17, 2007 -Driveways the Right Way

Most driveways sit in front of a house, so it plays an important role in creating a first impression. But this doesn't mean it needs to be remarkable in any way. Rather, it should blend in with the rest of your property and complement your garden and house. The type of driveway you choose will depend on the style of your house, and should also be practical, safe, stable and durable. It needs to perform its chief function, which is to take the weight of cars and other vehicles. It should also be easy to maintain.

There is a vast array of driveway surfaces to choose from, with the most common form being concrete. It can be an exposed aggregate concrete with pebbles or gravel set into the surface, or just plain concrete. Concrete is the most inexpensive surface and also the most popular.

Concrete also comes as individual pavers. There are numerous sizes, from small 220 mm x 110 mm rectangles up to 500 mm x 500 mm squares. You can achieve a number of patterns with pavers, depending on the mix of sizes and shapes you use. They also come either straight edged or with a beveled or angled edge.

Driveway paving materials fall into two main categories - solid-surface (i.e. smooth, seamless, even surfaces) and aggregate-surface. The most popular options lie in the first category, led by asphalt and concrete. Aggregate-surface driveway paving materials include gravel and crushed stone.

Driveway pavers lie somewhere in between these two main categories. Although they are individual components pieced together to form a whole, some types of driveway pavers can, if laid properly, form an almost seamless even surface, with no raised areas to cause problems for your snow blower. The "odd ball" of driveway paving materials is tar-and-chip. It is similar to asphalt, but it doesn't provide a smooth enough surface for snow blowing.

If you have a house built from natural materials, such as timber or natural stone, as well as a native garden, then pavers made from clay or sandstone might be worth considering. Again, they come in a number of shapes and sizes. Sandstone and clay pavers tend to be more expensive than concrete pavers, but the effect, if it complements the style of your home, is well worth it.

A skilled designer and construction team should be able to create virtually any shape, pattern or surface, regardless of the topography of your property. Different slopes, soil and rock types might affect the technique used to construct a driveway, but it doesn't always narrow the choices available to you. Talk to a landscape designer or contractor and have them run through the options that exist for your driveway.

Driveway maintenance includes snow removal, sealing and repair. For cosmetic purposes, many homeowners also furnish their driveways with landscaping. For many, snow removal is one of the biggest driveway maintenance concerns. But you can eliminate the need to remove snow from driveways manually by installing the technology known as "snow-melting systems."

When installing driveways, homeowners need to consider the best way of going about hiring a contractor. The first step in hiring driveway contractors is to seek out references. Draw up a list of questions and contact the references provided by the driveway contractors. Include questions about the work ethic and trustworthiness of the driveway contractor, how closely the driveway contractor followed the contract, how much the driveway contractor charged and whether or not the reference ultimately was satisfied with the work.

You should then try to obtain permission to visit the site in question. If granted, inquire as to the date when the driveway was installed. See if it shows signs of any problems and ask the homeowners if they're aware of any problems.

Based on those comparisons, choose the top driveway contractors and ask them further questions to get a feel for their level of professionalism. The final step is the contract. Before you sign anything, make sure the contract covers the following: responsibilities of the contractor, compaction of sub-grade and base, thickness of pavement, overall cost and payment schedule and a guarantee.