Driveway Grids

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I’m currently struggling (unsuccessfully!!!) to get my motorhome out of a muddy hole in a grassed area adjacent to my driveway. It’s convinced me to use interlocking plastic grids and infill with gravel in the parking area for the van and grass in the remaining area used for manoeuvring in and out. That is once I’ve managed to dig the thing out!
Anyone with any experience of these systems? Are there any systems I should avoid and is it best left to professionals to lay?
Cheers in advance for your answers/advice
 
I’m currently struggling (unsuccessfully!!!) to get my motorhome out of a muddy hole in a grassed area adjacent to my driveway. It’s convinced me to use interlocking plastic grids and infill with gravel in the parking area for the van and grass in the remaining area used for manoeuvring in and out. That is once I’ve managed to dig the thing out!
Anyone with any experience of these systems? Are there any systems I should avoid and is it best left to professionals to lay?
Cheers in advance for your answers/advice
I have some limited experience. These can be laid directly onto soil or on top of a membrance onto soil. But I would always want to lay them on top of an MOT1 base with membrance followed by grid and then stones in the gaps. My grids got lost deep into the soil because I didn't lay the base first, but I only added a few and I was kind of expecting that result anyway.
 
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So to DIY a large area I'd need to hire a minidigger and a skip for the topsoil and take delivery of a couple (or more) of jumbo bags of MOT1 (hard core) and some weed retardent membrane. Would need to hire a vibrating plate machine as well to level the hardcore. plus buy the grids and gravel. Its probably easier to pay someone to do it.

But if I was younger and less lazy I might try digging out by hand :cool:

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45 years ago I laid a paving slabbed area in my back garden and drove onto it over the side of the front lawn. (short term solution).

After a couple of years I put down two strips of paving slabs across the lawn leading to the rear slabbed area. This was better but took too much maintenance. (another short term solution)/

I had this converted to be a concrete driveway leading to the rear. (Long term solution) but the concrete, as concrete does, deteriorated and eventually looked too shabby.

15 years ago I had the whole are including my garage drive and path block paved and this still looks great but needs annual maintenance to keep it looking good. ( I left the concrete slab at the rear as It would be more resilient than block paving.)
 
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So to DIY a large area I'd need to hire a minidigger and a skip for the topsoil and take delivery of a couple (or more) of jumbo bags of MOT1 (hard core) and some weed retardent membrane. Would need to hire a vibrating plate machine as

well to level the hardcore. plus buy the grids and gravel. Its probably easier to pay someone to do it.

But if I was younger and less lazy I might try digging out by hand :cool:
Too far or you'd get mates rates from my son.
 
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My tuppenceworth……

A good solid base of mot/type1 hardcore compacted down. Dependant on weight of vehicle I would go for 150mm. Is the site level? Do you want the vehicle to sit level or sit nose up/down to allow water run off so it doesn’t sit on roof etc. You could put down gravel/grids with concrete slabs where the wheels sit to help prevent wheels sinking in. When choosing gravel I would go for crushed gravel rather than washed. The difference is that washed/decorative gravel is rounded and tends to move when you walk/drive over it whereas crushed gravel has sharper edges and interlocks to give a firmer surface. Grass and vehicles usually ends up with problems! Rutting, wet, muddy etc etc. I would go with trying to gravel the whole area with added concrete slab runners or at least slabs where wheels drive/sit with a slight slope for water run off. If you have a properly prepared base/surface you shouldn’t need grids.
Last time I bought type 1 it was about £24 a ton and 10-20mm crushed gravel about £18. That was direct from quarry with own trailer etc.
 
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We laid a sub base grids that clipped together and filled with 10 mm gravel. The clips hold if you're driving in a straight line under the rear axle but having to shunt on them the front wheels ripped the fixings apart
 
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I did mine myself [tightwad] , took about a week. 1x 8 yard skip. Locking mats. Base 20cm, where the van sits. 15cm elsewhere.
All dug by hand, much less chance of hitting services. I x whacker plate 1/2 a day. 5 x 1 ton bags of decorative top dressing.
£10.00 to delivery driver to swing the bags over the prepped area whilst I cut the bottom of the bags open, this gets the bulk of it in the right place. Angular stone is better than shingle, it locks in against itself, and moves less. Don't bother with the paving slabs like I initially did, they just break up. 20201104_142010.jpg20201106_101852.jpg
Mike.

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Unless you're driving over the area all the time you don't really need the gravel guard trays if you compact about 3" of angular 20mm gravel with a wacker plate. I did our driveway a few months ago and it's still where I put it. I didn't dig down very far and lost all the topsoil to level off the area so no spoil away costs. I used Netlon type reinforcement and weed fabric under the gravel to allow a reduced depth of dig. There's a lot of digging in soil!
 
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I’m currently struggling (unsuccessfully!!!) to get my motorhome out of a muddy hole in a grassed area adjacent to my driveway. It’s convinced me to use interlocking plastic grids and infill with gravel in the parking area for the van and grass in the remaining area used for manoeuvring in and out. That is once I’ve managed to dig the thing out!
Anyone with any experience of these systems? Are there any systems I should avoid and is it best left to professionals to lay?
Cheers in advance for your answers/advice
Where a-bouts are you? If near me (Hertfordshire) I can probably get your van off the grass.
 
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Lots of food for thought there! Thanks guys! Maybe the interlocking grids aren’t the answer as I have to do lots of manoeuvring to turn the van round as reversing out from the property isn’t feasible. So hardcore, membrane and gravel could be the answer.
Landy Andy I’m quite far away in Wetherby but thanks for the offer. Fingers crossed, the ground is starting to dry a little so I’ll try reducing the tyre pressure and have another try and moving it!
 
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Last winter I used a heavy duty ratchet strap attached to a tree to move a mini tractor bogged to its axles on all 4 wheels to pull it out of the hole.
It moved a few inches with each pull, and put down the black plastic mats as it came out.

The tractor had been bogged for 3 days, took me 20 mins to get it out.!

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My tuppenceworth……
Last time I bought type 1 it was about £24 a ton and 10-20mm crushed gravel about £18. That was direct from quarry with own trailer etc.
Best of luck with that price, I am a retired (2014) manager of Travis Perkins and still have a retired colleague staff account and cant believe how much prices have increased over the last 5 years my price is almost double that.(ton bags) Maybe get it a bit cheaper direct from a recycling quarry and buy bulk but recon you can put £10 on that price depending on location.
 
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Lots of food for thought there! Thanks guys! Maybe the interlocking grids aren’t the answer as I have to do lots of manoeuvring to turn the van round as reversing out from the property isn’t feasible. So hardcore, membrane and gravel could be the answer.
Landy Andy I’m quite far away in Wetherby but thanks for the offer. Fingers crossed, the ground is starting to dry a little so I’ll try reducing the tyre pressure and have another try and moving it!
w2f
Good luck getting it moved 👍
 
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a few old bread trays with the sides cut off will get you out of the mud

Proper solution involves digging out the soft top soil. Can often get taken away for free if advertised on facebook. Backfill with type 1 or brick rubble and french drains if needed. install weed barrier fabric. Top off with angular stone or similar. No need for grids unless you will be putting grass back down over the reinforced area
 
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