Marble carpet: change from concrete for your driveway!

When it comes to landscaping the exterior of a home, the choice of flooring is important. It must indeed combine solidity and aesthetic finesse. For driveways, for example, concrete is a material that is often used. But there are other possibilities. We invite you to discover the alternatives to concrete for the development of your outdoor spaces and more particularly that of driveways.

Page content

4 How to lay a resin coating?

A marble carpet walkway: a practical and aesthetic covering

The marble carpet is the ideal solution to benefit from a driveway, it is a floor covering which requires less maintenance than concrete and which is very resistant. For a driveway that is frequently used by vehicles, it is necessary to rely on a durable coating such as resin. The term "drivable" is used to describe a floor covering which has been subjected to tests for resistance to tearing and tire rubbing. Therefore, the choice of a floor covering for a path used by machines must be made according to this characteristic. This guarantees that it will withstand the regular traffic of vehicles, whatever their size.

The exterior walkways are also fitted out for the stability they provide in the event of bad weather. You no longer have to worry about muddy floors, or the accumulation of puddles in your driveway. Known for its robustness, concrete is a material widely used for the construction of driveways. Over time, concrete deteriorates, crumbles and becomes less aesthetic. The marble carpet is very resistant and comes in several colors.

What coatings are suitable for a driveway?

Among the most used road surfaces, you will find the following materials:

It is a mineral coating appreciated for the development of garage entrances. Easy to install and requiring little maintenance, it represents a good solution. However, it is a material that stains quickly or discolors over time. It must then be protected with a suitable paint which will also give it a more aesthetic finish.

These are pavers made from concrete, whose installation is very easy since they fit together. Very resistant to weather changes, however, they tend to move over time, which can lead to the formation of irregularities. Even though they are durable, their aesthetic appeal is limited by the lack of color choices.

A reference in terms of driveways, tar is obtained from pebble granules mixed with a binder from petroleum processing. Very solid, it is the material used by road services to make pedestrian walkways as well as access roads to housing estates. Inexpensive and easy to install, asphalt exists in various formats (hot mix, cold mix, etc.). The main disadvantage of tar is that it waterproofs the ground and promotes the accumulation of heat, resulting in a heat island effect around the dwelling.

Apart from these three types of flooring, there is also stone carpeting which, given its properties, is a first choice element to be recommended for the development of garage entrances.

Why choose marble carpet?

Also referred to by the terms “stone carpet” or “resin coating”, marble carpet is a material that consists of marble or quartz aggregates and polyurethane resin. Suitable both for laying out driveways and around swimming pools and terraces, this coating combines permeability, durability and a natural look that is very aesthetic.

The interest of stone carpet for a driveway

The main interest of the resin lies in its structure. Its composition makes it an element that is both dry, resistant and draining, capable of withstanding the frequent passage of vehicles. The permeability of the stone carpet is also an important point. It allows rainwater to flow naturally (up to 50 liters of water per second and per m2, whatever the weather).

As for the granulometry of the quartz and marble minerals used to manufacture it, it is the basis of the smooth and neat rendering obtained after installation. The resin is not only used to cover the ground. It is also a decorative material, because the minerals it contains (marble or quartz) are available in a wide variety of colors, which can be arranged to create a better visual effect.

The benefits of resin

Choosing to lay marble carpet to cover a driveway is an option that has many advantages.

The polyurethane resin used as a binder for mineral aggregates has protective properties against ultraviolet rays. Thanks to this feature, you don't have to worry about the color of your floor covering fading due to continuous exposure to the sun.

The draining and permeable character of the resin prevents water stagnation as well as the formation of plant moss which cause slipping or skidding and lead to falls. Resin is a more stable support than other materials.

There are no additional maintenance costs to pay since all you need is a broom and a jet of water to remove the dirt. Nothing sticks to a resin floor covering.

How to lay a resin coating?

Laying marble carpet on a driveway should be done by a professional with experience in carrying out such projects. This allows you to ensure that each step is perfectly mastered and carried out, and that the final result will be there. One of the essential points of the resin is that it can be applied to various supports, in particular:

It is also possible to lay marble carpet on tiles, but this application is not recommended for driveways.

Preparatory work for better resistance

In order to ensure perfect stability for your resin coating, it is important to properly prepare the ground or support that will accommodate it. Generally, you must first apply a first coat called "bonding undercoat".

If you opt for an application on gravel for example, the ground must be tamped beforehand so that it is well compacted and stable. This avoids later cracks and imperfections. For laying on a concrete slab, it must be leveled (operation to repair any cracks). The slab will thus be smooth and homogeneous to accommodate the final coating of resin.

The thickness of the coating is determined by the use that will be made of it. For example, the thickness of the resin applied on untreated gravel (GNT) will be approximately 30 mm and approximately 15 mm on a concrete slab in the context of a passage assigned to light vehicles. If the driveway is to be regularly used by heavy vehicles, a laying of at least 30 mm should be considered, regardless of the support.

Laying the floor covering

The mixing of resin and aggregates must be done on the spot and as you go, because a substance called a hardener must be added to it. This forces the workers to evolve without interruption so that the grip on the ground is done in a homogeneous way. It will be necessary to ensure that the marble or quartz aggregate is clean and dry when mixing, and that the resin is smoothed over the installation. If the surface to be covered is so large as to require several days of work, there is no need to worry about the visible presence of connection points. Stone carpeting is one of the few materials that allows touch-ups that are invisible.

The advice of a professional will be useful to adapt the thickness of the coating to that of the support. He will also be able to provide reliable and effective solutions if other problems related to the floor or the installation of the marble carpet arise. We recommend that you inquire about the roadability test reports of the type of resin that is proposed to you for your driveway project, in order to choose the strongest possible.

The cost of making a marble carpet driveway

It is difficult to indicate an exact cost for the realization of such a project. The prices for this type of installation vary according to several factors such as:

Only professionals qualified to carry out this type of project will be able to give you a fair price. We recommend that you do your research and ask for several quotes before entrusting the implementation of your project to anyone.

As for the practical implementation phase, its duration depends on the size of the site (size of the surface to be covered). Casting the resin is easy and time-consuming. If the support is conditioned in advance, a good team accustomed to this exercise can easily cover hundreds of m2 in a day. The greater the means and the team deployed, the faster the work will come to an end. Your driveway is ready for use approximately 24 to 48 hours after it is covered.