Posts Tagged: Aggregate Porous Pavement

Innovative Solutions for Designing & Constructing Transmission Line Roads & Substations

Posted by Ashley Beyer & filed under General, GEOWEB Geocells for Unpaved Roads & Pavement Reinforcement.

Energy Site

When natural disasters, power surges, accidents, or general equipment failures threaten the reliability of the power grid, maintenance crews must be able to quickly and safely access transmission lines and substations to make repairs. Designing resilient energy infrastructure that ensures power companies have a reliable, regular supply of energy and contingency measures in place in the event of a power failure is crucial to their business and the communities they serve. Build Sustainable Roads for Utility Transmission & Substation Access Accessing sites in remote or undeveloped areas can present several challenges for the energy industry when it comes to building, operating, and maintaining power transmission lines and substations. Soft soils and low-water crossings can make it difficult for utility vehicles to safely and effectively reach sites for routine maintenance and emergency repairs. The GEOWEB® 3D Soil Stabilization System is ideal for shallow ground improvement applications and can easily be incorporated into unpaved access roads for transmission lines and substations. The GEOWEB geocells, made from an all-weather high-density polyethylene (HDPE) material, are durable, chemical resistant, and outperform standard two-dimensional geosynthetics through lateral confinement of infill materials, facilitating what is known as the “mattress effect” for distributing loads across weak subgrades. The… Read more »

Porous Pavements Myth Busters: Cost

Posted by Katie Bocskor & filed under Grass Pavers for Porous Paving (GEOBLOCK), Gravel Pavers for Permeable Pavements (GEOPAVE), Porous Pavements.

Written By: William G Handlos, P.E. Does a porous pavement solution cost more? Porous pavements are less expensive to install than impervious concrete or asphalt when you consider total project costs. When evaluating parking lot construction costs for porous pavements vs. impervious alternatives, you must consider the following cost “buckets.” Traditional pavements such as bituminous asphalt or Portland cement concrete enjoy low cost and ubiquitous installation contractors. This information may lead one to think that choosing a porous pavement would lead to higher overall project costs, but that is a myth because almost everything else about traditional parking lot construction is far more expensive than the porous pavement alternative. Traditional hard-surface pavements require inlet structures, castings, and covers for inlets and manholes, underground pipes, outfall structures, and detention ponds. Costs & Maintenance of Stormwater Ponds Detention ponds have three major cost drivers. Land costs to locate a pond can vary wildly depending upon commercial real estate values, but it is not unusual for land to be upwards of $250,000/acre even in small markets. The impact of the land utilized for detention ponds does not end there. Lost rental or income value is another cost consideration. Ponds take up valuable commercial… Read more »

Porous Pavements Myth Busters: Snow Removal

Posted by Katie Bocskor & filed under Grass Pavers for Porous Paving (GEOBLOCK), Gravel Pavers for Permeable Pavements (GEOPAVE), Porous Pavements.

Written By: Samantha Justice, P.E. What You Need to Know About Removing Snow from Porous Pavements Vehicle and pedestrian use on porous pavements don’t stop because it’s winter. Roads need to be plowed, parking lots need to be cleared, and walking paths need to be snow and ice-free for safe use. This is true for all surface types: concrete, asphalt, and porous pavements—however, it is a common misconception that snow removal is more challenging with porous pavement systems. Myth Busted: Snow removal on a Porous Pavement System (PPS) is easy! Get the answers below to the frequently asked questions about removing snow from plastic, modular type porous pavers.   Can I Apply Salt to Porous Pavements? Applying salt or ice melt chemicals to gravel-filled PPS surfaces encourages snow and ice to melt, the same as it would on a concrete road. Most porous paver units are made with High Density Polyethylene (HDPE), a strong plastic that has a high resistance to environmental factors and is chemically inert. Cold temperatures and freezing and melting snow or ice will not cause damage or deformation to the paver material. Most importantly, HDPE is chemically stable, so it will not react to applied deicers,… Read more »

Porous Pavements Myth Buster: Clogging

Posted by Katie Bocskor & filed under Grass Pavers for Porous Paving (GEOBLOCK), Gravel Pavers for Permeable Pavements (GEOPAVE), Porous Pavements.

