Cement or asphalt

My driveway is shot. Currently a cheap badly done job

What is a less expensive, asphalt or cement, what would be better?? I sure likes the way the snow and ice melts off the asphalt.

Always heard Asphalt, your fault… Concrete is definitely more expensive, get a stamped and colored job

big_g wrote:

Always heard Asphalt, your fault… Cement is definitely more expensive, get a stamped and colored job

I’d rather spend money in beer and bait

Depends on how long you intend to live there. Cement is probably almost twice as much as tar. It takes longer to put in too. If you intend to live there long term then cement is the solution. You also have to seal the tar every few years too.

I put a new asphalt driveway in a couple years ago because I wasn’t intending to live here long term. It’s been good so far.

I’ve realized ours is on its last leg, too. The solar melt on asphalt is awesome, especially with a south-facing driveway.

Honestly, I’d prefer concrete otherwise, but from what I know, it’s significantly more expensive. I’m sure it lasts longer, too, but I am 95% I’ll just do asphalt again. I’m slating that for 2022 as I have a new retaining wall and patio to pay off, and I need to have some siding replaced this summer.

lived here since 1979. plan on dieing here………….. i live in town, so they might have rules…….. my driveway faces the west from the house!!

Cement is the way to go long term but like others have said you will pay for it also.
How long you plan on living Glen maybe that will factor into your decision. Joking of course.

I would love to have a new concrete driveway. Not sure what the cost would be but have wood burner and run pipe under driveway to heat and never shovel again.

Ripjiggen wrote:

Cement is the way to go long term but like others have said you will pay for it also.
How long you plan on living Glen maybe that will factor into your decision. Joking of course.

long enough to be a PITA to my grandkids.

I think about my folks house which they owned since 1970. Sold it last year. Asphalt driveway. My pops maintained it while he was alive. My mom did her best afterwards. It was still a good driveway when she sold last year. So I guess define longevity vs. concrete. Both have pros and cons….

I had a complete tear-out of our 120 foot X double-wide driveway and the side parking pad done 2 years ago. The previous driveway had lasted 40 years, but was in bad shape.

Concrete was more than double the price of asphalt on the one bid we got for concrete. It may not always be this way, but a lot of asphalt companies only do asphalt so that was the only bid for both options that we got from a single company.

I figure even if we get 25 years out of this driveway, I’ll be over 70 then and it can be someone else’s problem. I’m fine with asphalt, good is good enough for me and I have other things to do with the 20K more concrete would have cost us.

I do heavy highway road construction but got my start doing asphalt driveways. When it’s time to replace my concrete driveway it will be concrete again. The asphalt you get now days doesn’t even compare to what was being used in the 70’s or even in the late 90’s.

Another thing to consider with cost is the price of oil. As that rises so will the cost of asphalt. A few years ago when a barrel of oil was $140 the price difference wasn’t that much.

Concrete is definitely the best option. The new asphalt driveways I see look like crap after 2 years.
But you pay for it. Concrete isn’t cheap and to get a crew to pour it isn’t cheap either.
I have asphalt in the new place but it’ll be replaced as soon as I save enough dollars up. I’m lucky enough to have a few good buddies where I just buy lunch and beer and they will be here to pour it with me.

Concrete not cement. Cement is just the binder concrete is the combination of cement, rock, sand, water and a few other ingredients. Not to give a lesson but anyone who know’s concrete hates to hear it called cement. You mentioned that the original driveway was poorly done so why not do it correctly this time. The actual product of concrete has been very stable in cost for the last 15 years. What you will pay for is the removal and installation. My suggestion is to find a contractor that has been in the business for awhile and give’s a fair bid. Of course not the cheapest. Have them pour a 5000 lb. mix and have them put it on a rebar mat at least 2′ O.C. These few options if done correctly will insure that you have a driveway that will last a lifetime. Asphalt materials in my area have degraded and now contain way to much sand to last. I am not sure of the sub-soils in your area but if they are heavy in clay I would suggest increasing the rebar size and decreasing the spacing, also increase the thickness to 5″. 3/8′ rebar would be smallest 1/2′ if poor sub-soils. Also make sure no salt on driveway and don’t park a car in the winter the first year if possible. Make sure that the contractor uses a non-corrosive accelerator if needed so the rebar does not corrode. Good Luck!

