Three Practical Guidelines on Using Crushed Brick for Residential Driveways

1 November 2017
 Categories: Industrial & Manufacturing, Blog

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If you are planning on installing a new driveway in your home, you should think about choosing crushed brick as your material. Crushed bricks are made from recycled construction products; they have no negative impact on the environment. In simple terms, when you use recycled bricks, you will minimise the amount of waste in landfills. Also, the sourcing process has no negative impact on the natural ecosystem. Additionally, crushed bricks have a beautiful colour which will boost the curb appeal of your home. On the other hand, if this material is not used appropriately during the project, the driveway will fail prematurely. Here are simple guidelines to help you build a beautiful and resilient crushed brick driveway. 

Prepare the Ground

You should mark out your driveway space before beginning the project. This process will help you know the boundaries and create a regularly shaped path. You can use stakes and string for this action. You should also remember to measure the space with care to ensure that it fits one or two vehicles. Next, you should dig the ground in the selected area. This procedure is essential because it will eliminate the organic materials on the upper layer of the soil which makes the ground unstable. When digging, make sure that the slope will allow rainwater to flow towards the streets or drain channels. After finishing this process, you should tamp down the soil.

Cover with Gravel

Often, homeowners place the crushed brick directly on the soil to create a driveway. This method is inefficient and expensive. Simply speaking, brick is considerably delicate; it will be crushed quickly under the weight of vehicles. Moreover, when it rains, the mixture of brick and dirt will form a muddy surface. Therefore, you would have to keep laying more crushed brick to sustain the performance and appeal. For the best results, you should first lay a layer of large pieces of gravel and tamp these stones down. Next, pour some medium sized gravel and tamp the fresh layer as well. Add some crushed gravel to fill in the spaces. 

Apply the Crushed Bricks

When you finish preparing the base, you can now apply the crushed gravel. This method of installing the driveway is favourable because you will get the beautiful appearance of brick while enjoying the structural performance of gravel. After you spread the crushed brick over the entire driveway, you should not tamp it down. The pieces will not withstand the constant mechanical stress. Finally, purchase some additional crushed bricks for maintenance.