Guides
Background reading, in a sensible order
Most people arrive at a concrete problem knowing one of three things: nothing yet, what they are looking at, or what they have been quoted. Those need different reading, and doing it in the wrong order wastes an afternoon.
Start where you actually are
You do not know what is wrong yet
Read the mechanism first. Understanding that water drives almost all of this — and that surface damage and movement are different problems — makes every later conversation shorter.
You know what you are looking at
Go to the specific problem. Each page covers what it usually means, which options apply, and — more usefully — which ones your situation rules out.
You have quotes in front of you
Skip the background. Normalise the scope across the bids first, then compare totals — almost every large gap explains itself during that exercise.
Problem pages
Written from what you can see rather than from what a contractor would call it.
- Sunken concrete
- Cracked concrete
- Uneven concrete
- Spalling concrete
- Concrete settlement
- Voids under concrete
- Poor drainage around concrete
- Flaking and scaling
- Trip hazards
Deciding, and hiring
- Repair or replace?
- What drives leveling cost
- What drives replacement cost
- Driveway cost factors
- Patio cost factors
- Polyjacking vs mudjacking
- Leveling vs replacement
- Resurfacing vs replacement
- How to compare quotes
- Questions to ask a contractor
- Contractor Vetting Standard
- Estimate Comparison Checklist
Work it out interactively instead
Repair or replace?
Ten questions about what you can see, and a reasoned starting point with the options your answers rule out.
Crack severity assessment
Read what a crack is doing rather than guessing from how wide it looks.
Project cost planner
Where your project sits relative to other residential concrete work, and what will actually move your quotes.
Read enough?
If you would rather have somebody look at it, tell us about the project and we will review whether we can match you with an independent local contractor. We will say plainly if we cannot.