I am in the process of laying a gravel parking lot as part of my oil dealership. I am using the typical blue foam for a base and Woodland Scenics fine ballast for the gravel. Scenic Cement will be used to cement things in place. What are some good or best ways to level things out before glueing things down? Are gravel lots all that level anyway?
If you want to shape/ contour the approach road, shoulders, add drainage ditches, this is the time to do so. You can shape the foam carving any low areas surrounding the lot etc, smooth out and level w/ plaster, durabond or whatever product you like. The ballast may be a bit too coarse for scale gravel. Fine sand and even try sanded tile grout. A mixture of the sand/ ballast may even work out. The final coloring can be done w/ washes to show the years of staining from oil. An industrial lot for truck traffic will have a decent base and shouldn’t be too rutted, but doesn’t mean that it has to be perfectly flat either.
I just finished graveling the Freightways parking lot using WS fine light grey ballast around the edges and fine grey bkend with some fine grey on top.
First I “painted” the surface with a white glue / alcohol solution to hold the stone in place and then spread the stone. After spreading the stone I then wet it down with alcohol followed with the white glue mixture. The stone isn’t going anywhere, that’s for sure.
The light grey wasn’t quite as dark as I would have lilked so I may add more grey blend.
Let’s see some pictures and good luck.
Bob
Bob
Fine wet or dry sandpaper/emery paper would make a decent surface without being too coarse. Whatever you choose to use, you can always glue on some sand here and there where the gravel would build up from use by traffic, along with some very fine rock dust. That would stop it becoming too uniform in size.
Mike
Most gravel parking lots are, in my experience, pretty level and have been compressed to a more or less even flatness over the years. Modest evidence is to compare what it is like to walk in regular street shoes on your typical gravel parking lot versus trying to walk on a ballasted railroad ROW.
Dave Nelson
As referred to above, fine ballast represents stones 2-3" in diameter, or a little smaller than a man’s fist. Parking lots and roads are generally surfaced with crushed stone 1/2" to 3/4" in diameter. See if you can find some fine sand.
And while it will generally be fairly well packed and level, unless it has been recently regraded and dressed, there will be some ruts and potholes.
Mind you, heavy trucks in a parking lot, doing a lot of twisting and turning, are going to convert gravel to fine dust in just a few weeks or months. And yes, there may be ruts or potholes. Each time it rains, and a truck hits a pothole, the force of the tire splashing the water is equal to a (very brief) shot with a pressure washer. This is why gravel potholes get bigger with each rain, but may stay the same size for months during dry weather.
Brad
I like using scenic express #50 ballast and the fine powders from Arizona Rock . Color will depend on location.
Photo is of service road near lake. Have also done a few parking lots for some modules but don’t have photos. The ballast is on a grey base of tinted FusionFiber followed by application fo the ballast to the wet fiber. Mist with wet water and dry. No glue required, no vacuuming.
Here is a photo of gravel road on base of black tinted FusionFiber
Try one of the new Stone finished spray paints, these are water based so you could spray straight onto your foam after you have prepared it.
http://rustoleum.com/CBGProduct.asp?pid=79
Krylon also has stone paint in various colours.
I “paint” diluted white glue over the whole area I want the gravel. Then I sprinkle fine ballast using a salt/pepper shaker. This method really results in a thin, level surface. Lastly use an eye dropper to spread Scenic Cement.
I wait a least 12 hours then vacum the excess.