driveway redo design ideas for segue into back patio, questions and recommendations desired

My questions:

• Will we hate having a gravel driveway (esp. in the snow when shoveling is needed? I suppose we'd need a snow blower
• We have puddling and root issues in our current asphalt with granite block lined drive, so I was thinking gravel might help prevent that in the long run. Or perhaps it would make this worse?
• Is gravel hard to keep weed-free?
• Is it possible to effectively trim root of big tree next to drive? Or will it regrow and continue to ruin what is there?
• Reco's for efficient and reasonable (priced/attitude) company that we can also consult for design ideas? Basically want a combo drive/paver patio or dig-out for low deck install. Possibly also yard scrape (top layer too weed-y). Any thoughts, photos, etc would be appreciated.

I've never had a gravel driveway, so can't speak to the reality of your questions. However, if I were house-hunting I'd find it a huge turn-off, FWIW, both in terms of my aesthetic preferences and because of my concerns over care and performance.

I would think snow blowing on a gravel drive would be very difficult. never had to do it though.

a good driveway company should account for drainage etc.

no reco's sorry

also be care with the root next to the driveway cutting it could kill the tree, so plan on the cost of tree removal if you decide to repave

We have a gravel drive now, for the first time. I don't know yet what it will be like in the winter to remove snow, but I wonder the same thing. Still, so many people have them in rural CT that it must be possible to get the snow off, right? I hope so, anyway.

I can tell you, though, that weeds ARE a problem. You have to keep on top of that and make sure the layer of gravel is thick enough that weeds don't get a toehold and enough sunshine to poke through and spread. That bit is a PITA. We have a ton of weeds now and need to get someone to deliver and spread a new layer of gravel.

I would recommend against trying to cut through the root of a big tree that's close to the driveway. It could destabilize the tree and result in the tree falling as it weakens over time. But that depends on the size of the root and the tree's health. Does it have plenty of large, healthy roots going in other directions, to offset the loss of the one you would like to cut? Be careful of this. Maybe ask an arborist?

My sister has a gravel driveway and it's one big pain. Shoveling has to be an art because of you go too deep, you are shoveling and throwing gravel. Same with the snowblower if you get it too low and it can also get stuck in and break the snowblower. Full of weeds all the time. And she has a hard time mowing close to it because the kids are always dragging and kicking the gravel into the surrounding grass

We had a loose stone walkway in our backyard and it was really annoying. Definitely an issue in snow, as you mentioned, and it also wore away easily.

We just had our backyard redone by Birch Hill Landscaping and were very pleased. They helped us redesign the space, built a new and larger patio and addressed a lot of drainage issues.

We aso had Mike Giordano repave our driveway and address some drainage there. He put in a drain that connected to the drainage system Birch Hill put in the backyard.

I would highly recommend both

H'mm. You have me thinking of repaving with asphalt now, before winter comes. Great. Another unforeseen expense to go with the "new" house.

To add to the anti-gravel side, every time I drive on a gravel driveway or road, I hear the car getting hit with the gravel as the wheels try to drive through it. The tires may be getting more beat up from going through all those stones.

... and, whenever you drive into or out of a gravel driveway, your neighbors will know. It's not quiet.

I hate our gravel driveway and am counting down the days until we get it paved (hopefully in 2 weeks!)

Well, this was super helpful--thanks! Definitely won't be getting a gravel driveway or trimming big roots, and will look into both Girodano and Birch Hills.

We used Abraham contracting to redo the driveway as well as address water issues. There was problems with prior owner doing " partial fix" cutting out a hole in driveway, which was never properly finished and became a sinkhole. So we scraped the whole thing and fixed the drainage running from downspouts to street, as well as putting in a new asphalt driveway. We looked at a range of solutions with a variety of contractors, and importantly, landscape design person. HUGE HELP. We used Helen Kensinger in Maplewood.

We did go with stepping stones and small gravel walkway on side of house taking out cement that was really part of the problem on drainage and water puddling. We have really liked it, although my husband is a little more mixed than I am. However, it looks great and creates a sense of a garden path to the rear.

We actually had issues with large roots of a neighbors tree, and consulting with Helen, who said it will not be a problem cutting the roots that were part of a drainage and grading issue on that side of the house. The tree had deep roots, and she indicated a few would not impact health of tree. Its been fine and its been a full year, no tree problems.

One option to address any pooling water is to install zip drains, which we considered, but found alternate solutions that worked better for our space.

Good luck with your projects!

FYI, we are planning to use the lawn girl to redo the back and front yard- after they finish remediating the soil post tank removal and we redo the deck in rear...