Written By: Bill Handlos, P.E. Not All Porous Pavements Clog Well-designed porous pavement systems resist clogging When designing porous pavement systems, it is important to consider the effects of silt, grit, sand, and other fine material that can slow or stop water from infiltrating. However, it is a common myth that all porous pavement systems eventually clog. A good PPS system design, simple but effective site design, and careful construction inspection and field guidance can all but eliminate the clogging threat. System Design Do’s and Don’ts Cross-sections will vary according to the porous pavement selected, but following some simple practices can ensure a successful system with long-lasting percolation. Never place filter fabric immediately below the porous pavement surface. Whether you are using pervious concrete, porous asphalt, polyethylene injection-molded paving block (such as GEOBLOCK vegetated or GEOPAVE aggregate PPS), or concrete paving stone, your cross-section should allow free flow from the paving layer to the base and storage layers. The last thing you want is to trap water in your pavement layer. Surprisingly, at least one aggregate PPS manufacturer sells their product with a filter fabric attached to the bottom of the units. Always use a filter fabric or other separator at the bottom of… Read more »

Porous Pavements Myth Buster: Winter Durability

Posted by Katie Bocskor & filed under Grass Pavers for Porous Paving (GEOBLOCK), Gravel Pavers for Permeable Pavements (GEOPAVE), Porous Pavements.

Written By: Bill Handlos, P.E. Properly designed porous pavement systems will not be damaged by the dynamics of freeze-thaw cycles. For decades, civil engineering roadway designers have been trained to use positive drainage, crack sealing, and sealcoating to keep the area under pavement dry. The prevailing mentality was to use a well-graded, tightly compacted base under impervious concrete or asphalt wearing surfaces. When water gets between the well-graded base and the impervious surface, frost conditions would lift pavements, weaken the base structure, create potholes and, in general, wreak havoc with the life of the pavement.    So, it is not surprising that age-old tenets related to moisture, seepage, and freeze-thaw cycles get mistakenly applied to porous pavement systems. What makes well-designed porous pavement cross-sections so resistant to the power of freezing and expanding water? The answer is space. Poorly graded crushed aggregate offers up to a 40% void ratio, which gives water a place to move and expand upon freezing, and a network of pathways to drain. High void ratio systems allow the Earth’s natural warmth to move up from below the frost line into and through the open-air system just as water and ice-melt move through the system. If… Read more »

Porous Pavements Myth Buster: Winter Maintenance

Posted by Katie Bocskor & filed under Gravel Pavers for Permeable Pavements (GEOPAVE), Porous Pavements.

Winter Maintenance for Porous & Pervious Pavements Porous pavement systems are a great way to reduce the amount of stormwater runoff on your site and incorporate Low Impact Development (LID) practices. One of the simplest ways of creating a porous pavement area is to confine unbound aggregate in a rigid paving unit such as the GEOPAVE® Aggregate Porous Paver. The GEOPAVE system is similar to pervious concrete and porous asphalt solutions, but is usually both less expensive and easier to install. Porous Pavements Are Difficult to Maintain in Winter Weather Conditions.   NOT TRUE! The GEOPAVE Gravel Pavers are easy to maintain, and requires no special equipment. GEOPAVE parking lots or low volume roadways can be maintained in much the same way as a regular concrete or asphalt surface. An unbound aggregate system has many maintenance benefits over other porous pavement systems. Look at the table below and you’ll see how the GEOPAVE system beats pervious concrete and porous asphalt every time.     (Click Chart to Zoom)   The GEOPAVE rigid porous pavement system is comparable to standard paving materials, and a cut above other porous pavement systems. GEOPAVE systems have all of the benefits of hard surface porous pavements—fast… Read more »

Impervious Gravel vs. Porous Aggregate Paving Systems

Posted by Ashley Beyer & filed under Gravel Pavers for Permeable Pavements (GEOPAVE), Porous Pavements.

Written by William G. Handlos, P.E. For two decades, I held the position of City Engineer and frequently had to explain to disbelieving homeowners, developers and elected officials – that gravel driveways and parking lots were not porous. I would explain that for purposes of stormwater runoff, such gravel pavements must be treated exactly as we would concrete and asphaltic pavements. They often bristled at the idea that gravel did not percolate water and were upset to find that their gravel driveway, lots and roadways were assumed to shed 100% of rainwater. So it is with more than a dose of irony that I now have found myself in the position of regularly explaining to local and state officials that aggregate pavements are not necessarily impervious. Stakeholders are so accustomed to repeating the impervious gravel mantra…that they forget to notice that porous aggregate is not the same thing as gravel. I think it is best to start with a primer on the vernacular. A “good” gravel (Image 1) should have 40 to 70% stone, well-graded from 1/4” to 2-1/2” diameter; 20 to 50% sand; and 10% +/- fines. It should resist abrasion, shed water and be capable of being compacted. A… Read more »