It’s not for nothing that they say that people are greeted by their clothes and this applies not only to people, but also to each individual home. The first thing any person sees when near your home is the interlocking driveway to it. If you are going to sell your house in the future or even just build it for future sale, then the entrance can become its calling card.
What should a modern driveway to a house look like?
A modern entrance to a house can be made in completely different variations, depending on the appearance of the facade, style, your taste and financial capabilities. Today, the following aesthetic design options are becoming increasingly popular:
– wide entrance with large tiled floor and several steps. Next to it is a small illuminated garden with a stone background and slatted panels;
— a minimalist garden near the driveway. Usually, unpretentious street plants are planted, the ground around them is covered with medium or large decorative stones;
– a tropical garden along the entire path that leads from the gate to the entrance to the house;
— if the budget is limited, then you should pay attention to simplicity and strict geometry. This will create a feeling of order and neatness;
— concrete on the floor and walls plus warm lighting will ultimately create an ideal tandem;
— a trimmed green lawn and a path neatly laid out with large stones;
– a completely white entrance lobby, complemented by large green plants in pots.
In general, the most popular design options for a modern entrance to a house are a spacious entrance to the house, good lighting, installation of different types of frames that perform both aesthetic and practical functions, and the use of materials such as stone slabs, brick, wood, glass, architectural concrete.
What to pay attention to when decorating the entrance to your house?
The entrance to the house is one of the first construction activities that should be taken care of even before full-scale work begins. In fact, many people, when buying a plot of land, do not even think that this task will be quite difficult if the option of a simple level entrance with the most ordinary road surface and gate is not for your case. You will have to work hard, studying the issue and choosing methods that will still make it possible to make the right modern entrance to the house. Typically, before starting construction, you need to complete the following steps:
— familiarize yourself with government regulations and rules of the partnership/organization/management company that operates in your area;
— determine the place of entry to the site, taking into account the location of the main road and the topography of the adjacent territory;
— independently or with the help of a specialist (depending on the complexity of the situation and your knowledge) develop an entrance project;
— decide on the arrangement option based on the exterior of the future home, the capabilities of the territory and your preferences;
— prepare the site, clearing it of debris and unnecessary objects, level the site of the future arrival as much as possible;
— carry out work on the arrangement of the entrance.
When developing a project for a modern entrance to a house, it is necessary to immediately determine a place in front of the gate where cars could stop for a short time, as well as a place for long-term parking. If the space allows you, then you also need to consider space for a guest car and special equipment (firefighters, ambulances, construction trucks, etc.).
What to make a modern driveway to your house from?
Today, there are a lot of options for both building an access road to a house from scratch and for finishing it. It all depends only on the initial data of the site for construction and your financial capabilities. When deciding on the options, first of all you need to understand whether you want to arrange the arrival yourself or are ready to hire a good master. Of course, if the situation allows you to make such a choice at all. Some options are impossible to implement on your own, which means they are unlikely to suit you if your budget is very limited. The following options are mainly used as a finishing coating:
Driveway to the house made of concrete slabs
This coating has joining seams, and is not laid as a solid sheet or fill. Unfortunately, these seams can begin to fail over time due to soil subsidence and stress. This leads to disruption of the evenness of the road surface.
Driveway to the house made of paving slabs
The coating is durable and durable, and also has a very good, neat appearance. You can often choose a color and shape that will go perfectly with the entire entrance area and the exterior facade of the house. However, it is worth remembering that laying such a coating will require a lot of time, finances and good skills of the relevant specialist. It is almost impossible to do this on your own.
Cobblestone driveway
A budget race, which can easily be done on your own, but there is no question of even surface coverage here. If your finances do not allow you to take advantage of other options, then this is the only case when such coverage has a place.
Gravel road to the house
A fairly large number of people use gravel as a finishing coating. He does not need any special skills, a lot of time, or huge financial expenses. However, simply filling the driveway with gravel is a very bad option if you have a drainage system, which we discuss in detail later in this article.
