A sinking concrete driveway is ugly and dangerous. It compromises your curb appeal and creates trip hazards. It’s an issue you need to address right away, but if you’ve never dealt with this problem before, you may be at a loss.
Why Is Your Driveway Sinking?
First, it’s important to understand why concrete sinks in the first place. Before new concrete is poured, the soil must be fully compacted. If this isn’t done properly, the soil will shift into the air pockets and the ground beneath the concrete will sink. It might not be noticeable at first, but over time, soil compaction can cause major structural issues for the concrete slab.
Another common cause is improper drainage. If your gutters direct water to the edge of your concrete driveway, erosion can wash away the soil supporting the driveway.
Also, if you consistently park a heavy vehicle or dumpster directly on one portion of the concrete, this can lead to sinking as well.
Your First Option
One way to correct the problem is to rip out the concrete and replace it with a new slab.
It’s effective, but it’s expensive. It’s also time-consuming. If you’re looking for quick fix, this is not it. The demolition alone could take multiple days, as concrete is hard to break and heavy to transport away from the site. This job also may damage your landscaping.
The Better Option
At Lift-Up, we always want to present alternatives when our customers have concrete problems. You can use concrete raising to correct the issue.
With concrete lifting, our team drills holes in the slab that’s sinking. We attach our specialized pump and inject grout beneath the surface, filling the void and bringing the driveway back to its previous level. Then we patch the hole, fill the crack and let it cure for a couple of hours. You can start driving on it again the same day!
How We Help
If you don’t have experience in concrete lifting, it can be hard to determine whether the concrete needs to be replaced or if a repair is possible. Our team can help you make this decision when we come to your home and look at the damage.
In extreme cases, we won’t recommend concrete lifting to fix a sinking concrete driveway because we know it won’t deliver the results you want. If the surface is crumbling and cracked and we can tell it’s old, we won’t suggest you spend your money on anything other than a replacement.
When we take on your sinking concrete driveway, we always follow through. At Lift-Up Concrete, we have your best interests in mind.
