Cobbles and Yorkstone Flags for your drive
For many people, the first material that comes to mind when thinking of having their driveway recovered is gravel. It is plentiful, easy to install, and it looks attractive once it is down. However, gravel does come with its own set of problems, and, despite all of its good points, it may not be the best material for you and your driveway.
So what could be used instead? An extremely popular alternative to gravel is to use cobbles and Yorkstone Flags to cover driveways (and patios, and paths, and they can even be used inside too, something that gravel could never do). These materials are easily sourced, can be reclaimed so are good for the environment and the economy, and are relatively inexpensive.
They look great too – cobbles and Yorkstone Flags have a warm and comforting appeal that makes a house a home. Gravel can often look cold and unwelcoming, especially in winter time when it is wet or frost covered.
Gravel takes a lot of maintenance. It will look good for the first few weeks after it is installed, but after that the house owners will need to apply weed killer and pesticide regularly, as it is very easy for unwanted plantlife to make its way up through the underneath of the gravel. This spoils the looks of the entire driveway, and, despite everyone’s best efforts, will make the front garden look unkempt and uncared for. It’s not just weeds that can make gravel driveways untidy; rain water, high winds, foot traffic, and vehicles can all dislodge and displace the gravel stones, meaning that in order to keep the driveway looking attractive, more gravel will need to be installed. It’s an expensive and needlessly time consuming job.
Cobbles and Yorkstone Flags don’t have that problem; there are no weeds as the driveway contractors use sand or concrete to install the stones (and if any abhorrent plants should come up, you would be able to count the number on one hand, and pull them up quickly, not something that could happen with a gravel driveway). Weather and other issues that affect the look – and layout – of gravel won’t be a problem for a cobble or Yorkstone driveway either. Shoes won’t pick up stray stones and take them away, or bring them into the house. Car tyres won’t spray gravel down the street as they leave. Wind and rain won’t dislodge your lovely looking driveway. In fact, cobbles and Yorkstone look stylish even when wet!
Is it snowing yet? These days, it seems that snow is never too far away once the nights start drawing in and the wind starts picking up. Have you considered how you will remove snow from your gravel drive? Simply shovelling it out of the way will be impossible, as you will take half the gravel away with each shovelful. And when the snow does finally melt away, you will be left with a mucky, muddy, dirty looking layer of stones all over the front garden. You won’t have to worry about that with cobbles and Yorkstone. Firstly, snow removal is simple – you really can just shovel it away, without damaging the driveway or causing costly repairs to be made. And secondly, once it is all gone, just use a hosepipe or jet washer to clean up the mess.
Whichever covering you choose for your driveway, it is essential that you hire a specialist contractor to install it for you. It will save time, money, and frustration in the long run, and, should something go wrong, you will always have someone to speak to about carrying out repairs.
