Pouring Over: A Concrete Blog

Concrete driveways are durable and weather well, but eventually damage can occur as they age. Know the common types of damage and your repair options so you can make the best decision when it comes to driveway repairs and maintenance.

1. Weathering

Weathering can be the result of wind, rain, ice, and snow, or it could be caused by products like ice melt salts that wear down the surface of the concrete. The result is a rough surface with pits or fine cracks. Minor damage that doesn't penetrate deeply can be fixed by resurfacing the concrete. One option is to resurface with an epoxy and stone aggregate mixture that provides a decorative look as well as fixes the damage.

2. Cracks

Cracks large and small can develop over time as the driveway settles or falls prey to external damages. Cracks can be filled with a concrete-epoxy filler, but the repair patches will be visible. One option is to patch the cracks and then paint or dye the surface of the concrete to camouflage damage. The other option is to remove and repour a badly cracked driveway, which may be necessary if deep cracks penetrate into the base material. 

3. Buckling

Too much weight on a driveway can cause it to buckle. This typically occurs on older driveways when heavy modern pickups or work vehicles are frequently parked upon them. Buckled driveways typically need to be reconstructed from the base up. Installing a stronger base and a thicker reinforced layer of concrete will prevent the drive from buckling in the future. 

4. Uplifts

Uplift occurs for one of two reasons. Either movement in the soil beneath the concrete lifts up part of a slab, such as from a frost-thaw cycle, or something like a tree root pushes part of the slab up. With the first type, sometimes part of the slab sinks due to soil movement which makes the level section appear lifted. Your contractor can use a process called mudjacking to inject slurry beneath the sunken area so it lifts and levels. In other cases, it may be necessary to remove the damaged area and rebuild the base before pouring fresh concrete. 

5. Crumbling

Crumbling typically affects the edge of a concrete driveway. It can be minimized if care is taken to avoid driving on the edge of the concrete. Repair is also possible for already affected drives. Your contractor will cut off the strip of crumbling concrete and then install a concrete curbing edge. This concrete can be dyed or stamped for a decorative effect that looks nice. 

Contact a concrete driveway service if you have damage that needs to be assessed or repaired.