Land clearing, fencing, drainage and dirt work around Katy, TexasLand clearing and fencing in Katy, Texas
Call or text (979) 824-2296 Insured for excavation work
Florida's Contracting & Land Services
Driveway and parking area cut down to a level dirt base off a country road, gravel driveway installation
Our Services

Gravel Driveway Installation in Katy, TX

Gravel Driveways · Katy, TX

Gravel drives and parking areas on lots and acreage

Gravel driveway installation lays a rock drive from the road to the house or barn. Florida's Contracting and Land Services builds gravel driveways and parking areas around Katy, Texas and the west side of Houston. One customer wanted a gravel drive with a parking area for better access to the property, and we built it. We also grade the washboard out of worn gravel drives.

The work is for homes on acreage, farms and ranches, and lots getting ready to build on. If brush still covers the route, land clearing opens the way first. Where the drive crosses a roadside ditch, a driveway culvert carries the water under the entrance. Call or text (979) 824-2296, and we look at the job and put the quote in writing.

What We Handle

  • Gravel drives with a parking area for better access to a property
  • Washboard graded out of worn gravel drives on farms and acreage
  • Driveway culverts and entrances where a drive meets a roadside ditch
  • Driveway grading and leveling with a finishing dozer
  • A midsize excavator of about 40,000 pounds to dig out and move dirt
  • Old concrete broken out to make way for a new driveway
  • Trucks loaded out with our own machines when material has to leave
  • Rock delivered by truck, with the trucking arranged

Request a Gravel Driveways Quote

Tell us about the land, the fence or the drainage problem and where it is. We look at the job and put the quote in writing.

Driveway grading on the flat, wet ground around Katy

Federal soil scientists describe the Katy soils as coastal prairie, mostly on slopes of less than 1 percent. In the cool months or a wet spell, water can sit in the upper soil for short periods. Toward Rosenberg and East Bernard, Lake Charles clay takes in water fast while cracked, then very slowly once wet.

A federal gravel road guide gives two fixes for weak, wet soil under a road. One digs it out and brings in clean material that drains. The other lays fabric over the soil, so wet silt and clay stay out of the new rock. A Texas forestry guide warns against roads that sit below the ground around them.

The federal guide also calls for a crowned surface, a shoulder that slopes away from the edge, and a ditch. Crown means the center sits higher than the edges, so rain runs off. The guide recommends about 1/2 inch of crown per foot, near 4 percent, and never more than 6 percent.

Choosing the rock for a caliche driveway or a gravel drive

The state highway department's road base spec names several kinds of rock. Crushed stone, such as crushed limestone, is listed as the higher-quality base. Gravel, crushed or uncrushed, is another type, and crushed concrete is allowed in a third. Caliche is listed too.

The federal gravel road guide says good surface gravel is a blend of stone, sand and fines. The fines bind the rock into a crust. Too much clay goes the other way, and a long wet spell can leave the drive rutted and slick.

Rock made for a base has bigger stone and few fines, so on top it will not form that crust. Sandy fill made for building sites drains well, but on a drive it stays loose.

Why does washboard come back after gravel driveway repair?

Washboard is the row of ripples across a gravel drive that shakes a truck. The federal guide names four causes: driving habits, dry weather, poor gravel and too little crown. Hard starts and hard stops near a driveway feed it. Graders get the blame, but the guide says the gravel itself is the main cause.

In dry weather, the guide says, grading only smooths the ripples for a while. With moist gravel, it calls for cutting 1 inch or more below the dips, then mixing and reshaping. Even with good upkeep, it says washboard never fully goes away.

We grade the washboard out of gravel drives, as we did on a farmer's driveway. To cut down on washboard, the guide points to better gravel, or new material mixed into the old. New gravel spread over ripples lets them show right back through, it warns. Pads, grading and leveling fall under our dirt work.

Grading the washboard out of a long gravel farm drive, gravel driveway repair New driveway entrance built up and smoothed off a country road, driveway grading

Ready to get started?

