Compacting Road Base

[YellowDogSVC]

When compacting crushed road base with a skidsteer, smooth drum roller compactor like the one in the picture, what is the thickest course that should be compacted?

I usually work in 4-5 inch thick roads built over solid ground but will be building up a rutted driveway tomorrow and may end up with 8-10" of crushed base to get it high enough above the grade for water to stay off the road.
I was thinking of compacting every 3" of fill. Does this make sense or would that be overkill? The driveway is only for occasional car traffic but it may rain hard in the coming weeks as we are do for it. Thanks for the advice.

[ksss]

When compacting crushed road base with a skidsteer, smooth drum roller compactor like the one in the picture, what is the thickest course that should be compacted?

I usually work in 4-5 inch thick roads built over solid ground but will be building up a rutted driveway tomorrow and may end up with 8-10" of crushed base to get it high enough above the grade for water to stay off the road.
I was thinking of compacting every 3" of fill. Does this make sense or would that be overkill? The driveway is only for occasional car traffic but it may rain hard in the coming weeks as we are do for it. Thanks for the advice.

I am not familiar with those attachment rollers as far what they will compact. With a twin drum roller I would not be afraid of doing the entire lift in a single shot. I doubt you are seeing that kind of compaction ability but you certain should be able to do at least a 5 inch lift. I would maybe do the deep portions in two lifts. What is most important in the moisture content of the roadbase. Ideally 5-7% moisture is about optimum for compaction. If the material is real dry like it appears in the photo you might not get the tight compaction your looking for.

[tbi]

We have a 73" Altec roller for our Bobcats. It works as good as a SD-70 and better than our IR DD-24. We have no problem getting 95% with 8-10" lifts. But our material has a lot more mositure than what your using. I'd get some water on it before I sealed it up if I was you.

[Gravel Rat]

Your going to need some water on that gravel. A garden sprinker will give enough moisture you want it damp but you don't want puddles.

As for the lifts you could get away with 4-5 inches with what you got keep running over it. The tires on the skid steer also pack in the gravel.

Around here a excavator is used to walk in the material. If in doubt use a plate compactor.

Dry gravel doesn't pack very well the fines don't stick together.

[bobcat_ron]

Those Bobcat rollers are such a joke, a 1000 pound diesel plate packer does a better job.

Get a small 72" roller from Cat or Bomag, then you can do 12" lifts.

[YellowDogSVC]

I am not familiar with those attachment rollers as far what they will compact. With a twin drum roller I would not be afraid of doing the entire lift in a single shot. I doubt you are seeing that kind of compaction ability but you certain should be able to do at least a 5 inch lift. I would maybe do the deep portions in two lifts. What is most important in the moisture content of the roadbase. Ideally 5-7% moisture is about optimum for compaction. If the material is real dry like it appears in the photo you might not get the tight compaction your looking for.

base has been a lot wetter after the rains. That pic was a job that was REAL dry. If I have to, I'll wet the road and let it sit overnight but I don't think it will be an issue. The bobcat roller is a little over 2 tons of compaction force.

again, the pic was a reference to the type of roller. That job, a couple of years ago, was a 3" road base and it was DRY. The base I'm working with now, is wet from the rains.

Ron, I've used this roller for almost 10 years and it has been great. Crushes gravel too but I usually don't do high lifts because most areas here don't call for that with solid ground underneath.

[bobcatuser]

I just checked the specs on Bobcats website, It seems they have new rollers. I bought a 72” last year now they have a 73” with more dynamic force running less hydraulic flow.

The problem with these attachment is not having enough hydraulic flow will make a big difference how the roller performs. Too much flow and you will damage the vibration motor.

With enough moisture I can get 3/4" minus to 98 with a few passes on a 8" lift. You know it's tight when a loaded tandem has no deflection on the surface, that's how I proof roll for the inspector.

[Gravel Rat]

The limestone Yellowdog is using is softer than the granite gravel we have here on the lowercorner of B.C. .