Access to the house norms and permits
State regulations assume that compliance with them will allow you not to create any interference on your drive for other people and you and other cars will be able to comfortably use the driveway. Basic standards:
— the width of the entrance must be at least 3 m;
— the entrance at the junction with the road must have a level that matches the level of the road surface;
— when organizing drainage, it is necessary to use a pipe with a diameter of more than 30 cm and a length of more than 4.5 m in the roadway ditch;
— in the place where your driveway adjoins the main road surface, there must be a widening of at least 8-8.5 m, which could provide a turning radius of at least 5 m;
– the degree of slope of the trench coincides with the degree of slope of the pipe under the roadway.
As the owner of the site, you can independently determine the design of the entrance, but you must take into account that your entrance should not interfere with the main flow of cars on the main road. The parking space for your car should not be located on a common area and should not interfere with the traffic flow of the main road in front of your house. Also, when developing a project for the entrance to your house, you must take into account all the requirements that have been adopted by the community in your area.
Entry options:
Simple, smooth entry
This option for arranging the entrance is as simple and “standard” as possible. To bring it to life, you just need to lay down a covering and install a gate of the required width. However, such a jackpot occurs quite rarely and it is more likely that the entrance will have to be built using completely different technologies.
Entry with drainage system
When developing a site, it is recommended to lay a drainage system along the road. This rule has consequences in the form of organizing an entrance to a drainage trench using a pipe with a diameter of 30-50 cm (depending on the volume of water to be drained). You cannot simply fill up the ditch; in this case, the entire system loses its meaning, since it simply will not perform its function. This means that it is necessary to think over a plan that will ensure a good entry and will not become an obstacle to the functioning of the drainage system.
In addition to this classic option for arranging an entrance with a drainage system, there is also an option for arranging an entrance with increased strength. It involves the construction of additional concrete walls. An important rule is also that when constructing such driveways, the pipe must have a slope similar to the bottom of the ditch, that is, the pipe must be laid parallel to the bottom of the ditch. Once the pipe is backfilled, water should not seep through the embankment you have built.
Drive through a ditch
There are quite a large number of ways to build a drive through a ditch, and they all have completely different costs, completion time and requirements for the qualifications of the craftsman. The three most commonly used options for performing this task are:
- Construction of a driveway using concrete slabs. In this case, you first need to make a choice in favor of one type of reinforced concrete slabs. It will depend on the width of the ditch itself. Such plates have a fairly large load capacity and can withstand even a completely clogged truck. However, it is worth considering that the slabs themselves have quite a lot of weight, which means that when a heavy vehicle drives into this area, the pressure on the ground will be quite large. So that after a short period of time the soil does not sag and you do not have to deal with check-in issues again, you need to immediately think about strengthening this area.
- Use of lumber, metal profiles and sheet iron. The last option will only be available if your budget is close to unlimited, since it has a fairly high cost. You will only have to use new material, since used material is definitely not suitable for these purposes. In addition, you will need to hire a highly qualified welder: it will definitely not be possible to assemble the necessary structure yourself.
- The most common option for arranging a drive through a ditch is to use an embankment with a drainage pipe. It wins due to its final cost and relative ease of work. Options for completing this task will depend on the width and depth of the ditch.
Entry on a slope
Very often the driveway is arranged with an upward or downward slope. In this case, it is necessary to increase the adhesion of the vehicle’s wheels to the road surface in order to exclude the possibility of its spontaneous movement. For such an entrance, the principle of a ramp with a maximum slope of 23-24 degrees is usually used.
Conclusion
A modern driveway to your home is not just an additional road surface near the site that matches the size of your gate. This is a truly difficult task if you treat the construction of your home with all responsibility and trepidation. Of course, you can always try to do everything yourself and check-in is no exception, but first you need to study the issue very well. If you are confident in your abilities and easy-to-execute options are definitely suitable for your case, feel free to try. However, if you are not confident in your knowledge, and checking in in your case is not the easiest task, then we will definitely help you in realizing your plans. Come to our office and together we will develop a competent, holistic project for your future home.