Call or text for a written quote. We work about 80 miles around Katy across Fort Bend, Harris, Waller, Austin and Wharton Counties.

(979) 824-2296
How We Work

How a Job With Florida's Contracting Runs

From the first call or text to the finished work, here is how it goes.

1

Call or text

Call or text (979) 824-2296 and tell us what the land needs and where it is.

2

We look at the job

We come out to see the ground and how the machines get in. Point out any buried lines of your own, like the line to a water well or a barn.

3

The written quote

You get the quote in writing. Once you say yes, we set a date for the work.

4

The work

Brush gets mulched in place where that fits, and the digging follows the plan in the quote. Anything headed off the site gets loaded onto trucks we arrange.

5

Ready for what comes next

We clean up when the machines are done. The ground is then ready for its next use, like a house pad or a new fence.

FAQ

Gravel Driveways Questions, Answered

Common questions about gravel driveways around Katy and the west side of Houston. If yours is not here, call or text and ask.

Call (979) 824-2296

How much does gravel driveway installation cost?
The price depends on the length and width of the drive and the size of any parking area. How much soft ground comes out and how much rock goes down change it too. A culvert at the road or brush on the route adds to the job. We look at the job and put the quote in writing, so call or text (979) 824-2296.
Do I need a permit for a new driveway?
Where a drive meets a public road, the office that runs the road issues the permit. Unincorporated Fort Bend County requires a permit to connect a driveway to a county road. Harris County requires one before a driveway or culvert goes on county right of way. Inside city limits, ask the city; for Fort Bend County, see our driveway culvert permit guide.
What should I ask gravel driveway contractors before work starts?
Ask what happens to soft or wet spots on the route, and which rock goes down. Ask how much crown the drive gets and where the water goes off its edges. Then get the answers in a written quote.
How wide should a farm or ranch entrance be?
A drive onto a state highway needs the state transportation department's Form 1058, through its local district office. Its access manual shows a typical private farm or ranch driveway with 25-foot return radii and a 20-foot throat. The radii are the curved edges that flare out to the road, and the throat is the drive's width. On a county road, ask the county.
Do I need to call 811 before driveway work?
Texas law counts machine digging or grading 16 inches deep or more as excavation. That work needs an 811 notice at least 48 hours ahead, not counting weekends and legal holidays. The law leaves out some farm and ranch work on private land. Lines that serve only you and sit only on your land are not covered, so point those out first.
More From Florida's Contracting

Work That Pairs With Gravel Driveways

Concrete culvert pipe and end section set beside a road, culvert installation

Culvert Installation

Driveway culverts and entrances for new lots and farm gates, set to the county's or TxDOT's size and grade. We also grade the washboard out of gravel drives.

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Raised building pad with grade stakes and an excavator behind, dirt work

Dirt Work

We build house pads and gravel driveways with a finishing dozer and an excavator. We also level lots after a demolition and shape ground so rain drains off.

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Excavator at the brush line beside a freshly mulched strip, land clearing

Land Clearing

We clear brush and small trees from lots and small acreage around Katy, Texas. Where it fits, the brush is mulched in place.

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Why Choose Florida's Contracting

Land Clearing and Fencing Around Katy

Lots and Small Acreage

Our land clearing jobs run about 10 acres or smaller. That size covers most house lots and small farm tracts around Katy.

Machines Matched to the Work

A skid steer runs the mulching head through brush and saplings. A midsize excavator and a finishing dozer handle the digging and the grading.

Priced After We Look

Every job gets a look before it gets a price. You see the work and the price in writing before we start.

Guides and Resources

Gravel Driveways Guides

Request a Quote

Get In Touch With Florida's Contracting

Tell us about the land and the town it is in, and send photos by text if you have them. Call or text (979) 824-2296 or use the form, and we will get back to you.

Request a Quote

Tell us about the land, the fence or the drainage problem and where it is. We look at the job and put the quote in writing.

Call (979) 824-2296