Gravel, Stone and Soil Delivery in Sterling Heights, MI

Wet loam over old sandstone

The USDA soil survey puts Del Rey loam, 0 to 2 percent slopes, at the center point of ZIP 48310. Del Rey makes up 95 percent of that map unit, so the name describes the spot well. Its top mineral layer is loam, a blend of sand, silt and clay that packs firm when dry and turns soft when soaked. The survey rates the series somewhat poorly drained, which means water can sit within a spade's reach during a wet stretch.^[1]

The Del Rey soil falls in hydrologic group C/D. Read that as D while the water table is high and C where the ground has been drained, so a yard with working tile or a ditch behaves better than one without. Shrink-swell in the top 100 cm is moderate, at 4.2 percent. Loam with that rating can lift and drop a little as it wets and dries, one more reason to keep water from collecting under stone or slabs.^[1]

Deeper down, the USGS state geologic map shows Berea Sandstone at the center point, a Late Devonian unit of sandstone and siltstone. Few home projects dig far enough to meet it. The ground at the center point stands 630 feet above sea level. With slopes of 0 to 2 percent in the map unit, runoff has little grade to follow, so drainage on a project like a patio or drive has to be built in rather than left to gravity.^[1],[2],[3]

Snow, thaw and a short planting window

Weather figures come from the NOAA normals station at Pontiac WWTP, MI, about 11 miles away. That station averages 33.9 inches of precipitation and 36.0 inches of snow a year. On 135 days in an average year, the low at Pontiac drops to 32 F or colder.^[4]

The median last spring freeze at the Pontiac station is April 26. The median first fall freeze there is October 22. Seed and fresh sod settle in best after the spring date, and fall mulching works well in the weeks before the October one, while the soil is still warm enough for roots to grow.^[4]

Frost is the hidden load on any gravel surface in a climate like this. Water trapped in fine material freezes, expands and lifts the stones, and the thaw leaves soft spots behind. Clean stone such as #57 Crushed Stone or Drain Rock lets that water leave before it can freeze in place. Snow plowed to the edges of a drive melts back across it in spring, so a crowned surface with a slight fall to each side keeps the melt moving.^[4]

A driveway built for Del Rey ground

Start by stripping the topsoil and any soft layer until firm subsoil shows. On somewhat poorly drained loam, roll out a woven geotextile fabric over the subgrade before any stone goes down. The fabric keeps silt and clay from pumping up into the base when the ground is wet, which is a common way a gravel drive on loam loses its strength.^[1]

Over the fabric, spread 1-1/2" Crushed Gravel or #4 Crushed Stone as the bottom course, then Road Base in thin lifts, wetting and compacting each one. Angular pieces lock together, and the fines in Road Base fill the gaps so the layer sheds water instead of holding it. Finish with Driveway Gravel or 3/4" Crushed Stone, and keep the finished surface a little higher than the lawn on either side.^[1]

Crushed Concrete and Asphalt Millings give two more choices. Millings pack tight, darken the drive and knit together in summer sun into a firm top. Crushed Concrete compacts much like Road Base and works as the middle course. Either one goes over the same fabric, in the same layered order, on ground with moderate shrink-swell.^[1]

Giving water a way off a flat lot

Flat ground and a C/D soil group let rain pond on lawns and patios after a storm. A French drain is the usual answer: a trench lined with fabric, a perforated pipe, and a bed of Drain Rock or #57 Crushed Stone wrapped around it. Run the trench to a lower spot or a dry well, with the grade falling the whole way.^[1]

A dry well helps where no outlet exists. Dig a pit well away from the foundation, line it with fabric and fill it with clean #4 Crushed Stone so roof water has a place to gather and seep away slowly. In soil rated somewhat poorly drained, make the pit generous and set it on the highest workable part of the yard.^[1]

Downspouts need a plan as well. A splash pad of River Rock under each outlet stops the stream from carving a hole, and a narrow band of #67 Stone along the drip line keeps mud off the siding. Each job takes a few wheelbarrows of stone, and the results show every spring thaw.^[4]

Patios on this ground need the same care as a drive. A compacted base of Road Base over fabric, a bed of Concrete Sand and a slight fall away from the house keep pavers level through repeated freezing and thawing. Where a patio meets the lawn, a narrow trench of Drain Rock catches the water running off the hard surface before it can soak the base.^[1],[4]

Beds and lawns on loam

Loam suits most plants, but somewhat poorly drained loam keeps roots wet early in the year. Raised beds filled with Garden Soil lift plants above the wettest layer. Working Compost into existing beds opens the soil so water moves through instead of sitting.^[1]

For lawn repair, spread Topsoil over bare patches and seed after the median last freeze of April 26. A layer of Brown Shredded Mulch, Black Shredded Mulch or Red Mulch around shrubs keeps moisture even through summer and shields roots once the median first freeze of October 22 has passed.^[4]

Play areas and borders call for their own materials. Playground Sand fills a sandbox, and Pea Gravel makes a soft surface under a swing that drains after rain. Wood Chips cover larger beds or garden paths and break down slowly into the loam beneath them.^[1]

Homes in ZIP 48310

The Census counts 15,578 housing units in ZIP 48310. Detached single-family houses make up 75 percent of them, and owners live in 78 percent of the occupied homes. The median home in the ZIP was built in 1977.^[5]

Across all of Sterling Heights, the Census counts 53,607 housing units, with detached houses at 67 percent. The citywide median year built matches the ZIP, at 1977.^[5]

Houses from the late seventies may still have their first driveways and walks. Many of those surfaces have cracked or sunk over the years, and a regraded gravel apron or a new path of Walkway Gravel or Stone Dust Screenings is a tidy way to replace them.^[5]