Our asphalt driveway had sunk about three inches at the garage door entrance. Not only was this unsightly, but it was also awkward each time we drove the car in over it. This was also now a low spot and water ran towards the house instead of away from it creating a potential drainage problem and possible leaks into the basement. It was time to take on Sunken Asphalt Driveway Repair.
The first step was to obtain a quote for a new asphalt driveway with patio stone pavers down both sides and a half-moon near the garage entrance. The quote was for $7000 and that is with the patio stone pavers already purchased. I got a second quote for just the asphalt with me placing the patio stones after the base had been prepared. This brought the cost down to around $4000 for new asphalt and also the driveway excavated down to a minimum of 18 inches.
Sunken Asphalt Driveway Repair – Do it Yourself at less Cost
I opted for the least cost solution which was to leave the asphalt in place, cut out the half-moon, and the edges down the side. It cost me $10 for the proper blade on my skill saw and $150 for the disposal of the asphalt along with some hard work. For a total of $160, it was worth it.
Next I also added crushed stone were needed and rented a compactor to compact the base. I left the original base intact and compacted the added crush stone. The compactor cost $40 for a couple of hours. Once the base was ready it was a simple matter to lay the patio stone. I rented a stone cutter to cut the stones I needed cut. I also placed the sand that is made for patio stones in the cracks between the stones.
Compact the patio stones to level them
The compactor is run over the stones several times to ensure that all of the stones are level and of the same height. The compactor also cause the sand to go deep into the cracks. The process was repeated twice more to ensure that each joint between stones is full of the sand. It was then lightly watered to cause the sand mortar mixture to harden. This stops all water from going between the stones. Too much water and you will ruin the sand mortar mixture.
Total cost not including the patio stones which I already had, is approximately $350 vs. the cost of $4000. Note that my asphalt was in good shape. All I needed to do once the patio stones were in was to apply an asphalt sealer to it. The sealer added another $80 to the overall cost.