So, you’re landscaping an area with a wish to cover the space with gravel and are now wondering how many tons of gravel you need for each yard of your lawn.
At this stage the only thing you know is the square footage area you need to cover with gravel. So, how’d you tell the supplier about the weight of gravel, since they take orders in weight instead of area.
One of the simple solutions to these problems just use the online gravel calculator, to figure out the amount of the gravel for contraction.
Here in this guide we’ll explain about everything you need to know for knowing how many yards are in a ton of gravel.
So, let’s get started:
Different materials – different units
Dealing with building materials and supplies in renovation project seems a daunting task. Ordering building materials need accurate estimating to avoid unnecessary surprises. Some building materials are measured in units of area, length while some are measured by weight. When it comes to gravel, the industry takes it by estimates it by volume but the suppliers take it by weight.
Gravel is a coarse aggregate having widely uses in various construction and renovation projects. It is used for construction of roads, walkways, railway ballasts, in foundation, concreting and hence most widely used in construction industry. Therefore, before buying gravel, you must know the right quantity. Gravel is always estimated in unit of volume.
There are various units, that are in used in construction industry which includes:
Meter: Cubic meter, square meter.
Foot: Cubit Foot, square foot.
Inch: Cubic inch, square inch.
Acre: Hectare
Yard: Cubic Yard, square yard.
Since there are various units in construction industry for measurement of quantity of material so there is always needed to convert one unit to another unit for efficacy of project.
Also Read: 11 Different Types of Sand and their uses in Construction [PDF]
Yards to Ton unit conversion
Here, we have to deal with unit conversion of yards to ton. Therefore, we will consider these units and their conversion.
Yard:
Yard is a unit of length and it measure 1-yard equals to 36 inches or 3 feet.
Ton:
Ton is the unit of weight. In SI unit 1-ton measure weight equal to 1016kg. While in Indian or Asian market 1-ton equals weight of 1000kg and it is practically used in our construction industry.
Conversion of Yard to Ton:
Since yard is the unit of length while ton is the unit of weight so technique is needed to convert this unit of length to unit of weight and this unit conversion is totally dependent on the density of gravel used. As, this density of material changes this yard to ton conversion factor also changes.
Number of yards in ton of gravel
As in construction industry, gravel is available in various shape and size therefore density of gravel is also different for different type of gravel and conversion factor of yard to ton is gravel also varies. Let us consider following type of gravel and their conversion factors.
Loose Gravel
It has density of 85lb/ft^3. To find conversion factor for this loose gravel consider
Consider
Given density is 85lb/ft^3. By converting this density into cubic yard and find its weight as.
per cubic yard
As pounds
So, ton per cubic yard
Therefore, it is found that 1 cubic yard of gravel = 1.15 tons
So, in 1 ton of gravel there are yards
Thus 0.87 is the conversion factor of number of yards in ton. If there are 3 tons of loose gravel then, Number of yards = 3 x 0.87 = 2.61
½ to 2-inch size dry Gravel
It consists density of 105 lb. ft^3. Which shows 105 pounds weight in per cubic feet. By converting in cubic yard, we will get 2835 pounds per cubic yard. As, 2000 pounds equals 1 ton. Therefore 2835 pound per cubic yard equals to 1.42 tons in 1 cubic yard. As we did in above procedure. So, in short, for ½ to 2-inch wet gravel
1 yard of gravel = 1.42 tons
So, number of yards in 1 ton = 1/1.42 = 0.704
In 3 tons of gravel there are 3 x 0.704 = 2.11 yards.
Also Read: Gypcrete Vs Concrete – Difference – Composition – Uses
How’d you do measurements for your home renovation project?
Determining the area
So, the first step is to determine the area that you wish to cover with gravel. For that, take a meter tap and ask someone to help you while stretching the tape measure.
You need to determine the longer dimension of your lawn or area. Take note of the length on a piece of paper. It is always helpful to draw a rough sketch with dimensions for better understanding later on.
Before leaving the tap measure, mark the spots on the field so you clearly know which dimension has been taken off. Now move on to the other side of the field and determine the width of the area. Once you have the lengths and width on the piece of paper; it’s time to do the reckoning.
We have the lengths and the widths, so we can multiply the two to get the area to be covered with gravel.
