Concrete driveway repair options

monkey3605 · 08-15-2006, 03:39 PM

Howdy all,
I think I've been had by my GC, no complaints up to this point of a massive remodel job but his crew poured a new upper half of a driveway and frankly, it's terrible. The old driveway was crowned and the new one is level across so at the sides there is a 3/4" height difference. It looks like a sidewalk - smooth around the edge and broomed in the center (which is OK but not like the old driveway), 20'x25' with no expansion joints (there were none in the old one) and the impression of the plastic that was used to cover it where it got rained on and water ponded in the tarp pushing it into the wet cement. Also a small area of the top surface at the roof drip line has been eaten away exposing the aggregate underneath where water ran off the roof. Also also also cement slopped over onto the cement walk to the front door and doesn't look like it wants to come off.

He has offfered to float a patch on the lower section to smooth the transition where the edges don't meet at the joint and grind / skim a patch over the crappy finish on the top section. I'm afraid that this will just flake off. Anyone have any suggestions? My fear is that it will have to be ripped out and done over again.

TIA for any thoughts,
Mark

Brickie · 08-17-2006, 10:25 AM

Do you have a contract with the GC?

monkey3605 · 08-17-2006, 05:55 PM

Yes and no - This was a change order due to local codes. We added a carport and when they punched throught to dig the post holes, they found that the old driveway was only 2" thick. Code calls for 4". The GC called to tell us that he would have his crew demo the old and get quotes for a new install. Nothing was written down regarding the specifics of the new pour. We'd had no complaints so far with him - all his work has been outstanding. He has offered to put a skim coat over the mess but I don't have a warm fuzzy feeling about it.

**joasis** · 08-17-2006, 06:47 PM

Did your GC sub out the driveway work to a concrete contractor? If so, your GC may be trying to remedy the problem if the sub will not take care of it. If you are not happy, and you don't want the patch job, see what the GC is willing to do..meet him halfway maybe if you feel like he isn't trying to put one over on you. If there is a sub involved, the GC should communicate with him to work it out...sounds like a communication problem and never, never, work on a change to a project without a change order, signed by the contractor and the HO. Then everyone knows what is expected.

Brickie · 08-17-2006, 07:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by monkey3605

Yes and no - This was a change order due to local codes. We added a carport and when they punched throught to dig the post holes, they found that the old driveway was only 2" thick. Code calls for 4". The GC called to tell us that he would have his crew demo the old and get quotes for a new install. Nothing was written down regarding the specifics of the new pour. We'd had no complaints so far with him - all his work has been outstanding. He has offered to put a skim coat over the mess but I don't have a warm fuzzy feeling about it.

First of all, I would recommend reading up on a few thing here:

http://www.concretenetwork.com/concr...ays/index.html

Second, what's this change order due to local codes stuff??? Your GC didn't know that a standard driveway is 4" thick??? No joints??? It sounds like he has a bunch of hacks doing his concrete work.

monkey3605 · 08-18-2006, 04:15 PM

The change order was to bust out and repour to 4". The original 20 year old driveway was only 2" thick. We didn't know this prior to popping holes in it to set the posts for the carport. He didn't use a concrete contractor, he used his own crew whom he said knew how to do this. I'm waiting to get all my ducks in a row - research and "real" concrete contractor quotes before I confront him with this issue. Thanks.