By the Earthstone Materials Team · Published October 4, 2026 · Last updated: October 4, 2026
The short answer: regrade to restore the crown twice a year, top up thin spots every 1 to 3 years, fix potholes as they appear, and never let water stand on the surface. Nearly every gravel driveway problem, washouts, potholes, weeds, migrating stone, traces back to drainage or a lost crown. Maintenance is mostly restoring what traffic and rain flatten.
Regrade to restore the crown
Traffic pushes stone outward and rain flattens the crown, so water starts ponding instead of shedding. A landscape rake or box blade pass that pulls material back toward the center restores the crown in under an hour. Do it in spring and fall, and after any storm that ruts the surface. If you are building new, our gravel driveway build guide shows how to shape it right the first time.
Top up thin spots
Stone migrates and compacts over time, so thin spots appear, usually in tire tracks and at the apron where the driveway meets the street. Every 1 to 3 years, spread 1 to 2 inches of matching surface material over worn areas and compact it. Matching the original stone matters: mixed materials compact and drain differently. Figure the yardage with our material calculator and request a quote for a top-up load.
Fix potholes early
Potholes start where water stands. Fill them with the same surface material, slightly overfilled, compact firmly, and restore the crown over the repair. A pothole that keeps returning in the same spot is telling you about a drainage problem, not a stone problem: check the crown and the nearest outlet. If the whole driveway is failing, the best driveway material guide helps you decide whether to rebuild the base.
Weed control
Weeds root in the dust and organic matter that settles between stones. A weed barrier under the driveway at build time prevents most of it; afterward, pull or spot-treat weeds before they seed, and keep grass edged back from the driveway borders so it does not creep in. Avoid piling lawn clippings or mulch against the driveway edge.
Keep water moving
Walk the driveway after heavy rain twice a year. Clear leaves and sediment from trench drains and swales, confirm downspouts still discharge away from the surface, and re-cut any edge where water now ponds. If one section always washes out, a trench drain with #57 stone along the low edge usually solves it permanently.