So, area for gravel = length x width
Determine the volume
For the volume, we need to determine or estimate the depth for the layer of gravel. Generally in landscaping projects, the common depth is 1 to 2 inches. Now we can multiply the three dimensions to determine the volume of required gravel.
so, volume of gravel = length x width x thickness
Also Read: Weight of concrete – Density – Concrete Slab – Driveways
Convert Yards to Tons in Gravel
I recommend you to convert inches or feet to yards as per the conversion factor above. Once, you’ve got the cubic yards; you can easily relate that to tons for ordering supplies.
Let’s say your area of landscaping came out as 100 cubic yards. As a general rule of thumb, landscapers multiply this with 1.4 and say you need 100 x 1.4 = 140 tons of gravel for covering the space with gravel.
But for different types of gravel in terms of quality; the weight can be different.
So, how to Convert Yards to Tons in Gravel for different types?
Here’s how they weigh per cubic yard;
- Wash gravel – 2,835 pounds per cubic yard
- Screened stone (fine quality) – 2,970 pounds per cubic yard
- Sand – 2,700 pounds per cubic yard
So, whatever quality of gravel you wish to choose, use the correct density factor for estimating yards in ton of gravel.
Also Read: How much does #8 rebar weight per foot [SOLVED]
A pro tip
A 10-wheel dump truck carries 12 to 20 tons of gravel or around 8 to 10 yards depending on the rock size and type.
How many tons in a yard of gravel
Regarding “how many yards in a ton” or “how many tons in a cubic yard” it depends on the density of material you’re using. The density of sand is different in comparison to gravel or aggregate. If sand has a density of 100 lb/ft3 (2700 cubic yard), so 1 yard of sand equals to 1.35 US ton or 1.22 Metric tons.
Here’s how we can convert yards in a ton:
- From the bulk density of gravel, we know that 1 cubic yard of gravel weights approximately 2460 pounds. (Actually it varies from 2460 to 3240 lb/cu.yd or 1460 to 1920 kg/m3).
- Let’s take the minimum value for estimating for our project.
- We, also know that 1 US ton equals 2000 pounds.
- So, we need to divide this above figure in pounds to 2000 to get tons.
- 2460 / 2000 = 1.23 tons.
With that we can say that a yard of gravel equals 1.23 tons.
| Material | Density (lb/ft3) pound per ft3 | Density (lb/yd3) pound per cubic yard | How many tons in a cubic yard |
| Sand | 100 | 2700 | 1.35 |
| Loose gravel | 91 | 2460 | 1.23 |
| Dense gravel | 120 | 3240 | 1.62 |
| Limestone | 110 to 135 | 2970 to 3645 | 1.485 to 1.8225 |
| Dirt | 115 to 135 | 3105 to 3645 | 1.5525 to 1.8225 |
Yards to tons calculator
Conversion from yards to tons: remember for answering “how many yards in a ton”
1 lb/ft3 = 27 lb/yd3 (multiply lb/ft3 with 27 to get lb/yd3)
1 lb = 0.0005 (divide the mass in pound by 2000 to get yards to tons)
Yard to ton conversion: simply multiply the yards with density in lb/cu.yd and divide the whole figure with 2000 to get tons.
4 Yards of gravel to ton
If you have 4 yards of medium density gravel; we can write as (4 x 2460)/2000 = 4.92 tons or simply multiply 4 x 1.23 = 4.92 (I’ve taken 1.23 figure from above table). So, 4 yards of gravel weighs 4.92 tons.
6 Yards of gravel to ton
If you have 6 yards of medium density gravel; we can write as (6 x 2460)/2000 = 7.38 tons or simply multiply 6 x 1.23 = 7.38 (I’ve taken 1.23 figure from above table). So, 6 yards of gravel weighs 4.92 tons.
12 Yards of gravel to ton
If you have 12 yards of medium density gravel; we can write as (12 x 2460)/2000 = 14.76 tons or simply multiply 12 x 1.23 = 14.76 (I’ve taken 1.23 figure from above table). So, 12 yards of gravel weighs 14.76 tons.
Procedure for yards to tons
For converting any material (sand, gravel, limestone, or dirt) or knowing how many cubic yards in a ton; here’s how you proceed:
- Simply find the density of that material from the above table. (preferably in lb/ft3)
- Now multiply the density by 27 to convert lb/ft3 to lb/yard3
- Now divide this figure by 2000 to convert pounds to US tons.
