Refresh a gravel driveway
If your driveway is not washed out and only needs a top coat, 3 to 4 inches of gravel will normally do well. Measure the length and width, pick a depth, and the calculator gives you the tons.
Work out your own: crusher run calculator
This is written for north Alabama, where crushed limestone is what the quarries sell. Other regions later.
How much gravel do I need to refresh a driveway?
Normally 3 to 4 inches, if the driveway is not washed out and only needs a top coat. For a driveway 12 feet wide and 60 feet long, that is about 9.3 tons of crusher run at 3 inches, or about 12.4 tons at 4 inches.
Crusher run is crushed stone mixed with its own stone dust. It weighs about 1.4 tons per cubic yard. Here is the work, the same way the calculator shows it.
At 3 inches deep
- 60 ft × 12 ft × 3 in
- = 60 ft × 12 ft × 0.25 ft = 180 cu ft
- 180 cu ft ÷ 27 = 6.67 cu yd
- 6.67 cu yd × 1.4 = 9.3 tons
Assumes crusher run at 1.4 tons per cubic yard.
At 4 inches deep
- 60 ft × 12 ft × 4 in
- = 60 ft × 12 ft × 0.333 ft = 240 cu ft
- 240 cu ft ÷ 27 = 8.89 cu yd
- 8.89 cu yd × 1.4 = 12.4 tons
Assumes crusher run at 1.4 tons per cubic yard.
What gravel should I use?
It depends on where you live. In north Alabama, crushed limestone is plentiful, so most people use 1-1/2 inch or 3/4 inch crusher run. It packs well and makes a hard, smooth driving surface.
The stone dust fills the gaps between the pieces, so it packs down hard and stays put under a truck.
Read more: What crusher run is
What about 3/4 inch washed limestone?
Some people use 3/4 inch washed limestone because it does not have as much dust. It can work well on a flat driveway that already has a hard surface.
But it tends to shift more under heavy traffic, and it does not have as much traction on a steeper slope.
On this site that stone is #67 stone. People at the counter often call it 3/4 inch stone or 3/4 clean.
Work it out: #67 stone calculator
How do I measure it?
Measure the length and the width of the driveway in feet, and pick a depth in inches.
Then length × width × depth, all in feet, gives cubic feet. A depth in inches becomes feet when you divide it by 12, so 3 inches is 0.25 ft.
Cubic feet ÷ 27 gives cubic yards, because 27 cubic feet make a cubic yard. Cubic yards × the material's tons per cubic yard gives tons. For crusher run that is 1.4.
How many truck loads is that?
That depends on what your truck carries. Trucks carry different weights in different states, so we never assume one.
The calculator has a box called Truck carries. Type what the truck holds, and it works out the truck loads for you.