Impress Your Guests With a Custom Driveway in the Oakland Township and West Bloomfield, MI, Areas

When your Oakland Township and West Bloomfield, MI, areas driveway has seen better days then it’s time to choose a new design and materials, for a custom driveway. You need a reliable foundation that can withstand the weight of your vehicles and that ideally leaves a lasting impression on anyone visiting your home. 

This could also be the time to consider an entirely new look to your front yard: Have you ever thought a circular driveway would work well in your landscape? Or, perhaps you want to change the way the current driveway enters the garage? These are ideas you can discuss with a landscape professional to see what changes can happen to make your driveway more inviting and easier to navigate. 

Related: Connect Your Driveway to Your Paver Patio With a Complementary Walkway in the Oakland Township, MI, Area

What to Expect in a Custom Driveway Process

Most likely, you have never experienced a driveway planning and building process. These steps can help you know what to expect in each phase as your dream driveway comes to life. 

Removing the old driveway: The old driveway must go before a new one can be created, and this may involve excavating the existing driveway. The old material will need to be broken away and hauled away. 

Evaluating the driveway base: As with any structure or outdoor feature, a stable base can make the biggest difference in a driveway’s integrity. A high-quality driveway, whether it will be made of brushed concrete or concrete pavers, should generally have a 4 to 8-inch gravel base that is packed down. Sufficient gravel can ensure the driveway will not crack or shift over time. 

Setting the concrete forms: For a poured concrete driveway, the landscape company will need to set the concrete forms that direct the shape and path of this landscape feature. The forms can accommodate any curves, angles, and custom shapes to create the concrete driveway you have chosen. 

Pouring the concrete: You might have selected concrete with no added color or textures or you could have chosen to have your concrete driveway tinted to a specific color. The concrete arrives in a truck with a long spout that can pour directly into the forms. As the concrete spills out, there will be leveling of the surface to eliminate any high spots and depressions. 

Brushing the driveway surface: To keep the concrete from being slick on the surface, sweeping of the surface can occur with brooms to add texture to the top. This texture ensures you won’t slip and slide on the driveway, especially as it goes down a hill. A landscape company will cut lines into the driveway surface to allow for expansion and contraction in various weather conditions. 

Curing the driveway: For a poured driveway, you can likely walk on the driveway after four to five days and you can park on it after seven days. However, a concrete driveway can take up to 30 days to cure fully. Once the curing process is complete, your new driveway should last for many years. 

Related: 5 Reasons a Pergola Is a Great Addition to Your Paver Patio in the Macomb Township, MI Area