The Best Driveway Ideas For Your Home
Are you thinking of replacing your driveway and are not sure over what type of driveway options that are available to choose from? Well here are some driveway ideas to look at in order to give you inspiration when it comes to choosing your new driveway.
Each style of driveway has its own unique benefits and we will try to highlight each of them as we go through the choices available.
THE BEST 5 DRIVEWAY CHOICES
Here are the best 5 types of driveway surfacing choices for a new driveway. These 5 options are considered the most popular and durable solutions for your driveway.
BLOCK PAVING YOUR DRIVEWAY
All the pictures above of block paving are done using the Marshalls Driveline 50mm range.
Block paving is a versatile product for any type of driveway with a range of colours, textures and laying styles available. We generally recommend laying block paving in a herringbone pattern but you can lay it in a variety of styles. You can read about the laying patterns here.
The best known manufacturer for block is Marshalls paving which has led the paving standard now for many years. For drives that will have heavy good vehicles, we recommend the 60mm variety for extra durability.
Block paving can be curved, angled and shaped to be put inside any type of a driveway style. To make your block paved driveway really stand out we recommend using a contrasting border style to the main colour.
Available colours when you use Marshalls Driveline include red, brindle, charcoal, grey, bracken and burnt ochre.
PRO
- Wide variety of colours
- Multiple patterns and styles
- Suitable for any driveway
- Permeable option
- Good value
- Easy to repair
CON
- Yearly maintenance
- Joints need topping up
- Colours will fade
- Weeds can grow in joints
You can learn more about our block paving options here.
TARMAC AND ASPHALT
As the tarmac pictures show above, nothing makes tarmac stand out more than adding a nice paved granite or brick edging around it. It can create a truly unique and bespoke entrance to your home.
Tarmac or asphalt as its commonly referred to, is one of the oldest styles of driveways which has seen a significant rise lately. Customers are starting to tire of paving and are looking for a more traditional styled driveway.
Nothing is more traditional than a jet black or red tarmac driveway especially when you can border it with some granite stone or edging.
For standard driveways, we recommend a new base foundation and laying 3 to 4 inches of SMA tarmac using a 6-10mm stone variety. This will give you nearly a seamless jet black finish on the driveway.
Make sure you have the right drainage system setup on your driveway as standard tarmac or asphalt is not permeable. Water will need to be directed off the driveway as pooling will harm the driveway.
PRO
- Traditional styling
- Fast installation
- Suitable for any driveway
- Will maintain colour if sealed regularly
- Low maintenance
CON
- Hard to repair
- Oil or diesel spills will harm it
- Not permeable
- Extreme heat can affect it
- Only available in red or black
You can learn more about our tarmac services here.
RESIN BOUND DRIVEWAYS
Resin bound driveways have really become popular over the last couple of years. Perhaps its down to people wanting more variety or the fact that resin bound is significantly more durable than most other options.
Resin bound is installed by mixing together a cut glass stone chip (2 sizes) and a uPVC resin in a special mixer. Once it has been mixed, it is laid out over a driveway and leveled off.
Available in a wide variety of colour choices and can be joined in with concrete, paving or tarmac easily. Put a bespoke border around it to give it more definition.
You can resurface a preexisting driveway with it provided it is solid and has no cracks or subsidence in it. If the original driveway might shift, the resin will crack!
For new installations, we recommend getting a permeable tarmac as the base for it and laying the resin bound on top of it. This allows a significant proportion of the surface water to drain away naturally.
PRO
- Very durable
- 12 Year guarantee
- Strong colour retention
- Suitable for any driveway
- Permeable option
- Very easy maintenance
CON
- Cannot be repaired
- Can flake if not applied properly
- More expensive
- Not suitable for heavy good vehicles
- Need a good installer!
You can learn more about our resin bound services here.
GRAVEL DRIVEWAYS
Gravel driveways are considered the most traditional of all types of driveways. Long before there was tarmac or concrete, there was stoned driveways.
The colours are fairly limited when compared to block paving but there is some variety between natural colours such as gold, silver, granite, red and mixed variety's.
The biggest advantage to gravel is the cost firstly, which is significantly lower than any other type of installation and secondly, the fact that it is 100% permeable. This means full compliance with SUDS and no permission is ever required for it.
Important to note with gravel is that the base underneath the gravel needs to be set to a proper depth and it has to be permeable. Otherwise you will have water catching on the surface.
Always use a heavy duty permeable membrane to separate the base from the gravel and on driveways that will see vehicles turning, we recommend using plastic or concrete stabilisers to stop the gravel spreading out.
Bonus tip, natural granite as shown above in one of the pictures, makes an excellent option as an entry apron for the gravel. Functioning as a way of containing the gravel whilst enhancing the overall look of the driveway.
PRO
- 100% natural stone
- Never loses colour
- Suitable for any driveway
- Permeable driveway
- SUDS compliant
CON
- Can easily spread out
- Needs raking every few months
- Stones can catch in shoes
- Small stones will disintegrate overtime
- Needs topping up
You can learn more about our gravel driveway services here.
CONCRETE DRIVEWAYS
Outside of gravel or stoned driveways, concrete driveways are the oldest type of driveway available. However, with modern technology used, it can make an outstanding surface for any home.
Standard concrete is natural grey and comes either float finished or tamped. We recommend imprinted or patterned concrete for a driveway instead of the more traditional styled concrete.
Available in a wide variety of colours and truly an endless type of patterns can be applied to the finished surface as well. You can create an old cobbled style feel to your driveway with the right pattern.
Once the concrete has hardened we recommend sealing the concrete to ensure the colour does not fade. However, sealing it will create a gloss finish to the concrete which does put some clients off of it.
PRO
- Very durable
- Unlimited design choices
- Wide range of colours
- Affordable option
- Suitable for any driveway use
- Very low maintenance
- Will easily handle Heavy good vehicles
CON
- Needs to be sealed
- Will get slippy in winter
- Moss and algae
- Cannot be repaired
- Colours will fade
- Needs drainage system
Unbeatable Range Of Driveway Installation Choices For Essex
We pride ourselves on offering our customers throughout Essex an unbeatable range of installation choices ranging from block paving to tarmac, patterned concrete to resin bound and more.
Learn more about our driveway choices or head over to our contact page to book a free estimate today.