The driveway at my house extends past the garage such that the entire back "yard" is paved over with asphalt. I plan to remove all of the asphalt aside from the driveway to create space for a deck and backyard. I would love any feedback or advice on this plan in case I'm missing something:
- I called 811 and confirmed no public utilities in the backyard. The electric to the garage is supplied by an above ground hanging wire
- I am renting an asphalt dumpster, and then will separately rent a dumpster for the compact stone underneath
- I have an SDS Max hammer, a crow bar, a wheelbarrow, and a shovel. I plan to break and pry up the asphalt, and get it to the dumpster via the wheelbarrow. I estimate there are about 5-10 tons in the back
- I plan to use the SDS Max hammer to cut a semi-straight line between the inside corner of my garage to the inside corner of my house. That will make a relatively but not perfectly straight edge for the yard, while keeping a full size driveway for access to / from the garage
- I plan to leave about 1-2 inches of asphalt around the foundation of the garage to minimize any risk of termites
- I plan to leave an area of compact stone about 10×20 feet directly behind the house so that sometime soon I can build a wooden ground-level deck over top of it
- I will have about 5 cubic yards of dirt delivered and grade it down away from the house to replace the asphalt and stone (this does not include the area where I plan to leave the stone to build the deck on top)
- I will install a gutter on the low side of the garage roof to prevent erosion in the soil around the roof
- I *might* install PVC and / or french drains through the length of the yard (i.e. from the deck to the rear of the property, where there is a large slope into the next property which is an empty lot) prior to installing the dirt. The PVC would be to carry the water from the downspouts out to the rear of the yard and away from the foundation. I figure that would be easiest to do while I have the yard dug up already
- I will plant shade tolerant grass seed in the fall to try to get some grass growing in the back of the yard between the planned deck and the end of our property. I know that I will struggle to get grass around the roots directly below the tree, but I'm hoping for some semblance of a small lawn between the deck and tree. We'll see if it works given the shade.
Anything I missed or big issues I should look into?
by damnthatskwazy
21 Comments
Rent a skid steer to tear up the asphalt. It will take you a fraction of the time.
I’d rent a jackhammer
I’d start breaking it up now, and wait until you have a pile before getting the dumpster.
Having a dumpster and being on a time crunch will make this backbreaking work. Starting now and working for an hour or two at a time would be much more manageable, then get the dumpster when you’re ready for it
Go to Home Depot and rent a concrete saw. Make the cut for the area you want to keep and demo the rest.
I just had a large area of concrete removed and the company used a skid steer. It was done in a couple hours.
Might be worth your while just to hire it out. By the time you rent some heavier equipment and learn to operate it efficiently…..
That’s a pretty big area. Doing by hand will not be a pleasant experience. And your back will thank you. You only get one of those.
Watch for utilities under asphalt. Might be shallow pipes or electrical wires. Excavator works good for small digs.
Call before you dig. They must send someone out to mark the lines. I have no idea how they did that by phone.
Start small and away from the house. Its a lot of work
A bobcat would make quick work of that.
Do this yourself only if you are willing to RENT a machine.
You won’t (for many years) fully appreciate the spinal damage you may have caused trying to save a buck. Your free time is worth at least double your hourly wage pay.
Pay a young adult
to help you. You’ll thank me later)
I have a small MT 100. My little machine would take that up in no time.
I agree with the other commenters. Hiring someone to do it that has the equipment will likely cost you the same as you renting the machine and a dumpster.
What is that growing through the asphalt? Looks like mint or something. Mint is highly invasive and very difficult to get rid of once established. You might want to try and dig out a lot of soil and roots so it doesn’t overtake your new garden beds. Maybe this was why it was paved over to begin with.
As someone who rented an electric jackhammer for a fifteen by twenty section of concrete ‘foundation’ for a low (rotted) deck. F that. It’s an awesome Tim Taylor fun toy for the first two hours. By hour seven, you are no longer having fun. The second day is less fun. And the pieces are getting bigger. I regretted that when I was lifting them later. Asphalt should be a lot thinner and a lot lighter. Hopefully.
Get the bobcat.
Someone else suggested using a concrete saw for a crisp outline and to keep the areas that you want to. Awesome idea.
Did you call miss utilities already? Whoever you call in your town to make sure you’re not digging up natural gas lines, water pipes, electric, etc.
Unfortunately, be aware they may only mark the approaches to your house. Not everyone marks the back yard.
Make the deck out of Trex or something similar that does well in your climate. There are different formulations for very hot areas as well as formulations for very cold areas. It will be much more expensive than wood. It should not be because it’s plastic. But it will be. Follow the framing spacing suggestions. Plastic needs much tighter spacing on the joists.
Decks are awesome, at least for the first five years. Honestly, I ripped out our rotted deck when i moved in, and put in a concrete cobblestone paver patio. That was twenty five years ago. Still happy with it. Still zero maintenance except blowing off the leaves in the fall.
First thing is to call to have any gas lines marked.
Second thing is to hire somebody else to do this for you lol.
Put dirt on top and let nature do its thang?
You’re gonna do this with a crowbar and a wheel barrow? Are you fucking nuts?
I think you’re underestimating the amount of asphalt and base. How many square feet? How thick is the asphalt?
Rent a dingo, they’re pretty to easy to use and fairly inexpensive
Hear me out. Paint it black and make a hockey rink or a basketball court. Save money and time. Put off your backyard plan for another 5-7 years.
I think an SDS hammer drill will be undersized for that job. It will take forever and you’ll risk overheating your tool. If you aren’t going to rent or hire out heavy equipment, you want a pavement breaker / demolition hammer. Something like this:
[https://www.dewalt.com/product/d25980/68-lb-1-18-hex-pavement-breaker](https://www.dewalt.com/product/d25980/68-lb-1-18-hex-pavement-breaker)
[https://www.harborfreight.com/15-amp-66-lb-1-18-in-hex-breaker-hammer-with-maximum-vibration-control-56407.html](https://www.harborfreight.com/15-amp-66-lb-1-18-in-hex-breaker-hammer-with-maximum-vibration-control-56407.html)
I’ve rented the Dewalt breaker before from a local rental company, was only $90 a day.
You’re gonna have an absolutely horrible time hand wailing and bailing that asphalt, you need to hire an earthworks company or rent a machine if you are proficient. That being said old asphalt breaks with a machine like butter and you’d have to break something and stop the machine from working to not get it done in a day with dumpster on site. Spend the 300$ bucks for the day and save yourself a world of pain man.