Buy Screened Loam in Portsmouth, RI

Rhode Island Rock Supply handles gravel and aggregate delivery in Portsmouth, RI for two kinds of buyers: contractors working a schedule and homeowners fixing one yard. Both usually start with processed gravel, the local name for the compacted base that sits under a finished surface.

On Aquidneck, thin till over rock shapes what a load has to do.

This page leans on soil and fill, because grading and bed prep decide how the rest of a project turns out.

Materials for Portsmouth Projects

Start with the soil and fill side, since beds, lawns and grade work come before any hard surface goes down.

Top Soil is what Rhode Island landscapers call screened loam, and it is what lawns and bed prep go on here. It is screened, so it spreads and rakes without the stones that come out of local till.

Garden Soil has more body than loam alone, which suits raised beds and vegetable gardens. Use it where you are building planting depth rather than just covering ground.

Fill Dirt brings low spots up to grade and backfills foundations, in places where nothing finished goes on top. It is the rough work that makes the finished layers possible.

Under flatwork, Stone Dust is the bedding and joint filler for pavers, bluestone and flagstone. It packs flat and stays put.

For the base itself, Processed Gravel is the standard material, sold as 3/4 inch processed for residential drives and patio bases. Bank Run Gravel is unprocessed pit sand and gravel, dug and screened rather than crushed, and it works as bulk fill or a first lift.

Ground and Conditions in Portsmouth

Across the East Bay and the Narragansett Bay islands, the ground is glacial till over sedimentary rock, with thin soil over rock and outcrop showing at the shore. That leaves little room for water to sit before it moves.

Slopes here run short and straight to tidewater, so rain and snowmelt leave fast and carry fines with them. Low shore ground takes tidal flooding on high tides and storm tides, and ridge ground has nowhere for water to go.

That is the reasoning behind a drainage layer under a base, and behind clean washed stone rather than a fines-bearing material where water has to pass. Drain Rock and #57 Stone are the sizes contractors reach for in French drains, drywells and perimeter drains.

Salt spray and wind off the open bay work on exposed banks, and nor'easters and hurricanes undercut banks and seawalls along the East Passage and Mount Hope Bay. RipRap armors that ground, sold locally in the 4 to 10 inch range and heavier again as armor stone.

This is the longest working season in the state, opening earliest in spring and closing latest in the fall. The tropical season from late summer into October is when shore work gets tested.

Winter ground here is the mildest in Rhode Island, but it still freezes, and what shows up is soft edges and settled aprons rather than deep heave. Frost depth is 40 inches by state code, and the town building official sets footing depth.

Delivery to Portsmouth and the Surrounding Area

Bulk material arrives by dump truck and is tipped in one pile on site. Have the drop area clear and reachable, with room for the truck to get in and out without backing over a soft edge.

Ordering is online. You choose a quantity by the ton or by the yard, and each product page has a calculator if you need to size the load.

Pick a delivery date at checkout and the truck brings it to your Portsmouth address.

Rhode Island Rock Supply delivers across Rhode Island, including Newport, Middletown, Tiverton, Jamestown and Little Compton in Newport County.

Questions Portsmouth Buyers Ask

Can I order material by the ton for delivery in Portsmouth?

Yes. Quantities are ordered by the ton or by the yard, and you set the amount when you place the order online.

Each product page carries a calculator if you want to size the load before checkout. Delivery is available in Portsmouth and the rest of Rhode Island, and the truck tips your material in one pile at the address you give.

What stone should I use for drainage in Portsmouth?

Use clean, washed stone in an inch size, because fines are what clog a drain. Drain Rock and #57 Stone both work for French drains, drywells and foundation perimeter drains.

For heavy drainage, trench bottoms and construction entrances, 1 1/2 inch crushed stone is the coarse size local yards list. Where water has to move fast off a bank, RipRap handles the volume.

Order Soil, Stone and Fill for Your Portsmouth Project

Grading, bed prep, lawns, driveways, drainage and shore work all start with the right material under them. Rhode Island Rock Supply delivers processed gravel, crushed stone, sand, loam and fill to Portsmouth and the surrounding towns.

Size your load and place your order online when you are ready.