A driveway is the sweeping entrance to your home – functional, practical, welcoming and a feature which can either detract or add value. Following are tips and ideas to design and install a driveway that adds curb appeal and value to your home.
Think about current and future use
When planning a driveway, you want to consider current and future use as your lifestyle changes, the kids grow up, or you take on new hobbies and interests. For example, you may decide to buy a boat or a caravan in the future, so your driveway needs to accommodate for this. Or you might want to convert part of your driveway to a patio later, in which case we’d suggest a concrete style and colour that will accommodate furniture.
The concrete styles we discuss here are for modern and heritage homes, with resources for proper site preparation and keeping your concrete driveway looking great for a lifetime.
Related article: Planning For A Concrete Driveway? Think About Current And Future Use
Do you have a steep driveway?
Steep driveways have their own challenges. Site preparation is even more important and so is the choice of concrete. If the driveway slopes off in difficult to reach angles, considerations such as drainage and access need to be taken into account. The concrete style chosen also needs to have the right amount of grip for vehicles which we will advise you on.
For more information, read Concrete Ideas For Steep Driveways To Add Curb Appeal To Your Home.
What style of home do you have?
Driveways for heritage or traditional homes
If your home has a more traditional style, then you’ll want a driveway that complements the era. You have many options here. A textured exposed aggregate with rounded pebbles in colours to suit your home may be perfect. Or you may prefer a stamped concrete pattern.
Stamped concrete or decorative concrete provides a range of patterns in slate, tiles or a cobblestone design and you can choose a variety of colours and textures to create the concrete style that is ideal for your home.
Another alternative is integral colour concrete can be coloured to compliment your home if you prefer a more uniform style of concrete.
Related article: Consider Stamped Concrete Or Decorative Pattern Pave For Your Driveway
Driveways for modern homes
If your home is modern or contemporary, you may be surprised at the options available to make a simple modern concrete style multi-dimensional. For example, exposed aggregate can be closely colour matched with your home. There are various stones, pebbles and glass that can then be added for interest, dimension and texture.
Or you may prefer our handcrafted saw-cut concrete finish – more about this below.
Related article: 6 Concrete Design Tips For Driveways In Adelaide’s Modern Homes
Types of concrete styles
Modern, simple, sleek concrete
Our handcrafted saw-cut range is a smooth and sleek modern finish. It looks like an upmarket paver but has advantages with no weeds to remove or movement that occurs with traditional pavers.
Slate and tile concrete finishes
These finishes provide the beauty of natural slate or tiles combined with the structural strength of concrete, and are ideal for contemporary or traditional homes.
They are very durable, easy to maintain, oil and stain resistant. Both the slate and tile pattern pave finish are achieved by stamping slate textured mats into newly poured coloured concrete which has been trowelled to a smooth finish. After stamping, the concrete is left to cure. We then come back to cut in control joints and apply sealer.
Exposed aggregate for texture and colour
Exposed aggregate concrete for driveways is highly versatile with many options for colour, texture and function. If you have kids playing on your driveway, then you may want Exposed Aggregate with less exposure of sharp aggregate like one of our Milled finishes. Smooth river pebbles can be included but not too many because the driveway will then become slippery and dangerous when wet. If you want to sparkle up the driveway a little, then glass can be added to lift the tone.
If you want grip for caravans and boats, we’ll recommend a range of stones and/or pebbles to be added for an area with more texture. Or if you need a perfectly matched colour and tones for your home, we’ll help you find an aggregate mix that adds to dimension and beauty to your home.
Cobble stoned for heritage homes
Our cobblestone stamped concrete range takes you back in time to old English cottages and European villages, beautifully enhancing landscaped cottage gardens. The textured cobble finish creates a natural feel with beauty and practicality at the same time.
Integral coloured concrete
Integral colour for concrete is a coloured pigment that is infused within the concrete itself so that the colour has depth and richness. There are more than 30 different natural colours to choose from and it is long lasting, remaining consistent in colour through wear and tear.
Related article: Using Integral Colour In Your Concrete Project For Driveways, Pathways And Patios
Site preparation is essential for a quality concrete driveway installation
Concrete that looks beautiful, drains well, is functional and lasts a lifetime must be properly prepared for an excellent result. The slope and size of the area, your landscaping, water outlets and drainage are all part of the site preparation process.
For more information, please read 7 Things To Prepare Before Concrete Paving Is Laid
Panorama Concrete Adelaide will look after all aspects of your concrete driveway project
Installing a driveway often requires more than just the concrete. At Panorama Concrete, we’ll look after the entire project for you so that you don’t have to run around finding and coordinating various trades. We install retaining walls, small steps, artificial lawns, lights in the concrete and we’ll also make sure that white ant treatment and stormwater drainage is complete.
Call us on 08 8297 9611 to begin discussing ideas for your new concrete driveway or pop into our Concrete Display Centre at 1 Maple Avenue, Forestville. You’ll find many installations and samples to give you plenty of ideas!
Related article: Which Concrete Company? Our Checklist for Your Peace of Mind.