Sunken Patio Repaired With Mudjacking

The rear patio of this residence was sunken, making big steps for the homeowner and his best friend. Typical Kansas City-area concrete settlement repaired.

Mudjacking reversed the concrete settlement, raising the patio back to level.

The owners of this Olathe, KS home were experiencing concrete settlement, a frequent problem in the Kansas City metro area. In this case, the backyard patio of the home had dropped over 3", making for a large step down for the owner and his dog. The homeowner even had to place bricks under the wooden steps to shim them up and keep them from sagging.

During the project, small 3/8ths inch holes are drills through the concrete. An expanding polymer is injected through the holes lifting and leveling the concrete. Voids around the slab are filled so that the patio is well supported. In this case, the steps were brough back to their original position sitting directly on the concrete patio again. Patios commonly settle along the house as they are sitting on backfill soil. Backfill is the soil that was removed during construction of the home and then is put back. This soil is not typically compacted as the foundation walls are still weak during the curing process. Over time that soil will settle out and needs to have fill added.

In some cases, the concrete contractor that poured the concrete patio will tie the patio into the foundation to keep it level. This can be a great way to keep the concrete from sinking, but it doesn't prevent the soil from settling and creating a void. If your concrete is level, but there is a void it is important to fill that void so that the concrete doesn't eventually fall. If you experience frost heave in the winter that can cause damage where the concrete is dowelled into the concrete foundation.

Even after your patio is lifted and stabilized, the grade around the patio should be maintained. This will help prevent water from pooling near the foundation and causing leaks or structural damage. If you have landscaping in the area, it is important to make sure the dirt actually slopes away under mulch or rock. Just adding more mulch or rock to make it look like there is positive slope won't protect your foundation. If you bought the house after the landscaping is done, you should check that this isn't the case. If it is, you can simply rake the mulch or rock out of the way, add dirt up to a positive grade, and then relay the mulch or rock.

Another smart move is to seal the joints in the patio to help prevent water from undermining the patio. Joints that are left unsealed just invite water down under your patio and near your foundation.

Unfortunately, it is pretty typical in the Kansas City area to experience concrete settlement. Most companies are not able to do larger jobs behind homes because of material limitations or access. Thrasher Foundation Repair saved the day (and a lot of money) for this happy family.

Fortunately, with the specialized equipment that Thrasher utilizes, raising concrete in hard-to-reach locations is something we specialize in and something that separates us from other options.