Frequently Asked Questions

Planning is usually one of the most critical steps in your dredging project to clean out your lake, pond, or lagoon.  Permitting may require that a set of plans are designed for a dredging project.  River Sand’s team has engineers that can design plans that work.  We also help you spend your money on the necessary plans and decrease unnecessary costs and prevent change orders. 

Construction Sand is the ideal type of sand to use for french drainage systems. It can be used just under the soil surface and drains water up to 60+ inches per hour to the perforated pipe below. Often a layer of gravel or fabric is installed between the sand and the drain pipe.

Arena Sand comes in many different forms.  The type of sand depends on the style of riding and the needs of your arena.  Dressage and Jumpers need a finer grade sand for a firm footing.  Barrel racing and cutting horses prefer a looser, deeper coarse sand for adding protection in the sharp turns.  Also, amending your existing arena usually needs the same coarser particles to relieve compaction that happens over time.  New arenas may need either fine or coarse sand.  So, there is not one size fits all sand for horse arenas.  Masonry Sand, Concrete Sand, River Sand, and Manufactured Sand (m10s) can all work but you need to start with a basic knowledge of what type will work best for your project.  RSI can help you decide, and since we offer all these types of sand we can supply the best Arena Sand for your needs.

The two most popular sized river rock for landscaping is #57s (dime to quarter sized) and #4s (quarter to golf ball sized).  Both offer a great, long-lasting look for relatively flat surfaces to landscape.  For dry creek beds, larger river rock should be used. 

#57s is the size of gravel most commonly used for aggregate in concrete. 

Crush and run or #57s gravel is the most common.  Both are excellent gravel for the driveway.  57s are composted of only rock, so it tends to last longer and cost a little more initially.  Crush and run is a mixture of sand and rock that is economical and makes a great compactible surface.  Both can be spread upon delivery with a spreader truck. 

Topdressing bermuda greens is generally done in light and frequent applications.  Many superintendents still follow the practice to topdress with the same sand as the green was built with.  Others prefer a sand with the particles all being less than 1mm and the majority from 0.25mm to 0.5mm.  The primary issue is getting the oversized sand particles through the turf canopy.  Recent USGA research has found that topdressing with a less coarse sand is not an issue and layering will not occur with a different sand.  The primary issue is topdressing with sand that contains more than 25% fine particles (0.15 to 0.25mm) which may lead to excessive moisture at the surface of the greens.  River Sand has an ideal sand for topdressing miniverde, champion, TifDwarf, or other varieties of bermuda. 

A special lightweight soil mix is manufactured for use on green roof projects.  Normal topsoil and planting mix will become too heavy to support roof top gardens.  The Green Roof Soil Mix is designed to be lightweight, drain well, and retain enough nutrients for roof top plants.  There are even variations of the roof top soil blend to meet specific plant and drainage needs. 

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Topsoil is best to start with before you plant your seeds in the lawn or garden.  Place and spread the topsoil evenly and with enough depth to promote root penetration.  If the depth of topsoil is less than 4” you may consider tilling the sub-base to help the roots transition from the topsoil into the next layer of soil.  You can place topsoil at any time of the year or season, but it is usually best to be seeded or mulched once it is installed.