Driveway Paving

The most important consideration in driveway paving is that you have sufficient depth to support cars and trucks driving over it. You do need to choose material that will last a long time because it is not a cheap venture. Therefore you want something that will last you a long time. Depending on how much time you have to spend on maintenance, you can choose asphalt or concrete paving or you can go with interlocking paving stones.

Asphalt and concrete have long lasting qualities for supporting large amounts of traffic. However, driveway pavers do have an incredible load bearing strength. Each paver transmits the load laterally so that each stone is supported by a neighboring interlocking stone. Since these pavers are manufactured in a controlled environment, they have three times the PSI compressive strength of either asphalt or concrete. They are ideal for use in driveways because they have incredible flexibility for dealing with seasonal changes in temperature and weather.

The main components of interlocking paving stones are the base materials of stone, sand, sealer and edge restraints. They come in many different sizes and colors so that you have the choice of many different designs for your driveway. In the manufacturing process, cement, fine and coarse aggregate and water are combined to produce zero-slump concrete. This is then formed into blocks of various sizes under extreme vibration and pressure. Other mixtures are added to increase the strength of the stones and to decrease the likelihood of water absorption. Once they are laid in place by hand, they are very easy to maintain and repair if necessary. If stains do occur, all you have to do is flip the stone over and if you do need to replace one, you can do so without ruining the whole driveway.