Driveway pavers in Tuscaloosa AL - a driveway that stays tight under daily parking
If your concrete is cracked or your gravel keeps rutting, we lay pavers on a packed stone base that holds up where you park.
- Base spelled out Your estimate names the base and pattern, so bids line up.
- Herringbone for daily parking The paver pattern that locks together best under everyday cars.
- Owner checks the work I come out to look myself and check on our crew.
- Walk-through at the end We walk the finished driveway together before we call it done.
- Licensed and insured.
- Free estimates at your property.
- We reply within 1 business day.
How do you know your driveway is ready for pavers?
Most driveways show trouble well before they fail outright, and catching it early usually means less to tear out and fewer surprises once the old surface comes up.
Cracks across an old concrete slab
Long cracks and broken corners usually mean the ground under the slab moved or the slab was poured thin. Left alone, pieces settle further and water gets underneath.
Ruts and low spots in gravel
Gravel that ruts where you park keeps shifting under your tires, so you'll keep adding stone and raking it out until a firm, packed base goes underneath.
Pavers sinking in the tire tracks
Pavers that dip where the wheels run usually sit on a base too thin or too loosely packed for cars, and the dip spreads the longer you park on it.
Pavers creeping out at the edges
When the outside pavers drift outward and joints open up, the edge restraint is usually missing or broken. Without it, traffic keeps pushing the whole field apart.
Pavers that rock underfoot
A paver that tips when you step on it has lost its sand bed or the grip of its neighbors. Loose ones chip, trip people and let the pavers around them move.
Water sitting where you park
Puddles that stay on the driveway after a rain usually mean the surface or base wasn't sloped to drain, and standing water softens the ground underneath and speeds up sinking.
How we lay driveway pavers
A paver driveway is concrete or brick pavers set in a thin bed of sand over a packed stone base, and the base does most of the work. When I come out, I look at what's there now, how the yard slopes and what the ground is like, because that decides how deep we dig. Our crew takes out the old surface or soil, packs the stone base in layers, sets edge restraints down both sides so traffic can't spread the pavers apart, levels the sand bed and lays the pavers. For a driveway you park on every day, we lay herringbone, a zigzag of pavers set at angles to each other, because it locks together best. We compact the finished surface and sweep sand into the joints so every paver is held tight. The price mostly turns on the driveway's size, how deep the base goes, brick or concrete pavers and whether an old driveway comes out first, and that same tear-out and digging is what sets the schedule. I spell out the base and the pattern in the estimate so you can line ours up against any other bid for driveway pavers in Tuscaloosa.
A driveway cut into a slope often needs something to hold the bank back, and we'd rather plan retaining wall construction and the driveway together than fix a washout later. If the brick steps, porch or walls beside the driveway have crumbling joints or loose brick, I'll point it out while I'm there, and our masonry restoration work can take care of it.
What happens after you call about a paver driveway?
Here's how a paver driveway runs with us, from your first call to walking the finished job together.
Call or send a request
Call (205) 579-1102 or use the form, and we'll get back to you to set a time. I come out myself and show you what I'm seeing.
Get a written estimate
I write up the estimate with the base, the pavers and the pattern spelled out. That gives you the same details to ask every other bidder for.
We build the driveway
We sort out any permit questions first, then our crew digs, packs the base and lays the pavers. I check in on site while the work goes on.
Walk the finished driveway
Once the joints are swept and the site is cleaned up, we walk the driveway together. Point out anything that doesn't look right to you.
Why Tuscaloosa homeowners call D&L Tuscaloosa Concrete and Masonry
The estimate comes from me
I look at your driveway myself and write the estimate, so the person quoting it has actually seen your ground.
In business since 2017
We've been at this since 2017, and I came to masonry from building stone borders, so base work is old habit.
Licensed and insured, ask to see it
We're licensed and insured. Ask to see both before you sign with any driveway contractor, us included.
Reading Tuscaloosa ground first
Where the county maps Bama soil, the ground's often been filled, cut or graded, so I check yours before sizing the base.
Get a written estimate for your paver driveway
Tell us the driveway's rough size in square feet and whether an old driveway comes out first, and we'll reply within one business day. I come out for a free estimate at your property, with no obligation to go ahead.
Paver driveways to look through
Look through these examples of paver driveways, colors and patterns to get a feel for what you'd like before we talk it over.
Paver driveway questions we hear
These are the questions Tuscaloosa homeowners ask most before they pick a paver contractor. If yours isn't here, call and ask about your own driveway.
How much does a paver driveway cost in Tuscaloosa?
A sand-set concrete or brick paver driveway in Tuscaloosa, installed with its stone base and sand bedding, usually costs about $12 to $16 per square foot. Brick pavers run a little higher than concrete in those figures, and they leave out tearing out an old driveway, so ask every bidder to price removal as its own line. Our estimate gives you our number for your driveway.
How deep should the base be under a paver driveway?
A 2022 industry guide recommends at least 6 to 8 inches of packed stone base under a driveway, and more for some sites and traffic. The Tuscaloosa price figures from that same year assume a 4-inch base, so ask each bidder what depth their price includes before you compare numbers.
Do I need a permit for a paver driveway in Tuscaloosa?
It's a question to put to the City of Tuscaloosa before any digging starts. The city requires a building permit before work on a new building or structure, while routine maintenance and ordinary repairs generally need none, and its right-of-way page says any permanent structure along the street needs a right-of-way use permit before it goes in. When a job needs a permit, we handle the application with the city or county office that covers your address, and we check for a historic district before we schedule anything.
How do I choose a paver driveway contractor in Tuscaloosa?
Ask each bidder whether they hold a current certificate in the ICPI Concrete Paver Installer Certification Program, because ICPI guidance says experienced contractors with that certificate should do the installation. The city also requires a city general contractor's license number on every residential permit application, and residential projects valued at $10,000 or more need a State Homebuilders License, with exceptions for contractors who qualify.
What is the best base for a paver driveway that carries heavy trucks?
One cost guide suggests a poured concrete slab on a packed base under the pavers when a driveway carries heavy loads, with the pavers set in sand or mortar on top of the slab. If you park something heavy, tell me when I come out so we can talk through what your driveway needs.
Are permeable pavers a good choice for a driveway in Tuscaloosa?
Only where groundwater sits deep enough under your lot. Federal highway guidance says permeable paver systems generally aren't used where groundwater sits within 2 feet of the bottom of the pavement, so find out how close it sits on your lot before you settle on them.
Talk to us about your paver driveway
We answer (205) 579-1102 seven days a week, with satisfaction guaranteed on every job.