Limestone is supposed to glue together eventually I never worked with it but it is what I have been told. The granite based gravel here it doesn't really crush it is too hard but when you pack it the fines and the larger rocks is supposed to lock in with each other.

You can compact all you want but it never stays the same after a heavy rain. The only thing that is pot hole proof is concrete or asphalt :laugh:

A processed gravel is to prevent mud and give you a slightly harder surface
than the virgin dirt you are going over top.

[tbi]

The limestone Yellowdog is using is softer than the granite gravel we have here on the lowercorner of B.C. .

Limestone is supposed to glue together eventually I never worked with it but it is what I have been told. The granite based gravel here it doesn't really crush it is too hard but when you pack it the fines and the larger rocks is supposed to lock in with each other.

You can compact all you want but it never stays the same after a heavy rain. The only thing that is pot hole proof is concrete or asphalt :laugh:

A processed gravel is to prevent mud and give you a slightly harder surface
than the virgin dirt you are going over top.

What is one of the main properties of concrete? Limestone.

[Gravel Rat]

The lime is used in the cement powder but concrete itself is made with gravel made of granite.

Nothing you can do about gravel roads they get loose on the top and you get potholes etc.

[SiteSolutions]

The lime is used in the cement powder but concrete itself is made with gravel made of granite.

Nothing you can do about gravel roads they get loose on the top and you get potholes etc.

Dude, the aggragate used in concrete is just like the aggregate in other stuff: use what is handy. Here, we put limestone in our cement, not granite. You can also get it made with river gravel but that has to be trucked in from the river, where it floats here on a barge. River gravel here is about twice as much as crushed limestone because we have a couple big hills made out of limestone. Heck, I live in "Limestone County."

And you're right, eventually all crushed stone (aka "gravel") drives get potholes but proper grading and drainage goes a long way to making them few and far between.

[YellowDogSVC]

Well, I did part of the drive today. Going to hold off on finishing it until some heavy rain passes plus I wanted to see if my drainage and berms worked. Not much I could do, though, the area is rocky and the trees are close to the driveway. It's just a patch job...but I don't like taking on steep base driveways unless there is a good chance it will hold up. Everything was going good. I had time between deliveries to wet the base and roll it with the Bobcat. It was getting tight and bammo..the last load of the day was all bones. Uggh. Damned pit morons. I cringed when my trucker popped the tailgate and I could hear the bones falling out.
When I go back, I was going to get a load of 3/4" minus and see if I can use my tooth bucket to tear up what I compacted and mix in a little bit of the 3/4". Is this a good thing to do or should I just cover the bones with a layer of 3/4" and recompact? I usually don't have a choice and have to live with bones but I have enough materials estimated to get a load of 3/4" base to cover the bigger stuff if necessary.

[Gravel Rat]

Dude, the aggragate used in concrete is just like the aggregate in other stuff: use what is handy. Here, we put limestone in our cement, not granite. You can also get it made with river gravel but that has to be trucked in from the river, where it floats here on a barge. River gravel here is about twice as much as crushed limestone because we have a couple big hills made out of limestone. Heck, I live in "Limestone County."

And you're right, eventually all crushed stone (aka "gravel") drives get potholes but proper grading and drainage goes a long way to making them few and far between.

Almost 90% of the gravel is granite. Concrete is made from gravel with crushed rock it is some of the strongest concrete you can get. Because granite rock is hard and when it is crushed and made into 3/4 clear and then mixed with washed sand the portland slurry has many surfaces to stick to.

LaFarge Western Canada uses the gravel produced from the coastal pits to make structural precast concrete like bridge parts etc because it passes the high strength tests.

[tbi]

The lime is used in the cement powder but concrete itself is made with gravel made of granite.

Nothing you can do about gravel roads they get loose on the top and you get potholes etc.

You get potholes from standing water here.

[Gravel Rat]

Every gravel road gets pot holes the worst is wash board.

I'am just saying you can compact the gravel all you want but the rain is going to make your nice job into a mess real easy.