# Driveway options for old stone country house



## Brenno123 (15 Aug 2010)

hi

i have an old cut stone country house and the last thing i need to get done is the driveway.

my problem is that i have a very big area to cover in total (> 600 sq m) which includes the front of the house, side of house and long driveway.

i was looking at getting a pebble or a natural stone cobble (or combination) but it is really expensive. i hate tarmacdam and it would take from the house so not going with that.

does anyone know any other options i could look into? that would complement a cut stone house but wont break the bank? i have a budget of 17k

advice greatly appreciated


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## kbie (15 Aug 2010)

This is much more elaborate than any of the concrete impression driveways that I have seen. Does anyone know if there is any company doing this type of product in Ireland.

PS. I hope this is not hijacking the original post!


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## Slim (15 Aug 2010)

Hi Brenno

IMHO a gravel drive is more in keeping with an old stone house. Slim


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## STONE FX (16 Aug 2010)

I run a company that installs pattern imprinted concrete. With a budget of 17k, you wont get a professional imprinted concrete driveway of 600m2 so knock that in the head. As "Slim" suggests, go with decorative gravel/stone. 
For an area as large as you have, top quality materials and the correct concrete mix plus labour will cost you a minimum of €40 per square metre and that does not include groundwork. If you are being quoted less than this, then ask the contractor for a list of materials they will use.
The list should have the following included at least,
UV Stable colour surface hardener, 6mm polypropylene fibremesh re-enforcement, a super plasticiser, release agent (to stop the imprinting mats sticking to the wet coloured concrete) and most importantly, a top quality sealer. This final stage is most important as it will enhance the colour and add to the durability and the finished driveway will need a minimum of 2 coats of sealer. I can give you more details if required and my advice is free with no strings attached.
As for patterns and textures, I know that you should check out a website called brickform.com and have a look at the other patterns available. I am not advertising my business on here or promoting it. I want to enlighten people as to whats available for them if they look in the right place. My own website is accessible if required. You get what you pay for and you should insist on a contract as we do.


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## Leo (16 Aug 2010)

kbie said:


> This is much more elaborate than any of the concrete impression driveways that I have seen. Does anyone know if there is any company doing this type of product in Ireland.
> 
> PS. I hope this is not hijacking the original post!


 
Please keep all posts seeking recommendations in the Recommend tradesmen and suppliers forum.


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## Ó Murchú (16 Aug 2010)

Hi Brenno123

I would be inclined to steer well clear off any form of applied cobblelock patterned asphalt/concrete as these finishes more often than not look exactly like what they are - poor imitations of the real thing. 

I would also be inclined to rethink the idea of putting cobbles down at all [either real or patterned] - 600.sq m suggests a large area around the house and my opinion would be that the cobbles would appear far too 'fussy' / 'busy' set against the cut stone of the house.  

I would suggest applying tar & chip to the driveway. While not the most durable on country roads [as we all can see], tar & chip is ideal around houses as the level of abuse & traffic which the driveway receives is minimal. 

Once the driveway is prepared........ 

- kerbs set in lean mix concrete 
- driveway leveled to suit any drains and kerbs with hardcore and 804 crushed limestone

..... hot tar is applied to the surface and the stone chips are placed on top.  

see this video for how it is applied  : *www DOT youtube DOT com  /watch?v=IgYnrFt3TqM*

One of the real benefits is that you will be able to choose a stone chip to your liking. over time the loose chips may become displaced by driving in the same line but this is easily fixed with a rake once of twice a year. 

expect to pay around 4 - 5 euro per square metre so that about 3200 for the surface if you have the kerbing and leveling completed. leaving you a tidy sum of about 13500 euro to play around with. 

no connection with any companies but specified it for a rural housing development and successfully got the local authority to reconsider their planning condition that the surface had to have a wearing surface of tarmacadam. Tarmacadam is absolutely alien in the countryside and far to overpowering on approaches to houses. 

hope that helps


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## Brenno123 (16 Aug 2010)

Thanks for all the suggestions guys.

I am inclined to agree with O Murchu... I want to steer clear of pure tarmacadam and any form of imitation cobble as some posters suggested....i think they look terrible against a natural stone cut house. I have decided on a rustic cream pebble....so now I need to find somewhere that can do a big area reasonable...im looking for a contractor that will do everything for me!

O Murchu...your suggestion sounds very interesting..........id like to talk more on your suggestion if you dont mind....i have put reclaimed bricks down instead of concrete kerbing etc so just a few things I'd like to talk about...thanks a mil again guys


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## Ó Murchú (16 Aug 2010)

great minds brenno,

shoot away here or pm me if you like - i'll try and answer any questions  you may have.

-600sqm wouldn't be considered a large area by any means - if you found a  contractor who also did work for local authorities it would only be  about 100 linear metre of roadway so its not a massive job by any means.

- the brick kerbing will have little influence on the project either -  once the contractor has an 'edge' to finish to he will be happy.

- allow for some level of drainage from the driveway, if there is good  free draining soil beneath the hardcore it may be sufficient to put in a  number of gullies leaving them outfall directly into the soil. however  if this is not the case you should dig a soak pit [connect to existing?]  and pipe the gully traps to this location. remember part of your  planning conditions [if you have planning] is that you do not discharge  water from site onto public property. an aco drain between your pillars  and connected to the soak pit will solve this.


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## Nedtastic (17 Aug 2010)

Hi O Murchu .... I am in the very same predicament as the poster above. This sounds like a very interesting option and one that I hadn't thought readily available. The link you provided does not seem to work for me. Can you provide any further info you might have. Would be greatly appreciated.


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## Leo (17 Aug 2010)

Ó Murchú said:


> shoot away here or pm me if you like - i'll try and answer any questions you may have.


 
Please keep it all here in public so that others might benefit in future, and keep in mind any activity that could be interpreted as advertising via PM will lead to an immediate ban.
Leo


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## Brenno123 (17 Aug 2010)

thanks o Murchu

do you know the names of a few different companies that might provide this service?


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## Ó Murchú (17 Aug 2010)

nedtasatic - as i'm new to posting on forum [long time viewer] i'm not allowed post links until i have 15 posts so just replace the DOT with a . and delete the space after the COM *
www DOT youtube DOT com /watch?v=IgYnrFt3TqM - see here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IgYnrFt3TqM

*Leo - as posted earlier '_no connection with any companies but specified it for a rural housing  development and successfully got the local authority to reconsider their  planning condition that the surface had to have a wearing surface of  tarmacadam. Tarmacadam is absolutely alien in the countryside and far to  overpowering on approaches to houses'
_
Brenno123_ - the company that was used on the job i was involved with were based in cork and carried out the work in kerry. i'm not sure where your based so won't mention them here. golden pages search for 'tar & chip' should get results.
_


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## AlastairSC (18 Aug 2010)

> imho a gravel drive is more in keeping with an old stone house.





+1


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## Leo (18 Aug 2010)

Ó Murchú said:


> Leo - as posted earlier '_no connection with any companies but specified it for a rural housing development ...._


 
Thanks for that.
Leo


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