- That’s how you can answer how many cubic yards in a ton of sand, how many yards in a ton of gravel, how many yards in a ton of dirt, how many yards is a ton of limestone.
How many yards in a ton of gravel?
Now here for yard to ton conversion; we need to do the opposite of what we’ve done above.
Here we have a ton of aggregate or gravel and so we need find out that how much yard or cubic yard the gravel will cover?
Yard to ton conversion
A typical gravel of normal density when spread on a landscape can cover 0.66 cubic yards in a ton. So, we can say that a ton of gravel has 0.66 cubic yards. For calculation, we can say that a yard of gravel has a weight of 3000 pounds.
But here we have a ton of gravel; so weigh of gravel = 1 ton
You know 1 ton = 2000 pounds.
So, let’s say weight of gravel = 1 ton = 2000 pounds.
Now using density of 3000 lb/cu.yard; we can say;
Density = mass / volume; and for volume = mass / density
So, yards of gravel = 2000 / 3000 = 0.67 tons.
So, a yard of gravel weighs 0.67 tons if density is 3000 lb/cu.yard
And a yard of gravel weighs 0.61 tons if density is 3240 lb/cu.yard
This means if you are increasing the density, the weight a yard of gravel will increase;
Procedure for how many yards is a ton
- Here you have a weight of gravel given and you want to know how much area of yards it will cover.
- You need to divide the tons into pounds (using 1 ton = 2000 pounds)
- Once you have pounds you can divide the weight in pounds by density of gravel or material to get yards.
| Material | Density (lb/ft3) pound per ft3 | Density (lb/yd3) pound per cubic yard | Cubic Yard for 1 ton (tons to yards) | Cubic yard for 2 tons | Cubic yard for 3 tons |
| Sand | 100 | 2700 | 0.74 | 1.48 | 2.22 |
| Loose gravel | 91 | 2460 | 0.81 | 1.62 | 2.43 |
| Dense gravel | 120 | 3240 | 0.61 | 1.22 | 1.83 |
| Limestone | 110 to 135 | 2970 to 3645 | 0.67 to 0.55 | 1.34 to 1.1 | 2.01 to 1.65 |
| Dirt | 115 to 135 | 3105 to 3645 | 0.64 to 0.55 | 1.28 to 1.1 | 2.56 to 1.65 |
If you have weigh of gravel or aggregate in ton you can simply multiply it with the unit (0.74) to get the cubic yards corresponding to gravel, sand, limestone, or dirt.
For example let’s say you have 1.5 ton of limestone and you want to find its cubic yards; here’s how you’ll do: 1.5 x (0.67) = 1.005 or 1.5 x 0.55 = 0.825.
So 1.5 ton of limestone has yards of 1.005 to 0.825.
10 tons of gravel to yard
10 tons of gravel equals 6.1 yards if density is medium like 3240 lb/cu.yard. But 10 tons will have yards of 7.140 yards if density is low like 2856 lb/cu.yard. For loose gravel with density of 2460 lb/cu.yard; 10 tons will have yards of (10×2000)/2460 = 8.13 yards.
12 tons in yards
12 tons of gravel equals 7.41 yards if density is medium like 3240 lb/cu.yard. But 12 tons will have yards of 8.403 yards if density is low like 2856 lb/cu.yard. For loose gravel with density of 2460 lb/cu.yard; 12 tons will have yards of (12×2000)/2460 = 9.75 yards.
20 tons of gravel to yard
20 tons of gravel equals 12.2 yards if density is medium like 3240 lb/cu.yard. But 20 tons will have yards of 14.28 yards if density is low like 2856 lb/cu.yard. For loose gravel with density of 2460 lb/cu.yard; 20 tons will have yards of (20×2000)/2460 = 16.26 yards.
1 ton equals how many yards?
1 ton of gravel with medium density of 3240 lb/cu.yd will have 0.81 yards. For sand with density of 2700 lb/cu.yd; 1 ton will equal 0.74 yards. For loose density, it will have 0.61 yards.
Conclusion
Yard is the unit of length and ton is the unit of weight. To find number of yards in one ton, it is dependent on density of material and procedure for finding number of yards in one ton is stated above.
