If your driveway has cracked or sunk, we replace it with pavers on a compacted base that holds up under daily traffic.
Driveway pavers in Appleton, WI are concrete pavers set on bedding sand over a compacted base. Heritage Appleton Concrete and Masonry builds them for homes in Appleton and the cities around it, so you get a driveway made to carry cars day after day, built up from the ground rather than laid over what's already there.
Most people who call us about pavers have a concrete or asphalt driveway that has cracked, sunk near the garage or broken up at the street. They want something that carries a car for years without turning into a patchwork. Most of a paver job happens before the first paver goes down, in the digging out, the base and the edging.
The price moves with the size of the driveway, whether the old surface has to be torn out and hauled off, how deep the base needs to be for the ground under it, the paver and pattern you pick, and whether the job reaches the apron at the street. I write each of those into your estimate, along with what we'd do and why.
The schedule turns mostly on the season and the permit, since base work waits for ground that isn't frozen and the city has to issue the permit before we start. When a job needs a permit, we pull it ourselves and keep the paperwork in order.
Most of a paver driveway is out of sight once it's finished. These are the parts I'd point to if we were standing on your driveway together, and the ones worth asking any contractor about.
Industry guidance says a driveway base on well-drained soil should be at least 6 inches thick, and that wet or weak soil in a cold climate needs 2 to 4 inches more. When you compare quotes, ask what base depth each one includes, because one Appleton cost guide prices only a 4-inch base.
Edge strips or a concrete curb along each side give the pavers something to push against. Industry guidance calls that side support essential, because it resists movement, keeps the bedding sand from washing out and stops pavers from rotating out of line. It goes in before the pavers and ends up buried, so it's easy to skip and hard to add later.
If a soft spot in the base settles and then firms up, the pavers over it can come up, more base goes in, and the same pavers go back down. You don't end up with a patch in a different color, which is what usually happens when a poured slab gets repaired.
Here is who does what, from the first call to the last walk-through. I'm there at the start and the end, and our crew does the building in between.
Call (920) 454-9038 or use the contact form and tell us a little about the driveway. We'll get back to you to set a time for me to come out and look.
I look at the old driveway, the slope and where the water goes, and find what caused the trouble. Then I write an estimate that explains what we'd build and why.
If you'd like to go ahead, we take care of any permit the job needs. Our crew digs out, builds the base, sets the edging and lays the pavers, and I check the work as it goes.
Before we leave, I walk the finished driveway with you and show you the edging and joints. I'll also tell you what to keep an eye on, such as a joint near the edge losing its sand.
A paver driveway is only as good as what's under it, so your estimate lists the base we'll build and the edging that holds the pavers in place. We dig out the old driveway and any soft soil, shape the grade so water runs away from the house and garage, then put the base in layers and compact each one before the next goes on.
For a driveway, I usually suggest a herringbone pattern because it locks together well under cars. The pavers meet at angles, so they hold each other when tires turn and brake on them, and industry guidance recommends it wherever cars drive day after day. Once the pavers are down, we compact them and sweep sand into the joints so they bind tight.
A new driveway is often one part of a bigger fix. Where the drive cuts into a slope, retaining wall construction keeps the soil from pushing onto the pavers. If the front steps or the brick near the drive are worn or loose, our masonry restoration work can bring them back to suit the house. I'd rather tell you which of these your house really needs than add work it doesn't.
Herringbone holds best where cars park and turn. A running bond, with pavers in straight offset rows, looks simpler and can suit a border band or a walkway beside the drive, where tires don't grind on it.
Some owners stop the pavers at the sidewalk and leave the street end as it is. Others want the apron redone too, which brings in the city's rules for street work and is best decided before I write your estimate.
Send the form and we'll reply within one business day to set a time for me to come out. The estimate is free, done at your home, and there's no obligation to go ahead. I'll write down the base, edging and pattern we'd use and why, and you can decide from there.
(920) 454-9038In Appleton, the City of Appleton Inspection Division issues the permit for replacing or extending a driveway on a one- or two-family home, and we pull it ourselves before work starts. If you're widening, the city allows up to 4 feet more toward the front yard and 12 feet toward the side yard, never past your lot line, and no pavement goes in an easement.
Work out at the street is handled separately. The city counts the sidewalk, the terrace and the driveway apron as right of way, and digging there needs a Street Excavation Permit, so I'll tell you at the estimate whether your plan reaches that far. The city's driveway rules also call for paving bricks at least 2 1/4 inches thick, and ask applicants to call Diggers Hotline at 800-242-8511 so buried lines get marked before anyone digs.
Around Appleton and in cities like Grand Chute and Neenah, many of our driveway calls come from owners with an older single-car drive they'd like wider, or a slab that has cracked and settled near the garage. Each city has its own office and rules, so we check with the right one before we plan anything.
I spent my first working years at a desk, and I left because I wanted to build things that would still be standing long after I'd finished. I learned masonry under experienced masons around Appleton and started this business in 2013, so we've been doing this work for 13 years. I care that the base and the material suit how your driveway gets used.
I come out to look at your driveway myself and write the estimate. Our crew of experienced masons does the work, and I check it as it goes. We're licensed and fully insured. Satisfaction guaranteed. If a smaller job will fix your driveway, I'll tell you so rather than sell you more than the house needs.
If you'd like me to take a look, call (920) 454-9038 or send us a message. Thank you for considering us.
When your driveway runs along a slope or a raised yard, a retaining wall holds the soil back so it can't slump onto the pavers or wash into the base.
Older brick steps, porches and walls can look tired beside a new driveway, and restoration repairs their mortar and brick so they suit the house again.
We're based in Appleton and lay driveway pavers in the cities around it, including Grand Chute, Neenah, Menasha, Kaukauna and Oshkosh, along with many others nearby. Each city below has its own page.
A sand-based concrete paver driveway in Appleton usually costs about $13 to $16 per square foot, counting the base and sand bedding but not tearing out the old driveway. A deeper base, removing the old surface, apron work and the paver you pick all move that figure, and my estimate explains what we'd do for yours and why.
The City of Appleton Inspection Division issues residential driveway permits for replacing or extending a driveway on a one- or two-family home. We pull the permit ourselves and check with the city before work starts. Work in the street right of way needs its own permit, which I cover in the Appleton section above.
One industry group's guide says quality concrete pavers on a well-prepared base can last for generations. Installed to industry guidelines, they need practically no maintenance. That's why we spend most of our time on the base you'll never see once the driveway is done.
Yes, snow comes off pavers the same way it comes off any other pavement, so you can shovel, blow or plow it. Concrete pavers can also resist de-icing salts better than conventional paving materials, which counts for a lot on a driveway that gets salted all winter.
Usually not, because industry guidance says base material should go in unfrozen and over soil that isn't frozen. We plan paver driveways for when the ground has thawed. If you call over the winter, I can still come out and write the estimate so the job is planned and ready.
Mostly, park somewhere else and clear anything stored along the edges, since we dig out the full width plus room for the edging. We make sure buried lines are marked before we dig, and I'll let you know ahead of time when the driveway will be out of use.
Call (920) 454-9038 or use the form with the driveway's rough size and whether you plan to widen it or redo the apron, so I can check the city's limits before I arrive.
