canalsiderenovation Posted July 18, 2023 Share Posted July 18, 2023 (edited) We are seriously considering imprinted concrete for our drive. The company is very reputable and we know someone who had them do theirs 15 years ago and it's still going strong. We have viewed some work and it certainly looks impressive. We have asked about cracks, thickness sealing etc and have been reassured that fibre mesh is used to reduce likelihood of craking and thickness would be 125mm. We also asked about it being slippy and he said he would add crushed glass to sealant (or something like this). We have a large area (probably close to 300m2) and we are expecting it to be around £27k and that's with three acro drains (we would need these either way with permeable or non permeable surfacing due to the fact we are on a slight slope and we naturally have water that runs from the nearby farm/over canal bridge). We know resin is likely to be more expensive plus edging etc and I think tarmac is going to look like a runway. Having got gravel and some block paving, the block paving is a nightmare with weeding and the gravel just turns to mush and is a nightmare. Anyone have any direct experience of it. Edited July 18, 2023 by canalsiderenovation Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joe90 Posted July 18, 2023 Share Posted July 18, 2023 (edited) Yes, an old neighbour (previous house) had imprinted drive (cobbles) and it looked really good even after about 10 years, my brother in law had it fir around his garden swimming pool (I prepped the shuttering) and he is the most OCD person I know (a nightmare to work for) and he (and I ) were very impressed with the result (and no weeding) 👍 I am seriously considering it for my latest little cottage drive. Edited July 18, 2023 by joe90 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
canalsiderenovation Posted July 18, 2023 Author Share Posted July 18, 2023 Just now, joe90 said: Yes, an old neighbour (previous house) had imprinted drive (cobbles) and it looked really good even after about 10 years, my brother in law had it fir around his garden swimming pool (I prepped the shuttering) and he is the most OCD person I know (a nightmare to work for) and he (and I ) were very impressed with the result (and no weeding) 👍 Thanks @joe90 that's good to know. The cost is huge but the thought of it being low maintenance is very appealing to us. My Aunt's had it down 15 years and it still looks as good as new. I think a lot depends on getting a good contractor - like anything really. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteamyTea Posted July 18, 2023 Share Posted July 18, 2023 Ah, 'imprinting' how the racist in society control females in their own societies. Such an unfortunate term. Sorry, very off topic, just the way my wind works sometimes. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joe90 Posted July 18, 2023 Share Posted July 18, 2023 32 minutes ago, joe90 said: 👍 I am seriously considering it for my latest little cottage drive. I added this as an edit after you had posted your reply. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
canalsiderenovation Posted July 18, 2023 Author Share Posted July 18, 2023 7 minutes ago, joe90 said: I added this as an edit after you had posted your reply. Spotted it! We will continue with our research and it would be interesting to compare prices against other surfaces. I presume resin is even more expensive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joe90 Posted July 18, 2023 Share Posted July 18, 2023 1 hour ago, canalsiderenovation said: I presume resin is even more expensive. That I don’t know, however my brother in law had a resin drive done on another house and he pointed out a couple of areas where people with power steering had torn the surface (steering without moving), he was not very impressed. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Posted July 19, 2023 Share Posted July 19, 2023 I wouldn't choose it. The type of surfacing, at least in a front garden, is a key aspect of 'kerb appeal' which affects the value of the house. To me, imprinted concrete devalues the house as it always seems a poor imitation of what it could have been if the genuine materials been used. I've also seen several that have cracks running through them, which makes them look more fake, apart from being tricky to repair. They can also be slippery when wet. And they still need intermittent cleaning and resealing, so not entirely maintenance free either... If you do choose it, then at least make sure that you have plenty of movement joints. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
canalsiderenovation Posted July 20, 2023 Author Share Posted July 20, 2023 We are in the process of of also getting quotes for tarmac and looking at if this can be made 'prettier' and establishing cost, e.g. how it compares to the £28k price of imprinted concrete. I'm worried about concrete cracking. I'm not a fan of tarmac though and really don't think it looks attractive! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteamyTea Posted July 20, 2023 Share Posted July 20, 2023 1 hour ago, canalsiderenovation said: £28k price of imprinted concrete Why not have a go yourself. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jilly Posted July 20, 2023 Share Posted July 20, 2023 (edited) Gravel should be ok if the sub-base is compacted properly and is quite soft in appearance (to me) but I guess not, if you like the clean sterile look. I can think of better ways to spend £27k... Edited July 20, 2023 by Jilly 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
canalsiderenovation Posted July 20, 2023 Author Share Posted July 20, 2023 10 minutes ago, Jilly said: Gravel should be ok if the sub-base is compacted properly and is quite soft in appearance (to me) but I guess not, if you like the clean sterile look. I can think of better ways to spend £27k... It's a nightmare for us here. It's been a mix of gravel/bit of block paving from the beginning and even with membrane - the weeds, trees (we are surrounded by oak, sycamore and other trees) the wet (we are on a slight slope), it's awful. I just can't justify the cost though. We are getting some quotes for tarmac so we can compare. It's a large area - I'd guess close to 300m2. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
canalsiderenovation Posted July 20, 2023 Author Share Posted July 20, 2023 22 minutes ago, SteamyTea said: Why not have a go yourself. Most definitely not! It was bad enough doing a concrete base for the shed/chicken coop. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joe90 Posted July 20, 2023 Share Posted July 20, 2023 A friend of mine had red tarmac with a brick frame around it for his drive, definitely prettier than the black stuff with no edge. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
