Hemel Hempstead

Tarmac Driveways in Hemel Hempstead

Tarmac laid hot in two courses and rolled, over a base built for what it carries. Free survey, a fixed written price, and you only pay when you're happy with the work.

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Tarmac Driveways in Hemel Hempstead, explained

Tarmac is usually the sensible answer when the area is large, the budget is real, and you want one continuous surface with nothing to maintain between the joints. What it is not is the cheap option that happens to look like the expensive one. A tarmac drive laid badly shows you inside a winter, and it shows you at the edges and in the low spots.

Which is why most of our quote is levels and drainage rather than the black stuff on top. Tarmac sheds water instead of absorbing it, so a tarmac drive is only ever as good as the fall somebody set before the first load turned up. We work that out at the survey and write it into the price, rather than finding it on the day and coming back to you for more money.

We are based in Hatfield and cover this area as part of our normal work. The survey and the written quotation are free, there is no deposit, and you pay when the drive is finished and you are happy with it.

We cover the HP1, HP2 and HP3 postcodes in Hemel Hempstead, and the rest of Hertfordshire.

What your quote covers

A free survey, with the falls and the drainage worked out before anything is priced
One fixed price in writing, no deposit, nothing payable up front
Excavation, clearance of the old surface and removal of the arisings
A compacted sub-base, and edgings or kerbs haunched in concrete to roll up against
A base course and a finer wearing course, laid hot and rolled while hot
Joints cut and sealed against thresholds and manholes, and the site cleaned down

Choosing tarmac driveways in Hemel Hempstead

Tarmac earns its place on larger areas and longer drives, where the cost per square metre of a blocked or resin surface starts to add up quickly. It goes down fast, it takes traffic well, and it gives you one continuous surface with no joints to maintain.

It is not a permeable surface, so the falls matter. Water has to be taken somewhere deliberate, whether that is a drainage channel across the threshold, a soakaway, or a fall to a gully. Getting the levels right is most of the job on a tarmac drive, and it is where a cheap job shows itself within a winter.

Black is the standard and red is available where it suits the property. Tarmac also takes a decorative chipping finish if you want something softer looking without moving to a different surface entirely.

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From first visit to finished job

Step 1
Tell us about it
Call or send the rough size and a photo, and say where the water goes now. That one detail tells us a lot before we visit.
Step 2
Free site survey
We take levels, look at the existing base, and work out how the finished surface will shed water and where to.
Step 3
Fixed written price
One figure for the whole job, stating the build-up, the number of courses and whether you are having plain black, red or a chipped finish.
Step 4
Booked in
We agree dates. Hot material has to be laid and rolled in one run, so the programme is built around getting the surfacing done in a day where we can.
Step 5
The work
Dig out, sub-base, edgings, then the base course and the wearing course laid hot and rolled before they cool.
Step 6
Walk round and settle up
Edges tidied, joints sealed, site cleaned, and you pay once you are satisfied with it.

What happens on site in Hemel Hempstead

We excavate, clear the arisings and build a compacted sub-base to suit what the drive will carry. Edgings or kerbs go in first and are haunched in concrete, because tarmac needs something to be rolled up against or the edges crumble.

The surface is built in two layers on most domestic drives: a base course for strength, then a finer wearing course for the finished look. Each layer is laid hot and rolled while it is still hot, which is what gives the density.

Joints against existing surfaces, manholes and thresholds are cut and sealed so water cannot track underneath. The drive is walkable once it has cooled and takes vehicles shortly after, though it keeps hardening for a few weeks.

What affects the price in Hemel Hempstead

We do not publish a rate per square metre, because the number would be wrong for most properties. The survey is free and the price you get afterwards is fixed and in writing. These are the things that move it:

The area, which is where tarmac earns its keep against the other surfaces
How much excavation it needs and how far the arisings have to travel
Whether the drive takes one course or the full base and wearing course build-up
The drainage the levels call for: a channel, a gully connection or a soakaway
Edgings or kerbs, and whether you want a block-paved border
Plain black, red, or a decorative chipping finish on top

Looking after tarmac driveways

Go gently for the first few weeks, particularly in hot weather. Turning the steering wheel while the car is stationary can scuff a new surface, and point loads such as a trailer jockey wheel, a motorbike stand or a skip leg can press in. A board under anything narrow solves it.

Keep the edges clear of soil and growth, and keep the drainage running. Most tarmac failures start at an edge or a low spot where water has been allowed to sit.

Sealing is worth considering a couple of years in: it restores the colour and slows the surface drying out. If a pothole or a crack does appear, it can be cut out and patched rather than replaced wholesale. A properly built tarmac drive should give 15 years or more.

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Around Hemel Hempstead

As well as Hemel Hempstead itself, we take on tarmac driveways work in Boxmoor, Latimer, Chesham Bois, Prestwood and Holmer Green, and across the rest of Hertfordshire. If you are just outside the towns listed here it is still worth a call, because we cover more ground than any list of names can sensibly show.

Tarmac Driveways in Hemel Hempstead: Common Questions

Do you offer tarmac driveways in Hemel Hempstead?

Yes. Hemel Hempstead is one of the areas we cover as standard, including the HP1, HP2 and HP3 postcodes. We work out of Hatfield, and the survey and the written quote are free wherever you are.

Do you charge for the survey or the quote?

No, both are free and there is nothing to sign afterwards. No deposit either, and nothing to pay until the work is finished.

How soon can I park on it?

Usually later the same day, once it has gone off enough to take a wheel. It carries on firming up for a while after that, so there are a few things worth avoiding early on, and we run through them with you at handover.

Why is my quote higher than a price I was given at the door?

Usually because ours includes the base and the drainage and theirs did not. Surfacing over a tired base with no falls is cheap to do and expensive to own, and we would rather lose the job than lay one.

Will you need to get a lorry close to the drive?

Hot material has to be tipped and laid quickly, so good access makes the job cheaper and better. Where access is tight we plan the delivery around it, and we will tell you at the survey if it changes the price.

Can you lay tarmac over my existing drive?

Where the existing surface is stable and the levels work, an overlay keeps the cost down. If it is breaking up, moving, or the water is already sitting on it, an overlay just hides the fault, so we dig out and rebuild instead.