Enjoy an attractive & solid driveway.
Good driveways provide quiet, subtle peace of mind.
Driveway Design & Installation in Madison, WI
Paver driveways can make a significant statement with the proper design. There are many textures, colors and designs to choose from.
Driveways can prevent unique challenges when compared to a standard backyard patio space or a paver path.
Driveway Structural Elements
A well-built driveway involves a number of structural design decisions. Together, these decisions can contribute to a flush, stable, attractive driveway that stands the test of time.
Compaction-Resistant Base Layer
Compaction can make or break your paver driveway. A driveway may appear perfectly laid on Day Zero, but if the base is vulnerable to significant compaction, the driveway may look and function horribly only a year later.Industry guidelines say a 4-6 inch base is enough for most paver applications, but we use a minimum of 12 inches of open-graded aggregate under all of our driveways. We sometimes implement even more base material, depending on the circumstances. Open-graded material compacts better and easier when compared to traditional crushed gravel. In addition, open-graded base does not hold water, which is a huge bonus given Wisconsin freeze/thaw cycles. We adopted this process many years ago and have had great success with it in our Madison area driveway installations.
Inter-layer Reinforcement
We lay a geotextile barrier between the compacted subgrade (soil) and the new base aggregate. This spreads the load of the driveway pavers, and prevents your base from mixing with soils beneath and becoming unstable over time.
Further Reinforcement
An optional geogrid layer can be installed within the aggregate base layer to provide extreme strength and increase load capacity. This can also help prevent rutting from cars repeatedly traveling the same path. Drive Grid from Unilock is designed specifically for this purpose.
Edging
We install a paver edge restraint around the perimeter of the pavers to prevent them from shifting and spreading over time.
Joint Sand
We sweep a high-quality polymeric joint sand into paver joints and compact it several times to make sure it settles all the way. Once swept and blown clean, we wet and activate the sand. Over the next 24 hour, the sand hardens and cures like grout, locking in your pavers for years. As an added bonus, this joint sand helps prevent weeds from coming up through the cracks.
Driveway Amenities
Heated wire/coil systems are available to install under your pavers. In the winter time when the snow storm starts, flip a switch and watch all the snow melt on contact. No more shoveling, no more icy driveways.