Concrete Repair & Replacement in Kettering, OH

Concrete repair and replacement starts with one question: is the problem on the surface, or underneath it? In a city where so much concrete dates from the 1950s and 1960s, we see every stage of wear, from hairline cracks to driveways that have broken into rubble. Some of it can be repaired for a fraction of the cost of new concrete. Some of it cannot, and a patch on a failed slab just adds a cost before the replacement.

Common problems in Kettering concrete

• Scaling and spalling: the top layer flakes or pops off, usually from freeze-thaw and deicing salt on concrete that was not air-entrained or was finished too wet
• Settling: sections sink because the soil or base under them washed out or was never compacted
• Heaving: tree roots or frost lift a section, leaving a trip edge
• Cracking: from shrinkage, missing joints, overloading or a failed base
• Pulling away: steps and stoops separating from the house

Signs a repair will hold

HomeGuide's leveling and resurfacing guides point to repair when the slab is still structurally sound, just sunken, lightly flaked or cracked less than about a quarter inch. The usual tools:

• Crack sealing: cleaning out the crack and filling it with flexible sealant or patch so water stays out, about $0.50 to $3 per linear foot in HomeGuide's numbers
• Lifting: pumping grout (mudjacking, about $4 to $9 per square foot) or foam (polyjacking, about $8 to $25) under a sunken slab to raise it
• Overlay: a thin bonded layer over a worn but solid surface, about $3 to $7 per square foot for a basic one

Signs it needs to come out

Those guides lean toward replacement for cracks wider than a quarter inch, serious spalling or concrete that is breaking apart, and the resurfacing guide adds that a fix needing more than 2 inches of new material is better done as replacement. We also count a slab broken into loose pieces, a base that has washed away, or a section that sinks again after it was lifted. Since HomeGuide puts the life of leveled concrete at about 5 to 10 years or more, lifting a slab you will replace in a few years seldom pays.

Partial replacement

Often only part of a slab has failed: a few driveway sections near the garage, the bottom step, two squares of a walk. We saw cut along joints, remove just the bad sections, rebuild the base under them and pour new concrete to match the height of what is left. New concrete will not match the color of old concrete exactly at first, and we tell you that before we start.

Our approach on repair calls

We look at the concrete, the base under it, drainage and nearby trees, and tell you what caused the damage. You get options with prices: repair, partial replacement or full replacement, with how long each one is likely to last. If a City of Kettering sidewalk, curb or drive approach is involved, we explain the City's permit and inspection rules up front.

Preventing the next round of damage

Keep downspouts discharging away from slabs, fill and seal cracks before winter, use sand or a concrete-safe deicer instead of rock salt, and reseal exterior concrete every few years. Most freeze-thaw damage starts with water getting into the surface.