Bulk Aggregates for Patios in Alden, KS
For gravel and aggregate delivery in Alden, KS, Kansas Rock Supply sells bulk material by the ton and the yard. If you are setting a patio or a slab, the load that matters is AB-3.
AB-3 is the Kansas name for dense-graded crushed limestone base. It is crushed rock and fines together, graded roughly 1 1/2 inch down, and it locks up tight when it is moisture-conditioned and rolled.
Ground here is sand, gravel and silt laid down by the Arkansas River, with sandy loam over the top. That ground drains fast, and a surface course with no binding fines sinks straight into it.
Ground and Conditions in Alden
A patio that never got a proper base shows it fast. The pavers rock underfoot, joints open, and the surface settles in patches after a wet spell.
Part of that is the ground. Across the Arkansas River Lowlands and the south-central sand prairie the soil is sand, gravel and silt laid down by the Arkansas River, with sandy loam on top.
Sand drains fast, which sounds like good news until you see the result. A surface course with no binding fines sinks straight into it, and the water table sits close under parts of the valley floor.
Wind moves loose sand as soon as the cover is broken. Spring high water scours banks along the rivers in this part of the state, so anything near a bank needs heavier stone.
Winters here are moderate by Kansas standards, and freeze and thaw cycles are shorter than in the north. They still move a drive or a patio that has no proper base under it.
Frost depth is set city by city in Kansas, so check with the local building official for the figure that applies to your footing.
The working season is long. The limits are wet spring weeks and high summer heat, and sandy ground is back in shape quickly after rain.
Materials for Alden Projects
Bedding material under pavers and flatwork is what this section comes down to. Get the layer under the pavers right and the surface stays flat.
Start with AB-3. It is the compacted base for patios, shed and shop pads, driveways and parking pads, and road shoulders.
The fines bind the crushed limestone together, so it holds its shape under a load instead of shifting like clean rock.
Screenings are the crusher fines left after limestone is screened, and they are the bedding layer that sits on top of the compacted base. They bed pavers and flagstone, level under flatwork and fill paver joints.
Washed sand, also called concrete sand or river sand, beds and levels under slabs and pavers and goes into concrete work. Much of the washed sand used in northeast Kansas comes out of the Kansas River valley.
3/8" Crushed Stone, or limestone chips, works as a topping course over a compacted base, in paver joints and in fine drainage. For a walkable path surface instead, Walkway Gravel is the finer, comfortable option underfoot.
If the pavers sit near a downspout or a low spot, a clean stone under the base helps. 1 Inch Clean, sold by inch size here as clean rock, is the washed limestone for French drains, foundation drains and pipe bedding.
Ground that has to come up before any base goes down takes Fill Dirt. Around planting beds, Garden Soil works over the tight clay and sandy ground of eastern Kansas.
Delivery to Alden and the Surrounding Area
You order online and a dump truck tips the load on site. The first choice is whether you want the quantity by the ton or by the yard.
Each product page has a calculator. Use it to size the load before you check out, then pick a delivery date at checkout.
Alden sits in Rice County. Delivery covers the town and the surrounding area, including Lyons, Sterling, Chase, Little River and Bushton.
Order Your Patio Base in Alden
Size your load with the calculator on the product page, then choose a quantity by the ton or the yard and pick a delivery date at checkout. Kansas Rock Supply delivers bulk aggregate across Rice County, and a dump truck tips it on site.
Place your order when you are ready to build.