When we bought our house in 1997 it had a crushed granite driveway. The first home improvement thing we did was an asphalt driveway. As newlyweds we didnt have the funds for concrete, but that definitely would have been better. Now the driveway has several cracks and is showing signs of crumbling where those cracks are. I have had it professionally seal coated with the hot sealant every 2 or 3 years. I am thinking they can just do an overlay and cut out the cracks and in front of the apron in front of the door to make it all the same height. Anyone with experience with this?
I am pretty sure that is what they did with my neighbor’s driveway who had that done at the same time as mine, but theirs was already paved.

CaptainMusky wrote:

I am thinking they can just do an overlay and cut out the cracks and in front of the apron in front of the door to make it all the same height. Anyone with experience with this?

They can do this. I had this done. I bought a new house in 2012 with asphalt and part of the driveway “sunk” a little after a year. It also developed a couple minor cracks. Not uncommon with new properties as the ground has to settle all over. 3 years ago I had a bigger job done with a whole new layer put in over top of the old one from 2012. It has held up nicely since. I think the company that did mine is done now though, as the owner retired and couldn’t find anyone to sell to or take over.

gim wrote:

I think the company that did mine is done now though, as the owner retired and couldn’t find anyone to sell to or take over.

Funny, we had some issues the Spring after ours was put in so I called the number I had for them and they answered and asked why I was calling. “Oh, they went out of business”. They were happy to answer the call when I asked by name of the Company who did the work, but not when I had an issue. LOL I think this happens a lot.
I will check into an overlay. Its not urgent now, but I want to get ahead of it before it gets too bad.

My wife and I are about to take the plunge with concrete. But I agree with whoever said go with a reputable contractor that’s been in the business for a while and don’t necessarily take the lowest bid. I had a reputable local company and a company from out of town in a bidding match for my driveway last summer. I ended up going with the out of town guy because he ended up coming in way low – with the only catch being that I’d have to wait until early fall (this was in the spring) – but he guaranteed my driveway would go in last year. Long story short, cold came a bit early and I got no driveway. I realize that I can’t control nature but he gave me his word so I called and asked if he’d commit to the spring and the same price and was not willing to. So we’re going back with the in-town guy with a solid reputation in the neighborhood. Learned a lesson there.

supercat wrote:

Concrete not cement. Cement is just the binder concrete is the combination of cement, rock, sand, water and a few other ingredients. Not to give a lesson but anyone who know’s concrete hates to hear it called cement.

I didn’t want to say that, but I’m glad you did.

I had concrete done last year. I would suggest it if you can afford it. The only benefit to asphalt is the solar melt as mentioned. When I got bids a friend gave me a reference and the contractor he used was really not that bad. I can’t recall the square foot we did but it is not a small driveway and I made it as wide as legally could and added a side pad for the boat/castle. He came in at 11k, the lowest bid for asphalt was 7k. Not saying 4k isn’t a lot of dough but it seemed like a great choice to me. He was awesome to work with and did a great job. Not sure that he would go out to cold spring but I could shoot him a text and see if he was interested. PM me if you would like me to reach out to him.

Bearcat89 wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>supercat wrote:</div>

Concrete not cement. Cement is just the binder concrete is the combination of cement, rock, sand, water and a few other ingredients. Not to give a lesson but anyone who know’s concrete hates to hear it called cement.

I didn’t want to say that, but I’m glad you did.

I had been biting my tongue also. Like calling bread – flour.

