Concrete Driveway Repair Question

[como1982]

Hello All,

I'm writing with a question regarding the repair of a concrete driveway that I hope somebody might be able to answer for me...

I have a ten year old concrete driveway made up of four sections that is in very good condition apart from the fact that small gaps have recently developed between some of the sections that were not connected by expansion strips.

I know that, unless I close these cracks up before winter, the ice and snow will work them apart and I will have much more trouble down the road.

My plan is to clean any debris out of the gaps and then fill them with either foam backer rods or cane fiber expansion joint strips. After that I was going to treat them with some sort of polyurethane sealant.

Does this sound like a reasonable plan? Are there any improvements that might be made to it or anything that I'm missing? Thanks in advance for any suggestions you might provide!

Christopher

[hallerb]

theres black caulking made espically for this purpose. clean joints and apply.

its likely water under the slabs is causing the problem and the amount coming thru open joints although important is secondary to other sources.

if your on a slope, adding a perforated pipe drain is a good idea alongside the slabs draining well away to a lower area

[BobK207]

I recently used SIKA self leveling grout......comes in one of those huge caulking cartridges.

The gun was only $15 & the stuff worked great.

Got them all at HDepot

The stuff is rather runny when applied so use a backer rod. and keep the grout cross section towards the low limit of the specs.

I had a rather troublesome application...variable joint width & I had some leaks....be prepared for leaks by having some extra backer rod & scissors handy so you can cut a piece to plug the leak....just stuff the piece below the surface with stick or probe.

The stuff appears to cure by chemical reaction so warmer weather is better.

I looked a little to bright "light grey" when applied but mine has been self staining from concrete / dirt / dust....perfect match now.

cheers Bob

[Rudy]

BLACK caulking on a CONCRETE driveway isnt a good idea.

[trader4]

There are concrete type caulks, shaded similar to concrete, which is what I would use. At HD, they have some of them in the paint section with the rest of the caulk and some where the sakrete is located.