What Is Concrete Lifting?

To some people, concrete lifting is an unfamiliar concept. Here is a quick lesson in a nutshell:

How it works:

If you have a concrete sidewalk which has sunken and become uneven, or if you have other concrete slab items such as a driveway, patio, pool deck, garage floor or stairs that have done the same, concrete lifting services can come to your rescue.

In the past, such problems would require removing the affected concrete and re-pouring or replacing it. Now there is another option! By drilling small holes in the concrete and injecting a specially formulated concrete grout or polyurethane foam underneath it, the sunken areas can be ‘lifted’ back to their original placement. Thus the name ‘concrete lifting’.

Saving you money:

In general, concrete lifting services are significantly less expensive than removing and replacing a concrete slab. In many cases, the cost of concrete lifting can be around 1/2 to 1/3 the cost of chipping out and replacing the problem concrete, or even less. This alone is a huge advantage.

Convenience:

Not only can it save $$, it can save a lot of time and hassle. Depending on the item, concrete lifting can often be done in a few hours. In some cases it can even be performed without removing all of the items on top of the concrete, which is especially great in the case of patios and garage floors. The grass or other landscaping around it is usually completely unaffected by the process, and very little mess is created. And another great benefit: the concrete can usually be used again within hours.

In contrast, removing and re-pouring often takes days or weeks, and the surrounding landscape may have to be significantly disturbed or torn out. When concrete is re-poured or replaced, it often doesn’t match in color or texture to the older concrete around it which can be unsightly.

Known by other names:

So you are aware, concrete lifting is also known by many other terms. It is known as mudjacking, slabjacking, grout injecting, concrete raising, concrete leveling or void filling (because it fills in the ‘voids’ under the slab which caused the sinking).

As you can see, concrete lifting has many advantages over replacement, and is definitely worth looking into if you have sunken concrete.