Concrete Questions and Answers for Garland, TX Property Owners

In Garland, the City allows two materials for front- and side-yard driveways: reinforced concrete or concrete pavers. A properly installed and maintained concrete driveway should last 30 years or longer, against a service life of about 15 years for asphalt. Dallas driveways, though, often reach their limit sooner than the 30 to 40 years a driveway might last in moderate conditions.

Garland's minimum is 4 inches of concrete with Number 3 rebar placed 18 inches on center on rebar chairs. For cars and SUVs of 3,000 to 6,000 pounds, 4 inches is generally enough, while trucks or large RVs of 12,000 pounds or more may call for 5 or 6 inches. According to the Tennessee Concrete Association, going from 4 to 5 inches adds about 20% to the concrete cost but boosts load capacity by nearly 50%. Garland Elite Concrete talks through thickness and reinforcement for how you'll use the driveway at the free estimate.

In Garland, the City's Technical Standards Manual sets single-family driveway widths at the property line at 10 feet minimum and 24 feet maximum to a street, or up to 32 feet to an alley where the garage faces it, and allows one driveway onto a public street per lot unless a circular drive is approved. For planning, allow at least 10 feet of width per vehicle, with 12 feet preferred for a single driveway.

With proper maintenance, a quality concrete driveway should last 30 to 40 years, and some estimates run to 40+ years. Around Dallas, though, driveways often reach their limit sooner.

The general timeline: new concrete is okay to walk on after 48 hours; after 7 to 10 days it can carry a car, though not near or across the edges; after 30 days it can take all normal traffic except heavy commercial vehicles such as garbage trucks, and that is also a good time to seal it. RVs and large trucks should wait at least 28 days.

Yes, depending on the damage. Thin cracks of about ⅛ inch can usually just be repaired. Cracks or holes under ¼ inch can be filled or patched, though only as a temporary fix, and wider cracks, spalling and discoloration can be covered with resurfacing or an overlay. Once more than 25% of a driveway is damaged, resurfacing or replacement becomes the more cost-effective route.

For small cracks, filling them. Nationally, concrete driveway crack repair runs $0.50 to $3 per linear foot. Epoxy filler suits cracks ⅛ inch wide or smaller, and cracks ½ inch or wider get a foam backer rod before they're filled. A patch on a crack under ¼ inch is only a temporary fix, though, and isn't watertight. Significantly wider cracks can point to a bigger problem in the slab, which is why Garland Elite Concrete looks at the crack and the concrete around it before pricing any concrete crack repair.

As a stopgap, yes. Any filled crack is a temporary repair, although some last many years, and patches aren't watertight. The Texas Department of Transportation says routing a V-shaped groove along a crack and sealing it can keep water out where a small amount of movement is expected. For cracks that affect strength, epoxy injection bonds to concrete more strongly than concrete's own tensile strength and can restore structural integrity in cracks 0.002 inch wide or wider, according to ACI 224.1R, but it may not be the best fix where the concrete is expected to keep moving.

Properly done mudjacking lasts 5 to 10 years or longer, though its slurry can wash away over time; polyurethane foam, which is waterproof and won't erode, lasts 10 to 15 years or longer. The International Association of Certified Home Inspectors says mudjacking isn't appropriate when a slab has risen from expansive soil or when the cause of the settling isn't addressed. Both are forms of concrete leveling, and the right one depends on the slab and the soil under it.

Usually not. Homeowners insurance typically doesn't cover polyjacking, because concrete settling is considered normal wear and tear or a maintenance issue, unless it resulted from a covered event such as a plumbing leak.

A basic overlay. Nationally, concrete resurfacing runs $3 to $7 per square foot, or $1,200 to $2,900 for a two-car driveway, against $6 to $20 for a decorative or stamped overlay, and it lasts 8 to 15 years before needing repairs. It suits sound concrete only: resurfacing is the fix for minor flaking or cracks under ¼ inch, concrete with large cracks, crumbling or structural problems should be replaced, and a driveway that is severely cracked or damaged should never be resurfaced.