Most if not all asphalt driveways are made from recycled material. My 1970 asphalt driveway is still going strong and has never been seal coated. You can ask to have non recycled asphalt put in. You can tell non recycled asphalt by picking up a handful, if it has whole pebbles/rocks in it and no ground up pieces it is “new” asphalt.

Reject the load if its not new.

DTW

A lot of people get a quote on assfault and don’t always get the complete picture of what they are buying. As mentioned above, many “residential” driveway guys are using recycled and poor quality product. Its cheaper and with a society that is all about the cheapest price its how the game is played.

Another huge factor is the compression rate/proceedure used to eliminate air voids and exceed the actual needed load capacity . Dumping 3″ and pressing out to toilet paper thickness makes it worthless. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve joined a homeowner meeting with a asphalt guy while they discussed site work and size/options for the driveway. Funny as heck when the guy proudly states they’ll be putting in 4″. When I ask him what they’ll be compressing that to or if they measure the temperature of a load before accepting it, he gets the deer in the headlight look. I don’t often get involved in finished driveways because of where that lines up in the construction process. However, when we have compared costs of a very well installed asphalt driveway (not cheapest POS) Vs crete, its often closer in price than most would think. Naturally volume of space exponentially makes the difference.

IF you go asphalt, here are a couple more questions to include in the conversation:
What is the final minimal thickness and compression rate? How does that compare to a 3,000 or 5,000 PSI concrete slab?
What is the ratio of compacted stone base? What size stone base is used?
How do they assure that the delivery is nearly 300 degrees?
How do they prevent premature cool down?
What is the minimal temp of a load you’ll accept?
How do they test for air void %?? (this will probably make most poop themselves)
Ask them if they’ll accept a temperature clause in a contract. If you check asphalt being poured and its below 250 or 240 degrees, it should be rejected. – Especially if its a cold day

I’m sure a few of the asphalt guys here can add to the questions I suggested to you. Wouldn’t hurt for you to know the answers so you get what you need.

supercat wrote:

Concrete not cement. Cement is just the binder concrete is the combination of cement, rock, sand, water and a few other ingredients. Not to give a lesson but anyone who know’s concrete hates to hear it called cement. These few options if done correctly will insure that you have a driveway that will last a lifetime.

It’s ensure, not insure. Now my tongue stops bleeding too.

I just checked on concrete prices for a garage. 5 bag mix is new priced at $122 per yard! I remember hauling mud in my younger days for $18 per yard and people complained about that price!

big_g wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>supercat wrote:</div>
Concrete not cement. Cement is just the binder concrete is the combination of cement, rock, sand, water and a few other ingredients. Not to give a lesson but anyone who know’s concrete hates to hear it called cement. These few options if done correctly will insure that you have a driveway that will last a lifetime.

It’s ensure, not insure. Now my tongue stops bleeding too.

Are you sure?? LOL

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We went through the same thing a couple years ago. Driveway shot, and we went with concrete despite the high price. No more messing with applying coatings every year, and the concrete added a LOT of curb appeal to our modest ranch in the country. Yes, more expensive, but no regrets.

Prep and sub-base are equally as important with either product.

rkd-jim wrote:

I just checked on concrete prices for a garage. 5 bag mix is new priced at $122 per yard! I remember hauling mud in my younger days for $18 per yard and people complained about that price!

A contractor will pay a lot less in my area then a homeowner. $122 per yard for private seems about right. $18 per yard I don’t even want to ask how long ago that was, way before my time. Cheapest I can remember is $48.

I don’t know what kind of ground you have where you live. But at my place, I don’t know if Concrete would survive.. The HEAVY clay ground at my place moves up & down close to 2 feet in places over the winter. Does rebar really help with something that moves so much? Granted my driveway probably doesn’t move quite that much, but it all heaves at some point or another.

FWIW, my driveway is still gravel & will remain that way. I’d love to have an improved surface, but it just doesn’t seem logical..