Pea gravel calculator for Texas
Patios, paths, fire pits and play areas, in tons of 3/8 inch rounded stone.
Enter your project dimensions
Pea gravel is 3/8 inch rounded stone, about the size of its namesake, and it packs denser than its softness underfoot suggests: 2,800 lb per cubic yard, the same 1.4 tons as crushed gravel. Depth discipline is what makes it work. Under 2 inches the ground shows through. Past 3 inches every step sinks like dry beach. This pea gravel calculator turns your dimensions into tons, with quick-set depths for the two jobs that break the 2–3 inch rule: play areas and nothing else.
From footprint to tons
- Measure the area: length times width, or the diameter for a round fire-pit surround.
- Depth: 2–3 inches for anything walked on, 9–12 inches maintained for playground fall zones.
- Cubic feet ÷ 27 = cubic yards; yards × 1.4 = tons.
Coverage
| Depth | 1 cubic yard covers | 1 ton covers |
|---|---|---|
| 2 inches | 162 sq ft | ≈ 116 sq ft |
| 3 inches | 108 sq ft | ≈ 77 sq ft |
| 4 inches | 81 sq ft | ≈ 58 sq ft |
| 12 inches, play area | 27 sq ft | ≈ 19 sq ft |
| Project | Typical size | Depth | Volume | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Patio / seating area | 12 x 12 ft | 3" | 1.3 yd³ | 1.9 tons |
| Garden walkway | 25 x 3 ft | 2.5" | 0.6 yd³ | 0.8 tons |
| Fire-pit surround | 12 ft round | 3" | 1 yd³ | 1.5 tons |
| Playground fall zone | 20 x 20 ft | 12" | 14.8 yd³ | 20.7 tons |
| Dog run | 15 x 8 ft | 3" | 1.1 yd³ | 1.6 tons |
Edging is the whole ballgame
Round stones roll. That's the physics of pea gravel, and every migration complaint we hear traces back to a missing or sunken border. Steel, aluminum, timber or paver edging set an inch proud of the surface keeps the stone home; edging set flush lets it hop out within a season. On grades past about 5%, even edging loses: rain and footsteps walk the stone downhill. Slopes want a honeycomb stabilizing grid under the gravel or a switch to angular crushed stone that locks in place.
Against the neighbors: pea gravel, crushed gravel, river rock
Pea gravel is the barefoot choice and the fidgety one. Crushed walkway gravel locks in place and takes slopes, at the cost of sharper edges underfoot. River rock is bigger, decorative, and stays in beds rather than under feet. Prices climb in roughly that order too. Plenty of yards use all three: crushed on the sloped side path, pea gravel around the fire pit, river rock along the foundation. Each has its own calculator here, so comparing tonnage for the same footprint takes about a minute.
Project notes from the field
- Patios: 2 inches of compacted screenings underneath stops chair legs from sinking. Then 2–3 inches of pea gravel on top.
- Play areas: 9–12 inches of maintained depth is the standard fall-zone spec; check your equipment manual. At 12 inches, one ton covers only about 19 square feet, so trust the calculator over instinct.
- Fire pits: 3 inches. The stone is non-flammable and drains rain out of the seating area overnight.
- Dog runs: 2–3 inches, rounded stone is paw-friendly, and it rinses clean.
- Walkways: rake level twice a year and top up the traffic line every couple of seasons from a kept-back bucket or two.
Worked example: a 12-foot fire-pit circle
A 12-foot diameter circle is 113 square feet. At 3 inches: 113 x 0.25 = 28 cubic feet = 1.05 cubic yards, just under 1.5 tons. Order the 1.5 and keep the thin surplus for the high-traffic side next spring.
Pea gravel, weighed and measured
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