Land Grading
Land grading shapes your ground so water runs off it instead of standing on it. We handle yard leveling and lot grading within a 50 mile radius of Hammond.
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A gravel driveway holds up in Louisiana when it is built from the ground down. We start under the surface, where soft or wet material has to come out. The subgrade gets shaped to the slope the drive will follow, then packed. A base course goes down over that and gets compacted. Top rock goes on last, and the middle of the drive sits higher than the edges. That crown is what moves rain off the surface instead of into the base. J-Rod's Dirt Work is based in Hammond, LA. Estimates are free, so call or text (985) 500-4145.
Two problems cause most gravel driveway trouble around here. A drive that was never built on a base sinks into the ground and turns to mud. A drive that sits flat holds water until it potholes. Hammond gets about 63 inches of rain a year, and this ground holds water. Rock added on top of either problem buys a few months. We dig out what is soft, put in base rock, and shape the drive so water leaves it. Where the ground under a drive is too soft to build on, it becomes an excavation job first. Call or text (985) 500-4145 for a free estimate.
Tell us about the job and the ground. We will get right back to you.
The first work is under the rock. We strip the grass and topsoil off the drive line, because neither holds weight. If the material below is wet clay or muck, that comes out too. The subgrade then gets shaped to the slope the drive will follow, and packed down. How deep we go depends on the ground and on what will drive over it. Getting the bottom right is what keeps a drive from moving. Rock laid right on topsoil sinks into the ground by the second wet season.
Base rock goes down next. Most drives around here run a crusher run base, like 610 limestone or crushed concrete. It is crushed stone mixed with fines, and the fines lock the stone together once it is packed. Top rock goes over the base after that. We shape the surface so the center of the drive rides higher than the edges. About half an inch of fall per foot of width is a common target. On a new build we put the drive in with the house pad and rough grade.
Ground across Southeast Louisiana is flat and the water table sits high. Our soils hold water instead of draining it. A drive level with the yard beside it has nowhere to send rain. The water stands, softens the base, and traffic pushes ruts into the soft spots. Those ruts hold more water, and the drive gets worse after every storm. A crown handles the first part, since water runs off the top to both sides. The ground alongside has to take it from there. So we look at where water goes once it leaves the drive.
Sometimes that means a shallow ditch or a swale along one side. Sometimes the drive has to sit up higher than the yard it crosses. We can shape that while the machines are already on site. When the whole yard drains badly, grading the ground around it is its own job. Where a low stretch has to come up, dirt goes in and gets packed before any rock. A drive sitting above standing water stays firm a lot longer. We will tell you what the water is doing before rock goes down.
Repair calls usually start with potholes and ruts. We grade the drive back out first, which pulls the loose rock off the edges and fills the holes. That alone brings back a drive that still has base under it. If the rock has thinned out or worked into the dirt, grading will not hold. Then the drive needs new material and a fresh crown. Soft spots that keep coming back mean the trouble is below the surface. Those get dug out and rebuilt. We check what is left under the rock before quoting the work.
Low stretches that hold water need to come up before new rock helps. We bring in fill dirt, build the low ground up, and pack it in lifts. Base rock and top rock go back over it after that. Long country drives and gravel roads get built the same way. Wider roads and heavy truck traffic call for more base under the surface. Tell us what will be driving on it and we will size it for that. Call or text (985) 500-4145 and we will come look at the drive.
Free, no-obligation estimates across a 50-mile radius of Hammond.
(985) 500-4145From the first call or text to the finished ground, here is how it goes.
Reach us at (985) 500-4145. Tell us the address and what the ground needs. A photo or two helps us size the job.
We drive out and look the property over. We check how the machines get in and where the water goes, then size up what has to move.
You get a price for the work, with the scope spelled out. Take your time with it. The estimate is free either way.
Once you say go, we set a day that fits your build schedule and the weather. Wet ground can push a job, and we tell you when it does.
The crew runs the skid steer or the excavator and works the job through. Debris and extra dirt get hauled off as we go.
We smooth the ground to final grade and clean up behind us. Then we go over the finished job with you before the machines leave.
Common questions about gravel driveways across a 50-mile radius of Hammond. If yours is not here, call or text and ask.
Land grading shapes your ground so water runs off it instead of standing on it. We handle yard leveling and lot grading within a 50 mile radius of Hammond.
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We sell fill dirt and haul it to your property. Loads get dumped where you want them, spread out, and packed down so the ground holds.
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We take a lot from raw ground to a pad you can build on. Fill placed and compacted in lifts, rough grade set, and access roughed in for the trucks.
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Excavation covers cuts and fills, soft or bad material dug out, and ditches and drainage swales. A Case excavator and a Kubota SVL75-3 skid steer do the work within 50 miles of Hammond.
Learn MoreNobody prices your job from behind a desk. We walk the ground, check the access and where the water goes, and price the work from what we see.
Send us the address and tell us what needs doing. We come look at the ground, then give you a price for the job. The estimate costs nothing.
We run out to Baton Rouge, Covington, New Orleans, and up into southern Mississippi. If your property sits inside 50 miles of Hammond, we can get a machine there.
We work house lots and job sites for builders and businesses. A backyard that holds water and a commercial pad both get the same machine time and the same attention.
Call or text (985) 500-4145, or send the form and we will get back to you. Tell us the address and what the ground needs, and we will set up a free estimate.
Tell us about the job and the ground. We will get right back to you.