TL;DR
Dense-graded base is crushed aggregate containing the full spectrum of particle sizes from three-quarter-inch stone down to rock dust, blended so the fines lock the larger pieces into a tight, nearly waterproof mass under compaction. Sold under names like CA6, 21A, or crusher run depending on region, it is the standard structural layer beneath paver patios, driveways, and asphalt, placed in compacted lifts of two to four inches.
What it means
Dense-graded base is crushed aggregate containing the full spectrum of particle sizes from three-quarter-inch stone down to rock dust, blended so the fines lock the larger pieces into a tight, nearly waterproof mass under compaction. Sold under names like CA6, 21A, or crusher run depending on region, it is the standard structural layer beneath paver patios, driveways, and asphalt, placed in compacted lifts of two to four inches. Its weakness is drainage, the same fines that lock it up hold water, so open-graded systems substitute for it where freeze-thaw or permeable design rules.
Where it sits in the glossary
Dense-graded base is part of the Trade jargon group inside the ProFix Directory glossary. Browse every term in this category from the glossary index.
Why Ohio homeowners should know it
This is a term Ohio homeowners encounter when reading contractor quotes, hiring paperwork, or inspection reports. Understanding it well enough to ask one good follow-up question is usually all the protection a homeowner needs.
ProFix Directory keeps definitions short on the index page and saves the longer context — Ohio-specific rules, where the term comes from, and which ProFix tools touch it — for these per-term pages so the term is easy to cite and easy to share.
ProFix tools that touch this term
See also
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