Image source: mudjacking-milwaukee.com
Mudjacking is the process of lifting up the sunken slabs by pumping a mixture of water, sand, mud, and cement underneath. It can raise concrete floors on walkways, driveways, decks, and the basement or fill up a void below the slab to avoid further sinking.
A pump is used to fill up the void through the drilled holes on the sunken area and raise back a concrete slab to its original position. Every homeowner should examine the pros and cons of mudjacking before hiring a professional contractor for any concrete lifting.
Pros:
1. Affordable process: Compared to the cost of replacing the concrete slab, mudjacking is cheaper. It only costs you about a third of the cost of concrete slab replacement.
2. Quick process: This technique is one of the fast methods to repair slabs since the mixture of sand, cement, and water can take a day or two to repair concrete slab sinking issues.
3. No further damage: Mudjacking injection ensures there is no damage to your lawn by filling the voids under the structure. The injected concentrated quantities fill the cavities and raise the slab in the sunken area to avoid more cracks or damage.
4. Effective: The procedure can be done at any time regardless of the weather conditions. You can walk and drive on the surface the same day after the repairs without any effect.
5. Preserves the landscape: The procedure doesn’t result in a construction zone or let you worry about the demolition of the concrete floor. The floor remains intact as well as your landscape.
6. Environmentally friendly materials: The injection slurry is made from naturally available materials which are environmentally friendly.
7. Not messy: It is not messy or noisy to slab jack or fill out a sinking area. If you’re replacing the slab, you have to jack ham and haul it away which is noisy, tedious, and messy.
8. Familiar process: Slabjacking has been in use for many years and all foundation repair companies are familiar with the procedure.
9. Matching concrete: The concrete will remain the same in color and texture as the surrounding concrete.
10. Cheap equipment: Mudjacking equipment is relatively cheap compared to polyurethane equipment and materials.
Cons:
1. Cause soil compression: The injected material is extremely heavy leading to soil compression beneath the slap. This may cause more sinking on the foundation slab.
2. Short-term procedure: Mudjacking injections is a short-term procedure that needs to be repeated more often.
3. Not the best option: It may not address the underlying condition on why the concrete is sinking, therefore, you need to find the root cause of the problem for you to come up with a long-term solution to the problem.
4. Cost of materials: The size and amount of materials needed may increase the cost of mudjacking. The quality of materials used also influences the cost. The cheapest options may not last long and may turn expensive in the long run.
5. Suitability: If the concrete floor is completely damaged or crumbling, then mudjacking will be a waste of time and money.
6. Need a professional repair: Using a non-professional contractor for mudjacking work on a concrete slab foundation can cause more problems than good. Therefore, you need a professional contractor to do a great repair.
7. Holes: To fill up the underneath areas, you have to drill holes on the concrete floor.
8. Washout of slurry material: The slurry material can be washed out by underground water, water from pipe leaks, or even poor drainage. This also leads to a weak foundation.
9. Rough texture: The slurry material is rough in texture which cannot fill out a void underneath completely. This increases the chance of further sinking in the future.
10. Cannot fix cracks or crumbles: The process can only fix sinking concrete surfaces. If there are cracks or crumbling, other repair methods are used.
There are a few large cracks in my concrete driveway that I need to get fixed because they are causing some of the slabs in the concrete to sink. You make a great point that mudjacking is a simple and quick way to fix the problem. The fact that it will only take a day or two would be extremely convenient. Also, it gives me peace of mind that mudkacking will allow the new concrete to remain the same color as the existing concrete, so it will match with the rest of the driveway.
I like how you mention that mudjacking can be considered an affordable process since costs much less than when you have to replace the underside of a pavement. At the same time, using mudjacking is also a much quicker process since it only takes up to two days at the most for the material to set. If I had the option to call in for a mudjacking service in order to be able to get a temporary fix on the asphalt driveway.
I like how you said that compared to the cost of replacing the concrete slab, mudjacking is cheaper. The parking lot where I leave my car to go to work has many cracks and some gaps are sunken. I will tell my boss that this can damage our car’s suspension and that it would be great for him to talk with the facility manager about fixing it.
Yeah, I totally agree with you. Mudjacking is a cheaper option than completely replacing the concrete. More times than not, I’ve heard that it works perfectly fine. Also, the length of the process is a plus too. No one wants to have a parking lot out of commission for weeks. Mudjacking is a quick and fairly easy fix for cracked concrete. I’d definitely recommend trying it before totally replacing the concrete. Thanks for sharing! click here/span>
It’s interesting that you point out that mudjacking is an effective way to fix a concrete slab that has sunk into the ground. Part of my driveway has sunk a few inches, so I’m thinking about hiring someone to perform mudjacking on it. I’m going to see if there’s a good concrete leveling business in my area that offers mudjacking services.