canalsiderenovation Posted July 20, 2023 Author Share Posted July 20, 2023 55 minutes ago, joe90 said: A friend of mine had red tarmac with a brick frame around it for his drive, definitely prettier than the black stuff with no edge. Red tarmac reminds me of cycle lanes! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
canalsiderenovation Posted July 31, 2023 Author Share Posted July 31, 2023 We are waiting for a quote for tarmac and also now looking at block paving to compare cost. Do we need planning permission for tarmac as it's over 5m2 (we will be putting in aco drains to go to our soakaways). If we have to go through planning permission this will be a game changer and I think we will look at block paving. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adsibob Posted July 31, 2023 Share Posted July 31, 2023 That sounds very expensive. Do you really need all 300m2 paved? Won’t it look like a car park? How many cars do you have? 12.5m2 is plenty big to park one car. Even a disabled parking bay is only 16m2. Unless you need so many parking spaces, I would consider some soft landscaping to reduce the area you need to pave. Will work out much cheaper and will look much nicer. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joe90 Posted July 31, 2023 Share Posted July 31, 2023 (edited) 4 minutes ago, Adsibob said: Do you really need all 300m2 paved? Won’t it look like a car park? I tend to agree, what about those plastic mesh devises you can fill with gravel or grass? https://www.gridforce.co.uk/bespoke-solutions/grass-protection-grids/ Edited July 31, 2023 by joe90 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bramco Posted July 31, 2023 Share Posted July 31, 2023 Black basalt gravel for us - personally I think the imprinted concrete looks false - bit like real imitation leather aka plastic. A few of our previous neighbours had imprinted concrete and some wouldn't venture out in icy weather as it was so slippy - the posties hate it too. 17 minutes ago, joe90 said: what about those plastic mesh devises you can fill with gravel Noooooooooo - that'll make it like a doctors surgery or even worse a funeral parlour... Simon 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adsibob Posted July 31, 2023 Share Posted July 31, 2023 If the only think that is pushing the OP towards imprinted concrete over paved slabs is the weed issue, then I can recommend Marshall's Drivesys cobble system. Each "cobble" is cast from concrete and has a ridge, so that once laid there is a barrier preventing weed growth. The diagram below isn't that clear, but effectively each "cobble" has a 6mm ridge protruding around the perimeter of the bottom half of the cobble, so that when installed adjacent to another cobble, there is a 12mm gap between cobbles (above the ridge). That 12mm gap is then filled with the joining compound to create a barrier. Weeds don't get through. You can get a very nice "cobbled" look, but with the benefits of modern engineering. I think that at most it would work out the same as imprinted concrete, but probably a bit less. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Canski Posted July 31, 2023 Share Posted July 31, 2023 10 hours ago, Bramco said: Black basalt gravel for us I had the same on my last house. Was lovely when wet ( about 95% of the time) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Posted August 1, 2023 Share Posted August 1, 2023 21 hours ago, canalsiderenovation said: Do we need planning permission for tarmac as it's over 5m2 (we will be putting in aco drains to go to our soakaways). If we have to go through planning permission this will be a game changer and I think we will look at block paving. If the driveway has adequate drainage on your property - enough to prevent water running onto the highway - then you don't need planning permission. See https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/7728/pavingfrontgardens.pdf 300m² is a fairly large area though, so if you're using soakaways they'd need to be adequately sized - for example designed to BRE digest 356. Or use a permeable surface. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
canalsiderenovation Posted August 1, 2023 Author Share Posted August 1, 2023 On 31/07/2023 at 16:42, Adsibob said: If the only think that is pushing the OP towards imprinted concrete over paved slabs is the weed issue, then I can recommend Marshall's Drivesys cobble system. Each "cobble" is cast from concrete and has a ridge, so that once laid there is a barrier preventing weed growth. The diagram below isn't that clear, but effectively each "cobble" has a 6mm ridge protruding around the perimeter of the bottom half of the cobble, so that when installed adjacent to another cobble, there is a 12mm gap between cobbles (above the ridge). That 12mm gap is then filled with the joining compound to create a barrier. Weeds don't get through. You can get a very nice "cobbled" look, but with the benefits of modern engineering. I think that at most it would work out the same as imprinted concrete, but probably a bit less. We actually were looking at this. We are back to looking at block paving sort of thing with some softer areas like some gravel bits we can put pots on etc. We only have two cars but need to make sure tractor can get down for emptying septic tank etc (local farmer does it). The driveway is unusually large as there was groups of dead connifers in large borders which have now gone and there was a couple of old outbuildings which have also gone although our double garage is taking the place just clearing the ground of rubbish and crap gave us more area! Video 20230801_171559.mp4 This is from our gate looking down (there is old block paving probably 20 years plus which has had lots of abuse, never been cleaned etc). The border on the right we are moving the shrubs back to widen as the border is so big it's a nightmare to even weed. Where the blue car is was full of dead connifers which have been long gone and gravel put down from when we had the house done to make the drive bigger to get all the vehicles in so this can be part of the drive (keeping the Xmas tree). And this is from the front door looking up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Jimbo Posted August 1, 2023 Share Posted August 1, 2023 Blinking heck. I'm dizzy now after trying to watch that. Don't think you are going to become a film maker anytime soon. Were you being chased by One of the chickens. Why not do either an area of slabbing, or block paving near the house, and gravel the rest. That is going to cost you a fortune. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gone West Posted August 2, 2023 Share Posted August 2, 2023 10 hours ago, canalsiderenovation said: Video 9 hours ago, Big Jimbo said: Blinking heck. I'm dizzy now after trying to watch that. +1, You beat me to it. It was like being on a fairground ride watching that. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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