Making a Concrete or Paver Driveway

By Debbie Lockhart

Your driveway is the red carpet to your home. Therefore you should make it represent you and your family well. There are many ways to go about updating your driveway. Here are a few driveway ideas that you should consider:

Cement, Ashpalt and Tarmac Driveway

If you want to attain a smooth uniform surface for your driveway, you can always use cement, asphalt or tarmac. The primary difference between concrete and cement is that concrete is a composite material made of water, aggregate, and cement. The two terms often are incorrectly used interchangeably, but concrete and cement are distinctly separate products, as are asphalt and tarmac. The main difference between concrete and asphalt, besides asphalt’s sticky black appearance, is that asphalt (which is actually a form of concrete) – is considered a flexible pavement and concrete is a rigid one. Tarmac will also display a darker color and is a flexible pavement. You may save dollars using any of these three surfacing materials – but concrete is the most solid investment.

Concrete Pavers

If you are looking to upgrade the value of your home, then concrete pavers are the way to go. Not only will give they give you the best bang for your buck, they also come in a variety of textures, patterns and colors that will give you lots of freedom for your custom design needs. There is also stained concrete and concrete paint for those who desire a more vibrant and appealing entrance-way to your home. For the simple at heart, and least expensive, the basic grey paving slab or rectangle driveway pavers are perfect!

Paver Benefits

A big benefit of pavers, often referred to as paving stones, is that they can be removed and re-installed, which reduces future service interruptions. Interlocking pavers form a patterned surface that can be put into service immediately – so the wait in-between having the concrete contractors doing the driveway repair and being able to use your new driveway will be close to no time at all.

Ready for a new driveway? Click to find a Trusted Home Contractor today.

Concrete Stamps and Stamped Concrete

You could also create a driveway using concrete stamps for a similar price to using concrete pavers. This procedure uses concrete that is patterned and/or textured or embossed to resemble brick, slate, flagstone, stone, tile, wood and various other patterns and textures. You would also be able to personalize your own kind of stamp. It could be homemade or recycled. The main disadvantages of making your driveway using this method, is the waiting period and the cost of repairs. You must make sure the concrete is hard enough that the stamp won’t sink but loose enough that it will make a clean stamp. This procedure is time consuming. Cost of repairs and ongoing maintenance can get very expensive and color matching of the new concrete to the old is almost impossible.

Concrete Sealer, Concrete Resurfacing

Once you have made your concrete driveway, the next step is choosing the right driveway sealer or concrete resurfacer and applying it properly. This will extend the life of your concrete and keep it looking great for years to come. Sealing a driveway not only extends it service life, it will also improve the appearance of decorative concrete by enhancing the color and gloss of your driveway pavers.

If you’re ready to give that red carpet a major facelift, contact a Trusted Home Contractor today to get a quote. You want a professional doing this type of work, so don’t settle for anything but the best! End

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