Tar and chip or tarmacadam: which suits a South East driveway

Eddie lays both surfaces, so there's no reason to push you one way. They suit different jobs. On a lot of South East properties, with a house set back from the road, a lane to a yard or a farm entrance, the answer comes down to five things: how long it is, what you want to spend, the look you're after, what drives on it and how much looking after you want to do.

The two surfaces in short

Tar and chip is hot bitumen sprayed over a compacted stone base, with stone chippings spread on top and rolled in. It looks like gravel, but the stone is held in place.

Tarmacadam is a hot mix of crushed stone and bitumen, laid by machine in layers over a compacted base and rolled smooth. It gives a dark, sealed, even surface.

Both need a properly built base. That part of the job is much the same either way, and it's what decides how long the driveway lasts.

By length

Length is usually the first thing that settles it.

• A long lane, or a drive running a good way in from the road: tar and chip generally costs less over the distance, and the saving grows with every metre.
• A short drive and a parking area in front of the house: tarmacadam is often the choice, because the gap in cost over a small area is smaller.
• A long lane that opens into a parking area at the house: the lane can be done in tar and chip and the area at the house in tarmacadam.

By budget

Tar and chip generally costs less to lay than tarmacadam over the same area. Tarmacadam has more material in it and more machine work on the day. Gravel costs less again to lay, but it needs raking and topping up over the years. If the budget is fixed and the area is large, tar and chip will often get you a sealed surface over all of it, where tarmacadam might only cover part.

The base and the drainage cost about the same whichever surface goes on top. So on a short drive where most of the cost is groundwork, the difference between the two narrows.

By look

This one is down to you and the house.

• Tar and chip has a stone finish. It suits a rural house, an older farmhouse or a lane through fields, and it can be done in different colours of stone.
• Tarmacadam is smooth and dark. It gives a clean, plain look that suits a modern house or a tidy front area.

By traffic

What drives on it, and how, matters as much as how often.

1. Cars coming and going

   both surfaces do the job well on a sound base.

2. Tight turning on the spot

   tarmacadam copes better. Tyres turning hard in one place can scuff chips loose on tar and chip, especially early on.

3. Tractors and farm machinery

   both can work on a farm lane or yard, but the base has to be built for the weight. Heavy loads on a base built for cars will break up either surface.

4. Grip in the wet

   tar and chip has a rougher surface, which gives good grip on a slope in the rain.

By upkeep

Neither needs much, but they age differently.

• Tar and chip sheds some loose stone in the first weeks, which is swept up. After many years it can be dressed again, with a fresh coat of bitumen and chips laid over the old.
• Tarmacadam needs a sweep and an occasional wash. It fades from black towards grey over time. Oil or fuel left on it can soften the surface, so spills are best cleaned up quickly.
• Both need water to run off. Keeping channels and gullies clear helps either surface last.

Lanes and farm yards

Lanes and yards are where the choice matters most, because the areas are big. For a lane, tar and chip is often the practical answer on cost, and its grip helps on a slope. In a yard where machinery turns, loads are heavy and the surface takes a hammering, tarmacadam on a heavy base often suits the turning area better. A lane and yard together can be split the same way, tar and chip on the run in and tarmacadam where the machines turn. Gravel still has a place on a back yard or a rough area that doesn't need a sealed finish. Every site is different, which is why the ground has to be looked at before anyone can say.

Talk it through with Eddie

Eddie covers Kilkenny, Waterford, Wexford, Carlow and south Tipperary from Mullinavat, with his own materials and machinery. He lays tar and chip, tarmacadam and gravel, so he can quote for more than one surface on the same job and you can compare. The quote is free and there's no obligation. Call Eddie on 087 120 4286, or WhatsApp the same number.