Austin Road Base Installation Guidelines
Austin Road Base Installation Guidelines
Road base refers to the foundation material used to support streets, pathways, parking lots, etc. Road base in Austin can comprise many different types of rock aggregate, but the most common include limestone, decomposed granite, river rock, recycled asphalt or concrete and caliche. While these materials mostly serve as foundations for paving, proper Austin road base installation can also function as a standalone driving surface.
Whether you’re in the early stages of paving a massive parking lot or constructing a gravel roadbase driveway, proper installation is key. In this guide, you’ll learn important guidelines and best practices to make the most of road base in Austin.
Does the Size of Road Base Material Matter?
The quality of your road base material matters more than most might realize. Whether you’re constructing a roadbase driveway out of decomposed granite or limestone, the size of the aggregate plays a big part in the finished product’s durability and structural integrity.
Generally, road base material will contain a mix of aggregates at least 3/8 of an inch in diameter. However, mixes should also include smaller rocks and fine dust.
The finer rock dust acts as a binder. Once compacted, the dust and smaller particles will hold everything together to give you a reliable foundation or driving surface in your roadbase driveway.
What Needs to Occur Before Austin Road Base Installation?
Road base in Austin is a strong foundation for later asphalt or concrete paving. It also works well alone to form a reliable gravel roadbase driveway. However, contractors must prepare the site before starting the road base installation.
The process usually begins with excavation. Teams will remove vegetation and use heavy-duty equipment to grade and compact the soil. If necessary, your road base installation contractors will amend the soil to ensure it has the load-bearing capacity required to meet the demands of the finished surface.
Site preparation is crucial. Without it, road base material may not compact properly, resulting in major issues later.
How Does Depth and Thickness Factor Into the Road Base Installation Process?
Constructing a roadbase driveway or using material as a foundation for pavement is more complex than it looks. There’s considerable engineering involved. One of the most important factors contractors will consider is the thickness of the road base and how much material is required to meet your needs.
Generally, residential projects like a gravel roadbase driveway only need about four inches of compacted material. That’s enough for light, personal traffic. However, the road base should be significantly thicker in large-scale commercial projects, such as roads and parking lots.
Heavy wear requires more support. Therefore, commercial projects typically get six inches or more of road base in Austin.
How Important is Compaction for Austin Road Base Installation?
After site preparation, contractors use heavy-duty equipment like skid steers to move the road base material into place. Then, they’ll go over the surface with a roller or compactor.
Compaction is crucial. Road base contains loose aggregate. Without compaction, the material would easily break apart. It won’t have the structural integrity to support pavement or vehicles until contractors compact it.
That process is what binds the material together and forms a reliable foundation.
Will Road Base Help with Drainage?
Drainage is an important factor that impacts the longevity of your gravel roadbase driveway or pavement. Standing water and moisture penetration can wreak havoc on the road base foundation, resulting in many repair issues.
Fortunately, contractors performing Austin road base installation can achieve sufficient drainage in many ways. Teams can create a gentle slope to prevent pooling when spreading the material. After compaction, contractors will also saturate the base with water before allowing it to dry for at least 48 hours.
This process improves the compacted material’s ability to shed water naturally and avoid drainage issues.
When you want Austin road base installation done right, turn to Junior’s Materials. We’re a full-service hauling company with over a decade of experience helping homeowners, commercial property owners and contractors throughout Austin and the surrounding communities. We’ve completed hundreds of successful projects and strive to provide reliability, transparency and impeccable customer service, no matter the scope of your needs.
You can turn to Junior’s Materials for road base installation. However, we also do grading, dump truck hauling, landscape materials delivery, decomposed granite delivery and more. We’re also Austin’s best skid steer contractor.
Call Junior’s Materials today to learn more and get a free quote. You can reach us at (512)924-6887, email us at juniorsmaterials2@gmail.com or use our online contact form to get in touch.