A concrete driveway that is uneven not only looks bad, but also puts you, your family, and your visitors at risk of falling. Once concrete begins to fracture or develop holes, the damage simply gets worse unless the issue is fixed.
Adding an overlay to the uneven driveway is a cheap approach to making repairs as pouring a brand-new driveway can be expensive. Depending on how uneven the surface is, the overlay’s thickness will vary.
Concrete is without a doubt one of the strongest building materials available. However, over time, concrete driveways can still develop cracks and other problems. Deterioration over time can be caused by a variety of factors, including exposure to the environment, inadequate water drainage, and frequent frost heave.
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What Are The Reasons For Uneven Driveways?
Your concrete driveway’s cracking or unevenness could be caused by a variety of factors. Your geographic location has some bearing on this. This shifting might result in breaking if you reside in an earthquake-prone region.
Installation Issues
Small hairline cracks caused by shrinking in plastic can appear during installation. The water in the concrete may evaporate too quickly if it is applied in exceptionally hot weather or if it has been overmixed.
Plastic shrinkage is the term used when the volume decrease takes place before the concrete hardens. Drying shrinkage is the volume drop that happens mostly as a result of moisture loss after the concrete has hardened.
Through careful mixing and laying of the concrete, both can be reduced. Your problems can be caused by the fact that you did the concrete yourself or hired a shady contractor.
Ground Settlement
Dry soil shrinks, causing the unneeded room to expand beneath the concrete, which is when settlement most frequently happens. Earthquakes and plants growing under a concrete slab are two other factors that might cause ground movement. Larger cracks like this might split the concrete into two uneven layers.
Deterioration
When concrete is exposed to salt throughout the winter, chemical degradation happens. This is most often where there is a lot of snowfall throughout the winter for obvious reasons. The use of sand would be a safer substitute to prevent such damage.
Rust develops when moisture and oxygen are present in concrete that contains steel rebar or wire mesh. The slab’s structural integrity is significantly compromised, which increases the risk of cracking or unevenness.
Ways To Fix Uneven Driveways
Add An Overlay
An overlay needs a spotless surface for it to bind well. Solidity is necessary for concrete. With a tiny chisel and hammer, loose concrete should be chipped away, and any damaged elements should be removed from the crack’s margins.
A crack’s bottom should be wider than its top. To prevent the cracks from growing again, this aids in the retention of patching materials. The concrete surface can be made clean to begin the project by using a degreaser or dish detergent mixed with water and left on the surface for 30 minutes before being rinsed off and dried.
Fill Gaps And Cracks
You must fill in all cracks before pouring the overlay, however, larger ones require a little more attention than smaller ones. Larger cracks can be stopped from growing again by applying reinforced fabric tape.
Materials for polymer patch repairs can patch up all the divots and offer a strong link between the old concrete and the fresh overlay. Using a manual grinder, any sharp edges can be removed after the repair patches have dried.
Place Furring Strips On The Driveway’s Edges
The driveway’s uneven surface must be leveled with concrete overlays that are deep enough to do so. The overlay can be poured to the desired depth using forms constructed of furring strips and placed along the driveway’s edge.
The furring strips are kept in place by stakes that have been set against their sides. Frequent measurements are required while the strips are installed to guarantee that the overlay is uniformly thick.
Pour Overlaying Material
Cement is used as the overlay material, and it has been combined with water to a batter-like consistency. To serve as a bonding agent for the overlay, a concrete paint comprised of cement and water is applied to the driveway’s surface first.
The overlay material must be applied over the paint before it dries. The overlay must still be worked into corners and along edges even though it is fluid enough to self-level. The surface can be made slip-resistant by scrubbing it with an old brush once the overlay has dried and become firm.
It takes many days for the overlay to dry. The concrete will become stronger the longer you let it dry.
Use Polyurethane To Fill Voids
Polyurethane can be used in a variety of ways to patch cracks and voids in concrete driveways. Organic material and rock shards may be compacted. Without elevating or overstretching the slab to the point of fracture, polymer injection might provide support.
Fill material that is frequently used around the foundation and improperly installed gutters and downspouts on new construction may contribute to some considerable settling.
Conclusion
Not only is an uneven concrete driveway unsightly, but it also increases the chance that you and any visitors will slip and fall. If concrete is cracked or holed, the problem will only get worse if it is not corrected.
Applying an overlay to an existing driveway is a cost-effective technique to correct an uneven driveway because replacing it can be impractically expensive. You can change the overlay’s thickness based on how uneven the surface is.
Concrete that is uneven or cracked is dangerous and ugly. However, there’s no reason to tolerate that issue on your property. Instead, get in touch with a local expert crew to assist you with leveling and restoring your driveway to its former glory.
Additionally, the ideal method for repairing concrete so that it looks stunning and functions flawlessly is high-density polyurethane lifting foam.
