Whether you’re building, renovating, or looking at homes, the focal point on the front of your house is usually the front door. Your front door is a way to add a pop of color or a creative point of interest that enhances the appearance and functionality of your home. Like your front door, your driveway is the entrance to your property and a functional feature that sets the tone for the rest of the property. There’s no better way to blend style and function than with paver driveways.

Paver driveways have been around for decades but are less common than their poured concrete counterparts. In recent years, paver manufacturers have greatly improved their product lines of vehicular rated pavers to compliment any style of home. Whether your house is rustic or modern or somewhere in between, there are infinite product and design options available to make your home pop. Paver driveways do have a unique set of strengths that sets them apart from a poured concrete drive including:

1. Durability and Ease of Repair: There are two types of concrete, cracked and eventually cracked. When a concrete pad settles and cracks, the only options for repair are unsightly or require full replacement. Paver driveways are designed to last 50+ years and are easy to repair or replace damaged pieces. While concrete cracks when underlayment moves, pavers can flex and absorb many of these stresses. In the event of settling, repair is as simple as pulling up the affected area and adding additional base material to level the area.

2. Paver Driveways Are Permeable: Paver driveways can allow water to move through them which allows for better storm water management and faster drying than a concrete slab. This creates less runoff which reduces erosion and lessens the strain on other storm water management systems on the property.

3. Distinctive Styles: With the advancements in paver product lines it’s now realistic to tap into modern, contemporary, or rustic looks with paver systems from most major manufacturers. Driveways can be designed to be showstoppers or complimentary pieces to your property in any hue needed to compliment the surrounding architecture.

While more costly upfront, paver driveways outperform poured concrete in all other areas including durability, performance, water management, and especially aesthetics. For a project of this magnitude it’s essential to recruit the right team of designers and installers to pull it all together. Firsthand experience with material selection, installation, and maintenance goes a long way to pull together that showstopper quality feature. There is no better functional feature to distinguish your space than a paver driveway.