Sealing every few years with a high-quality product protects all concrete flatwork by keeping moisture out, and a driveway is usually due for resealing about every two years, or once the finish starts to wear. Nationally, sealing costs $1 to $3 per square foot installed, and a new driveway should cure 28 to 30 days before its first coat. Garland Elite Concrete gives free estimates for repair, leveling, resurfacing and sealing.

In Garland, a concrete parking lot must be at least 5 inches of reinforced concrete over an engineered subbase, according to the City's Technical Standards Manual, and fire lanes need at least 6 inches of reinforced Class P1 (4,000 psi) concrete. The National Ready Mixed Concrete Association's general guidance is that 4 inches of unreinforced concrete is usually satisfactory where only cars and pickups park, and that 5 or 6 inches may be needed for light trucks.

NRMCA says a 28-day strength of 4,000 psi is adequate for parking areas in most of the country, and the American Concrete Institute's parking lot specification, ACI SPEC 330.1-14, sets the same figure. Garland's Class P1 concrete, called for in fire lanes and residential driveway approaches, is 4,000 psi. Strength is checked with test cylinders, usually at 28 days. Garland Elite Concrete gives free estimates for commercial concrete paving, slabs, and curb and gutter.

The raised concrete edges are curbs. Garland's Technical Standards Manual requires at least a 6-inch raised curb, or another device that stops cars, to separate parking from islands, sidewalks and other non-vehicle areas. NRMCA recommends a thickened edge on outer slabs that take wheel loads, which usually takes the form of an integral curb.

Estimates run 30 to 40 years, against 15 to 30 for asphalt, and the American Concrete Institute's parking lot guide says concrete lots typically have service lives of 20 years or more. ACI also notes that concrete lots run cooler than asphalt and are minimally affected by leaking petroleum products.

Yes, for a new driveway or to widen an existing one. The City's driveway permit costs $88 ($70 plus an $18 processing fee). The driveway approach in the City right-of-way needs its own Approach Permit, reviewed by the Transportation Department; its fee is set by the City, so confirm the current amount with Building Inspection at 972-205-2300. Garland Elite Concrete talks through what the City requires for your job at the free estimate.

In Garland, the property owner. The City's Street Department says that under City ordinance the abutting owner must keep the sidewalk, parkway, curb and driveway in good, safe condition, and the code gives an owner who receives a repair notice from the Streets Department 30 days to fix it, with exceptions along certain thoroughfares. The City helps through a cost-share program: when bond money is available it may split sidewalk reconstruction 50-50, with extra reductions for a homestead exemption, a Community Development Block Grant area, and owners who are disabled or 65 or older, down to as little as 10% for the owner. The Street Department runs it, at 972-205-2930.

Two reasons stack up. The most common soil mapped in Garland is Houston Black clay, which the USDA rates as having high shrink-swell potential; in dry periods it cracks ½ to 4 inches wide. And all concrete tends to crack: the National Ready Mixed Concrete Association says it isn't possible to produce completely crack-free concrete, and that most cracks come from design and construction mistakes such as missing joints, poor subgrade preparation, too much water, poor finishing, fast drying and little or no curing.

Garland sits 15 miles northeast of downtown Dallas, with Lake Ray Hubbard on its eastern border, according to the Handbook of Texas, and the City describes itself as bordered by Interstate 635, Interstate 30 and the President George Bush Turnpike. Garland Elite Concrete works across Garland, Rowlett, Sachse, Richardson, Murphy, Sunnyvale, Wylie, Heath, Parker, St. Paul, University Park, Mesquite, Rockwall, Highland Park, Travis Ranch, Seis Lagos, Plano, Addison, Mobile City, Lucas, Balch Springs, Allen, Lavon, Farmers Branch, McLendon-Chisholm and Fate.