Do you have oil stains or a worn-out, cracked driveway? Here are some ideas and tips to consider when replacing your driveway with pavers.
- Natural Stone: Starting with the most charming, albeit on the pricier side, cobblestones of granite, basalt, and porphyry are readily available. Cobblestones have been used in Europe and in the early days of cities like New York, Pennsylvania, and San Francisco. If you’re looking for something a little smoother, or perhaps your kids want to play basketball on the driveway, then you might go with natural stone pavers such as Connecticut bluestone or travertine.
- Porcelain: Porcelain is a popular choice for modern designs and requires far less maintenance than other materials. As with natural stone, we advise mortar setting the pieces onto a concrete slab. This may require pouring a new slab, so do the math to ensure this fits the budget.
- Concrete Pavers: Interlocking concrete pavers come in various colors and styles that can feel modern or classic, depending on your needs. And because they are sand set, you can lift them out should you need to work on something underneath. Installing concrete pavers is the economical way to go.
Permeable: If you’re looking to help the environment, or if you live in a city now requiring stormwater management runoff, then you are probably looking at some level of permeable application for your driveway. The difference from a standard installation will be in the substrate and joint material. Instead of using sand or grout between the joints, a permeable application requires rocks to fill the gaps. Calstone’s fine #9 joint rock is a good example. For a permeable substrate, homeowners are required to install layers of drain rock with no fines mixed in. Please refer to the ICPI’s technical specification for more details on permeable applications.
After you’ve installed your beautiful new driveway, you may consider sealing it. For more information, refer to our previous blog on sealers.
If you have any questions, feel free to call, email, or make an appointment with one of our product specialists. With over 100 years of providing paving to Northern California, Peninsula Building Materials is the best place to shop for your material needs.
