Improving The Look Of Concrete

If you have an asphalt driveway that has seen better days, an upcoming project that you may be considering is the replacement of the driveway. While your natural inclination might be to have a new asphalt driveway installed, it's advantageous to consider some alternatives. A gravel driveway can be a suitable choice. Gravel provides a pleasant appearance and a cost-effective price tag, which can make it worthy of your strong consideration. If you make this switch, more than just the curb appeal of your home will be different. Here are some positive things that you'll notice upon switching from an asphalt driveway to one made of gravel.

No Puddles

One of the issues that you can encounter with an asphalt driveway, especially if it's old and uneven, is that water from the rain will pool in low areas. This situation can be a hassle, especially if there's a large puddle on the side of the driveway where you typically walk, right outside the door or outside your parked car. When you switch to gravel, you'll no longer have this issue. One of the big perks of gravel is how well it drains, which means that even in a heavy rainfall, there won't be any standing water to bother you.

An Alert When People Arrive

When cars drive over a gravel driveway, an audible crunching sound can be heard. If you occasionally feel unsettled when you're home alone, you may appreciate hearing this sound as a warning when someone pulls into your driveway. The sound of your gravel driveway crunching is often loud enough to hear when you're inside the house, which means that you can take a peek out of the window to see who has arrived. The silent nature of an asphalt driveway doesn't give you this advanced warning of someone's arrival.

Better Through The Seasons

A big downfall to an asphalt driveway if you live in a climate that has dramatic temperature changes between summer and winter is that it can heave and crack as it freezes and thaws. The result can be a driveway that is uneven and a visual eyesore. Gravel is highly adaptive to these temperature changes. Unlike asphalt, a gravel driveway will not crack or otherwise sustain damage, which means that your gravel driveway will look just as it should throughout the entire year. For more information about the benefits of gravel driveways, contact your local driveway contractor, such as one from Hanson Aggregates.