How Many Tons of Asphalt for 800 Square Feet?

Eight hundred square feet is about 9.7 tons at 2 inches and about 14.5 tons at 3 inches, using 145 pounds per cubic foot. A 20 by 40 foot driveway is this area. Both figures are planning estimates. The plant ticket is the real weight.

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Put a 20 by 40 driveway on the scale in your head

Eight hundred square feet is 20 times 40, a long two-car driveway people measure when the parking pad and the lane are one rectangle. If your sketch is a different shape that still totals 800, the tons match only at the same thickness. Plan compacted hot mix at 145 pounds per cubic foot. Tons equal area times inches divided by 12, times 145, divided by 2000. At 2 inches, 800 times 2 divided by 12 is about 133.3 cubic feet, times 145 is about 19,333 pounds, divided by 2000 is about 9.7 tons. At 3 inches, 800 times 0.25 is 200 cubic feet, times 145 is 29,000 pounds, divided by 2000 is 14.5 tons. Write both down before you compare a quote.

The gap between 9.7 and 14.5 is the thickness

The same driveway does not mysteriously need five extra tons. Three inches is one and a half times two inches, and 14.5 is one and a half times 9.7, within rounding. If one bid says 10 tons and another says 15 tons, ask each which thickness they priced. You may be looking at two different pavements, not two different prices for the same mat. Waste and handwork can move the number a little. They should not erase the gap between these two plans. A soft base is not fixed by picking the 2-inch number because it is smaller. Fix the base, then order the thickness you meant. Both 9.7 and 14.5 are planning estimates. The plant ticket is the real weight after the load is batched.

What else can hide inside 800 square feet

A flare, a walkway, or a turnaround beside the 20 by 40 is extra area. Measure it and add its own tons at the same thickness. At 3 inches, every extra 100 square feet is 100 times 0.25 times 145 divided by 2000, about 1.8 tons. Forgetting two such pieces is how an 800-square-foot order shows up short. Edges and rake work can place the mat thicker than the screed setting, so the ticket can sit a bit above 14.5 on a tight driveway. A wide open pad usually tracks the formula more closely. After paving, divide ticket tons by 800 if that was the true area. Near 9.7 means you received the 2-inch plan. Near 14.5 means the 3-inch plan. A number far from both needs an explanation before you accept the job as matching the quote.

A practical sequence

Check that the pavement is 800 square feet, such as 20 by 40.
Plan on about 9.7 tons at 2 inches or about 14.5 tons at 3 inches.
Add flares and turnarounds as separate area at the same thickness.
Treat both weights as planning estimates and confirm them with the plant ticket.

The mistake to skip

Comparing a 10-ton bid to a 15-ton bid without asking which thickness each one used.

Questions people ask

Is 14.5 tons a 4-inch driveway?

No. About 14.5 tons is 800 square feet at 3 inches. At 2 inches the same area is about 9.7 tons. Four inches would be higher, about 19.3 tons, because 4 inches is twice the 2-inch volume. Keep the thickness in the sentence when you repeat the tons. The plant ticket is the real weight, and 145 pounds per cubic foot is only the planning density.

Should I order extra for waste on a rectangle?

A clean 20 by 40 with machine paving can stay close to the formula. Add a little if the edges are all handwork or the old surface is rutted. Five percent of 14.5 is under a ton. It is not a reason to jump from the 2-inch plan to the 3-inch plan. State the thickness first, then any small allowance, and let the ticket record what shipped.

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