What a driveway costs here, and what moves the price
| Driveway | Size | Typical installed price |
|---|---|---|
| Single car, plain | 12 by 35 ft (420 sq ft) | $2,800 to $4,500 |
| Two car, plain | 20 by 40 ft (800 sq ft) | $5,000 to $8,500 |
| Two car with turnaround | About 1,100 sq ft | $7,000 to $11,500 |
| Stamped or colored | Any | $12 to $20 per sq ft |
| Removal of old concrete | Any | Add $2 to $4 per sq ft |
Five things change the number more than anything else:
- Removal. A 1990s driveway that is 4 inches thick with no mesh breaks up fast. One with wire mesh or a 6-inch apron near the road takes a second day and a bigger dumpster.
- Thickness. 4 inches handles cars and pickups. If a boat trailer, RV or work truck will sit on it, we go to 5 inches and the price rises about 15 percent.
- Grade and drainage. Lots off Feagin Mill Road and in Hawthorne and Woodbridge tend to slope toward the house. Fixing that with a swale or a trench drain at the garage is worth every dollar and we will tell you if you need it.
- Access. If the truck can back up to the forms, we chute it. If it has to pump over a fence or a septic field, add $600 to $900 for the pump.
- Finish. Broom finish is the standard and the most slip-resistant. Stamped, exposed aggregate and integral color each add cost and are covered on the stamped and decorative page.
The full breakdown, with worked examples, is in our Warner Robins driveway cost guide.
How we build a driveway on Houston County clay
Houston County sits where the Fall Line sandhills meet the red clay of the upper Coastal Plain. The clay swells when wet and shrinks when dry, and that movement, not traffic, is what cracks most slabs here. Most of the driveways we replace failed because of the base, not the concrete. So the base is where the time goes.
- Layout and grade. We set string lines to fall at least a quarter inch per foot away from the garage, and we check where the water goes in a storm before we dig.
- Excavation. Down 8 inches: 4 for stone, 4 for concrete. Soft, wet clay comes out and gets replaced with stone. We proofroll the subgrade with a loaded truck and watch for pumping.
- Base. 4 inches of crusher run, compacted in two lifts with a plate compactor. On the sandier lots north of Watson Boulevard this is quick. On red clay south of Russell Parkway it is the whole job.
- Forms and steel. 2x4 forms, #3 rebar on 24-inch centers sitting on chairs so it ends up in the middle of the slab, not the bottom. A 6-inch thickened edge where the driveway meets the street.
- Pour. 4,000 psi mix with 5 to 6 inches of slump from the plant on Foy Evans Drive. Screed, bull float, wait for bleed water, edge, then broom.
- Joints. Saw-cut control joints the same day, 8 to 10 feet apart, one quarter of the slab depth. An expansion joint against the garage slab and the sidewalk.
- Cure. In summer we pour early, mist the surface, and apply a white-pigmented curing compound. You can walk on it next day, park a car after 7 days, and it reaches design strength at 28 days.
Replace or repair?
If the driveway has a few hairline cracks and no section has sunk more than half an inch, repair or leveling is the cheaper answer and we will say so. Replace it when you see any of these:
- Cracks wider than a quarter inch, or cracks with one side higher than the other.
- Sections that rock when a car drives over them.
- Surface spalling across more than a third of the slab, which usually means a weak original mix.
- Water pooling against the garage or running toward the foundation.
- Any driveway under 3.5 inches thick, which we see on a lot of 1970s and 1980s homes near the base.
Permits and the driveway apron
Houston County Building Inspection handles unincorporated county addresses. The City of Warner Robins, Centerville and Perry issue their own permits inside city limits. Replacing a driveway in the same footprint is usually exempt. A new or widened curb cut on a public road needs an encroachment permit. The part of the driveway between the sidewalk and the street is the apron, and it belongs to the road authority. If you keep the same width, nobody needs to be told. If you widen it, we file the encroachment permit and build the apron to their spec, which is usually 6 inches thick with a thickened edge. Houston County Building Inspection, 200 Carl Vinson Parkway, Warner Robins, GA 31088, (478) 542-2018 handles county addresses.
Robins Air Force Base is the county's largest employer. Many homeowners are on a three-year assignment, so we quote with resale in mind and write warranties that transfer to the next owner.
Timeline
- Day 0: site visit and measurement. Quote within two business days.
- Day 1: tear-out and haul-off, if there is an old driveway.
- Day 2: grade, stone, forms, steel. Inspection if a permit requires one.
- Day 3: pour, finish, saw joints. Forms come off that evening or next morning.
- Day 4: walk on it. Day 10: park on it. Day 31: full design strength.
Weather pushes dates. We do not pour onto a frozen base or ahead of a day with more than a 40 percent chance of rain before the surface sets.
Questions we get asked
How thick should a concrete driveway be in Georgia?
Four inches of 4,000 psi concrete on 4 inches of compacted stone for cars and light trucks. Five inches if an RV, boat trailer or loaded work truck will park on it. Thickness matters less than the base. A 5-inch slab on wet clay cracks sooner than a 4-inch slab on compacted stone.
How long before I can drive on a new driveway?
Walk on it after 24 hours, park a car after 7 days, and bring in heavy vehicles or a moving truck after 28 days. In July heat the surface sets fast but strength still takes the full month.
Do you remove the old driveway?
Yes. Removal and haul-off is $2 to $4 per square foot and is a line item on the quote, so you can see it separately. Broken concrete goes to a recycler on GA 247, not a landfill.
Will a new driveway crack?
Concrete shrinks as it cures, so every slab cracks somewhere. The saw-cut joints we put in every 8 to 10 feet are there so it cracks in a straight line inside the joint where you will never see it. Cracks outside the joints within the first two years are covered.
Is concrete or asphalt better for a Warner Robins driveway?
Asphalt is cheaper up front, around $3 to $5 per square foot, but it softens in Middle Georgia summers, needs sealing every two or three years, and lasts 15 to 20 years. Concrete costs roughly double and lasts 30 to 40 years with no sealing required.
Do I need a permit to replace my driveway?
Usually not for a same-footprint replacement. Widening it, or changing where it meets the street, needs an encroachment permit from the city or Houston County. We handle the paperwork when it applies.
Get a written quote
Tell us what you need and where. Sandhill Concrete matches your project with a licensed Houston County concrete contractor, who measures on site, writes the quote and does the work. You hear back within one business day by text or email with a site-visit window, and the written quote states thickness, reinforcement, base and removal so you can compare it line by line.
Other concrete services
Where we work
Based in Warner Robins and working across Houston County: Centerville, Perry, Bonaire, Kathleen, Byron. Not sure if you are inside our area? Send the address with your quote request and we will confirm.