Crushed stone comes in many sizes to help you meet the needs of your projects. Finding the right aggregate rock size ensures projects stay on budget and hold up to stress and time. Different rock sizes work well for different projects. Understanding rock sizes and grades will help you produce better quality, long-lasting results for your construction projects.
Why the Right Size of Crushed Stone Is Important
It’s essential to have the correct aggregate rock sizes for each job since the wrong size could interfere with the success of a project. If your walkway or driveway stones are too big, they could be challenging to walk on. Since stone dust hardens and compacts when wet, it’s not a good fit for drain projects. To ensure your projects turn out correctly, always use the correct size.
Using the proper stone aggregate sizes also helps save you money. Larger stones are more expensive to order and transport, so using larger rocks when a project needs smaller rocks will increase your costs unnecessarily. Make sure you choose the best stone for the job to help you save money and produce the best results.
Types of Crushed Stone
There are many types of crushed stone, each with its own size options and uses. Crushed stone is a kind of construction aggregate. Aggregate is used in many construction projects, and different sizing is needed for concrete and other jobs. Along with crushed stone, sand, slag and gravel are some of the other aggregate materials used. Here are some of the different types of crushed stone:
- Crushed and screened: Stone is crushed into pieces and screened to ensure all rocks are the correct size. No cleaning or treating occurs, so the stone may have stone dust mixed in. This stone works well on top of driveways and in places where some compacting is okay.
- Washed: Washed stone is also crushed and screened, but it receives an extra step. These rocks are washed to remove stone dust from the group. Washed stone is often used in drainage, ready-mix concrete and decorative purposes.
- Stone grits: Stone grits are the smallest type of crushed stone. These particles are less than ¼ inch and come from pulverizing stone.
- Quarry process: This stone is a mix of crushed stone in various sizes and stone dust. It works well as a base for patios and walkways.
- Gravel: Gravel can refer to stones naturally smoothed and eroded by water and weathering. Gravel is naturally occurring and works well in flower beds, pools, fish tanks and walkways. Some areas might refer to small crushed stones as gravel, but it’s not a standard label.
- Rip rap: Rip rap is the largest size of crushed stone. It ranges anywhere from 6 inches to 7 feet. Due to its size, rip rap doesn’t compact well. It’s often used around foundations, steep slopes and shorelines to prevent erosion.
Crushed Rock Sizes and Construction Uses
The size of the crushed rock will help determine its correct use. Picking the best-sized material will help keep your projects affordable and successful. The size of crushed stone gives it its grade — once crushed, the stone aggregate sizes are given their grade to inform users of the correct use for the rock.
Crushed Stone Grades
If you’re looking for crushed stone for your project, it can be challenging to understand the different grades. The stone names may change depending on the seller and the area, but the number grades are typically constant. Some common construction stone sizes include:
- Crushed stone #1: This is a larger grade of crushed stone. Stones in this grade are 2 to 4 inches long. This grade works well for larger jobs and filling in projects or road base, ditch lining and construction entrances.
- Crushed stone #3: The stone size for this grade is between ½ and 2 inches long. This size fits railroad or drainage projects.
- Crushed stone #5: These stones are 1 inch or smaller. Stone this size works well for paver and road base.
- Crushed stone #8: This grade contains a ½-inch top size. Grade #8 is used in concrete mixes, hot mix asphalt, driveways, pipe bedding, drainage and walkways.
- Crushed stone #10: Stone at grade #10 is 3/8 inches and smaller in length. Grade #10 is stone dust used in pipe bedding, masonry products and concrete block.
- Crushed stone #57: This is between 1 and 1.5 inches long. It works well in hot mix asphalt, concrete mixes, walkways, driveways and drainage.
Modified Stone
Modified stone is another crushed aggregate that compacts well. It’s often used as a base for projects like roads, pavement and fill. Modified stone can be either clean or dirty, depending on the needs of your project. Some modified aggregate includes:
- 2A Modified: This aggregate is stone with a size of 1.5 to 2 inches, with finer stone mixed in. It’s cleaned and compacts well, perfect for stability and drainage.
- 2RC/2A: This is a mixed recycled concrete and aggregate stone with sizes from 0.75 to 2 inches. It’s unwashed and doesn’t drain but is highly compactable. This stone is perfect for road base and fill.
- 3A: A blend of 2RC/2A and #3 stone, this aggregate has a top rock size of 2 to 2.5 inches. This durable, heavy-duty stone works well as a sub-base or haul road surface.
Rip Rap Stone
Rip rap is a large crushed stone type often used to prevent erosion, maintain slope stability and control channel flow. Several sizes range from R3 to R8, which group the stone based on size. Here is a Rip rap stone size chart to give you an overview of the stone:
- R3 and R4: R3 stone is 3 to 6 inches, while R4 is 6 to 12 inches. This size rip-rap works well for a driveway base, small drainage, slight slopes or gravel parking lots.
- R5 and R6: R5 is 9 to 18 inches, while R6 is 12 to 24 inches. These aggregates are the most common and versatile rip rap sizes. Their weight and dimensions are perfect for strengthening the edge of rivers, ponds, lakes and streams. They also work well for deterring pedestrian walking. For non-water uses, these sizes do well as railroad ballast or retaining walls.
- R7 and R8: R7 stone is 18 to 30 inches, and R8 is 24 to 42 inches long. This large aggregate helps prevent erosion, especially in water with rapid currents. These rocks can also restore banks and fill in large holes and ditches.
Get Crushed Stone From Union Quarries
Choosing the right size crushed stone for your next construction project ensures you achieve next-level results — trust Union Quarries’ high-quality crushed stone for all your Central Pennsylvania construction needs. For over 50 years, we have safely and quickly delivered aggregates and ready-mix concrete to contractors, developers and builders with professional, expert service. Contact us to request a quote and get the materials you need today.
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