Driveway Grading in Naperville, IL
We shape and pack down the ground under driveways in Naperville, Illinois, so water runs off and away from the house.
- Quotes in writing
- 21 areas covered
Naperville Asphalt Driveway grades driveways for homes across Naperville. We shape the ground under your driveway so it slopes the right way, then pack it down hard before any stone or asphalt goes on.
What driveway grading is
The Federal Highway Administration calls the ground a pavement is built on the subgrade. It says the subgrade gives the crew a platform to build on, and holds the pavement up without giving way under it in a way that hurts the pavement.
It says the top layer of the natural soil may be packed down, or treated, to make it stronger and stiffer. That's the part of the job we call grading: we cut the soil down or fill it in to get the slope, then roll it until it's firm.
Why the slope matters
The Federal Highway Administration says one way to keep water out of a pavement is to give it enough slope so rain runs off fast. The other way it names is sealing all the cracks and joints.
We set the slope on your driveway so rain runs off before it can soak in. Down the road, we can do the crack filling too.
Naperville's slope rules for driveways
The City of Naperville's grading checklist for lots where a house is torn down and rebuilt says driveway slopes must be between 2 and 10 percent, and must send water away from the house. It says the apron, where the driveway meets the street, must slope between 2 and 6 percent.
Before we quote, we measure the slope on your lot and tell you if the driveway can't meet those numbers the way it sits now.
Permits for regrading a driveway
The City of Naperville says it requires property owners to fill out and send in a Driveway Permit Application before a new driveway goes in. Its Driveway Guide says that rebuilding a driveway with any changes needs a permit too.
If the new grade changes your driveway, we tell you before we start, and we help you with the drawing the city asks for.
How we grade a driveway
First we take off the old surface, or the topsoil where the driveway will go. Then we mark the slope with stakes, cut or fill the soil to match, and roll it until it's firm.
The City of Naperville's Driveway Guide sets a 6 inch stone base for asphalt driveways, with 2 inches of asphalt on your own property and 3 inches in the public right-of-way, the strip by the street. We build on the graded ground to those numbers or thicker.
What to get in writing
Ask for these in writing, whoever you hire:
- Which way the driveway will slope, and where the water will go.
- How steep the driveway and the apron will be.
- How deep the stone base will be.
- Who applies for the Naperville driveway permit.
- What happens to any soil that gets dug out.
Questions about driveway grading in Naperville
Why does water sit in puddles on my driveway?
We check the slope first, since water sits where a driveway has sunk or was built too flat, and we can regrade that part or the whole drive.
Can you regrade my driveway without replacing it?
Yes, we can regrade a gravel driveway where it is. On an asphalt driveway, we set the slope in the ground under the asphalt, so we take the old asphalt up first and lay new, as on our asphalt driveway replacement page.
Why do driveways break up after a Naperville winter?
The Federal Highway Administration says that when the frozen ground under a pavement thaws, it can hold up much less weight. It says many potholes and other breakups come from this.
Will regrading my driveway send water into my neighbor's yard?
The City of Naperville's Driveway Guide says a paved driveway on private property must be graded and drained so it doesn't push more runoff water onto the property next door. We set the slope so the water runs off away from your neighbor's yard.
Does the sidewalk across my driveway have to be level?
The City of Naperville's grading checklist says the slope across the public sidewalk can't be more than 2 percent, even where it crosses the driveway. It also says the old sidewalk has to be replaced when a driveway is new or moved, so the walk is the 6 inches thick the city requires.
Get a quote for driveway grading
Call us, or send the quote form with your ZIP code and roughly how big your driveway is. We'll come out, check the slope, and give you a written quote. To see the other work we do, go to the Naperville Asphalt Driveway home page.
Ready to talk about your asphalt driveway job?
Send the quote form with your ZIP code and what you need. We will get back to you with a written quote.