Skipped the geotextile once to save a buck. Regretted it fast: weeds everywhere, gravel just vanished into the muck.
That hits home. When we started our build, I figured the ground was solid enough—looked fine on the surface, but after the first rain, it was like walking on a wet sponge. I tried to cheap out on drainage and skipped the fabric under our driveway. Big mistake. By spring, half the gravel had disappeared and I was pulling weeds every weekend.
I get wanting to save money, but some things just aren’t worth cutting corners on. Geotextile isn’t flashy, but it’s one of those things you only notice when it’s missing...and not in a good way. Learned that lesson quick. Now I double-check every layer before moving on, even if it means spending a bit more up front. It’s less about being fancy and more about not having to redo everything later.
Honestly, I get where you're coming from, but I've had mixed results with geotextile. On my last driveway, I used a thick base layer of crushed stone and compacted it really well—skipped the fabric, and it's held up fine for five years now. Maybe it depends on your soil? My lot drains pretty well, so that might be the difference. Sometimes I wonder if the fabric is overkill unless you’ve got clay or a lot of water sitting around.
