Dirt driveway maintenace questions

[Bailey Guns]

DRAINAGE, DRAINAGE, DRAINAGE. Can't emphasize that enough. If you're drainage isn't good, anything you do is basically a waste of time. The second most important part is having the driveway properly crowned. Goes hand in hand with drainage.

My drive in Bailey was a PITA because it had never been properly maintained over the years before we bought the place. It was very long and cost prohibitive (for us, anyway) to hire someone to come in with equipment needed to properly crown the road and fix the drainage issues.

So, I did what I could. Every few years I'd hire a professional for a fixed amount (usually something like "how much time can I get for X dollars?"). They always did a good job but the first serious rain or runoff would immediately start to ruin it.

I did buy a DR Grader several years ago. It was pricey at about $1300 or so if I recall correctly. I was skeptical until I used it. DR gave me a 6 month, no risk trial. Said they would send someone to pack it up and ship it back if I wasn't happy and I could use it every day if I liked. Free shipping, too. So, I bought one. Needless to say, I didn't send it back. One of the scarifying teeth broke off after a year or so (two year warranty). I asked them to send me one planning to weld it onto the bracket that all the teeth were on. Two days later the entire assembly showed up...a part that cost several hundred dollars. I used it once but found the tooth from the old one. Welded it on and continued to use the old one keeping the new one for a spare. I used that thing several times a year for probably 8 years or so. I sold it for $600 when I recently moved. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED if you have the means to get one. After I bought that I never needed to hire anyone again so it really paid for itself.

The DR Grader was outstanding at smoothing the drive and filling in holes. The only downside to it is it's strictly for smoothing...it can't crown or cut drainage. Though after getting the hang of using it you can learn how to move material to the center of the drive for a half-assed crowning job.