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How much #57 crushed stone for a 10 × 20 ft area, 2″ deep?

#57 crushed stone
1.67tons
1.23 yd³ for 200 ft² at 2″
Plan10 ft20 ft200 ft²SectionStone — 2″
Order this many tons1.67tons
Volume33 ft³1.23yd³
Area10 × 20 ft200ft²
50 lb bagsfar cheaper to have it delivered loose67bags
Coverage per ton120ft² at 2″
Weight assumeddry and loose — wet stone runs up to 10% heavier2700lb/yd³
Typical usedrainage, drives over fabric, French drains

Notes

  • Stone is sold by the ton, not by the yard. That conversion is where estimates go wrong, and it is different for every material: #57 crushed stone runs 2700 lb per cubic yard, so 1.23 yd³ is 1.67 tons. Quarries quote and bill in tons; the yardage figure is only useful for picturing the pile.
  • No compaction allowance here — #57 crushed stone is not compacted in normal use. Adding a base-course allowance to decorative stone is the mirror-image mistake to leaving it off crusher run.
  • 2″ is about right for decorative beds. For reference: 2″ for decorative beds, 3″ for walkways, 4″ for a pedestrian paver base or drainage, 6″ under vehicles, 8″ on soft soil.
  • Get the depth right before the material. A driveway base at 3″ fails no matter how good the stone is, and a decorative bed at 6″ is money buried where nobody sees it.
  • Delivery is priced by the load, not by the ton. Ordering 1.67 tons and then finding you need one more usually costs a second delivery fee larger than the extra stone — round up.

Stone is sold by the ton

That is the conversion every estimate trips over, and it is different for every material. 200 ft² at 2″ is 1.23 cubic yards — but the quarry will quote you 1.67 tons, because #57 crushed stone weighs 2700 lb per cubic yard.

The yardage figure is only useful for picturing the pile. The tonnage is what you pay for.

Compaction, or not

#57 crushed stone is a 0% compaction material. Base course stone loses roughly a fifth of its volume under a plate compactor, so the volume you order has to exceed the finished depth. Decorative stone is never compacted, so adding that allowance to it buys you a pile you cannot use.

Both mistakes are common, and they point in opposite directions.

Depth by use

2″ suits decorative beds. The usual figures: 2″ for decorative beds, 3″ for walkways, 4″ for a pedestrian paver base or drainage, 6″ under vehicles, 8″ on soft or filled ground.

Getting the depth right matters more than getting the material right. A driveway base at 3″ fails whatever stone is in it.

Coverage

One ton of #57 crushed stone covers about 120 ft² at 2″. Useful for checking a quote, and for working out whether the last bit is worth a second delivery — which it usually is not, because delivery is priced per load rather than per ton.

Nearby sizes

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