How to Install a Gravel Parking Strip, Part 1 – Site Preparation – DIY!

During the COVID-19 stay-at-home order, we decided to install a gravel parking strip. Instead of hiring a professional landscaper, we did all the manual labor ourselves. I recorded video of the entire week-long installation process from which I assembled two separate videos: Part 1 – Site Preparation, and Part 2 – Spreading the Gravel.

The total cost of this project: $630:

2 each 100' Rolls of Vigoro Heavy-Duty Weed Control Fabric and staples: $94
2 each 50' Rolls of Vigoro Heavy-Duty Edging and 24 stakes: $107
10 Yards of 5/8" Minus Crushed Basalt Gravel: $429

Our Gravel Parking Strip project involved 10 stages:

1. Call Before You Dig (homeowners call 811).
Although I was only digging about a 6” depth to remove sod, there were underground utilities and a community waterline, and I wanted them marked before the heavy gravel truck delivered the gravel.
2. Remove a 9 ½' x 72' strip if lawn that borders the busy road into our community. Fortunately, two of our neighbors gladly took the sod.
3. Level the dirt and remove soil to a depth of 4" along the edges of the lawn, the concrete driveway and street.
4. Install a heavy-duty weed control fabric.
5. Install a heavy-duty plastic edging to separate the gravel from the lawn.
6. Receive delivery of the gravel.
7. Spread the gravel.
8. Hose down the gravel to settle the dust.
9. Drive back and forth over the gravel in our car to compact it.
10. Make adjustments to bumps and dips in the gravel and compact again.

I hope that you enjoy watching this video and that my gravel parking strip project experience will help you with your gravel project!

[jesserolli]

I've been doing this for about a dozen or more years now. A few tips, sod cutter #1, tac the fabric as you lay it out, use landscape pins instead of staples, use a hammer and cut some length of them when using in hard ground, pound edging stacks in about 3/4 way down the edging and at a 45. Forget the connecting peace, cut a slit on the underside of the round part of the edging, squeeze it and slide it into the other edging about 6" or so

[eddieingalls]

So refreshing when the host does not play up to the camera, spend half an hour talking about themselves and trying to be funny. Well done - and what a beautiful place you live in.

[Hypedhitman]

Great work Randall ! Men like you are a rare breed these days.

[hockeyboy]

Much more interesting to see this gentleman than modern young and dump video bloggers

[mlaner]

I've stripped sod for a few flower beds the hard way, and I can't recommend enough; just rent a sod cutter if you're doing a large area. It is so fast and easy, and saves your energy for all the other labor yet to do. The sod cutter also gives you nice uniform strips of sod that you can sell or relocate easy enough. I was able to sell the sod to pay for the rental; win win!

[SledDog]

That neighbor should have been there helping!

[SteelCtyGrl]

Great video - thanks for the tips. I admire all of the hard work you and your wife put into this project! After watching this, I’m very grateful my project is just for one parking spot! 🙂

[DJ-ihtz]

A better joining technique for the edging. Cut about a foot of the rounded top edge off, overlap the two one foot sections and use the joiner piece on the inside of the rounded section. Pound stake into overlapped edging. Hope that helps for future projects.

[garettanderson]

Man I can't get my wife to help me do anything no matter how many arms I need to hold this or that. You're lucky.

[MistyMarie]

Great video, I have a small home driveway with stones and has become dirt, also has this black strip stuff. Its been horrible as vehicles have hit it, bent it and hard to pull up. I was thinking of redoing drive, but quote was over $3000 for 11 metres, so thought i might try myself. Your video inspired me to do it lol. Thanks. I hope your strip worked out well.

[Bierdaddy]

You give me hope that I can do something similar, though only half the length, by my garage for a trailer. Not much a diy’er, but never too late to learn. Thank you, sir.

[breezebenitses]

Great video randall.respect from across the pond

[MetaRook]

Thanks for making this! I'm considering doing this myself and now I'm definitely moving forward with the project

[SleepyKittens]

All the professional landscape black plastic edging I have used in my decades of gardening, has a connector that goes inside the hollow edge to connect them. I use long pins or even tent stakes pounded at an angle into the lawn side for those unruly curves, or slice into one side and fit it that way (as mentioned in another comment below). I do not recommend using anything that puncture the fabric, but instead use bricks to anchor the nonwoven heavy duty fabric, otherwise all punctures will allow roots to wiggle into the holes from the lawn side and come up into your gravel bed (from experience).

I plan on using gravel forms (ie - geocells) to help hold in the material and add more strength since my city ordinance is not allowing anything 5ft from border, and while I can ignore the ordinance, I would hate to sink thousands into a driveway expansion only to have the city make me tear it out. Lastly, Preen granules every spring and non-selective weed chemicals as soon as weeds appear.

[ktchpmn]

Looking good! Instead of the plastic edging, I've always thought that a square piece of treated lumbar would look good. Although now that I think about it, there is probably a risk that the mower would chew it up

[MichaelBlast]

I got the same fabric barrier.. shiny side up. I just have to fill a area next to my driveway that collects water, 105" by 43" I'll fill it with all purpose gravel and put a few stepping stones on it..

[Snoogable]

That's so awesome!! I'm wondering if you noticed any frost heaving issues with the barrier?

[RachaelJohn]

Amazing job. Really well done. Love how neat and tidy you were removing the grass--that would definitely be me haha. But thank you for sharing, this is great inspiration for us eventually doing the same to our muddy driveway :)

[joaquinsuarez]

You can use a heat gun to straighten the plastic edger.

[Svetlanasmithofficial]

Thank you for the video! Been searching for a while on how to. You did an amazing job!