What you need to know about replacing your driveway

What can be done about a damaged driveway? In a children’s storybook, the solution would only be limited by your imagination … but in Windsor and Essex County, there’s usually only one option for a driveway that’s truly seen better days.

Whether you have a new crack in your driveway or a few, know that not maintaining your driveway can lead to needing your entire driveway removed. For more on why it’s important to repair bumps and cracks before they get worse, our driveway repair article should give you a good idea.

What goes through our heads when we hear “my driveway’s a bit chipped up… can you guys come and reseal it?” When we approach an initial assessment and a client’s driveway has severe gouges and cracks, there’s only one answer. A heavily pitted or damaged driveway in disrepair… shouldn’t be repaired. It should be replaced.

Maintenance and repairs on a severely cracked driveway do not solve the underlying problems. It’s a Band-Aid use of your time to simply cover up concrete that has structural issues. Pulling into your own driveway could become dangerous. How could a two-ton car not cause the cracks to resurface?

What’s even more tricky? The ground beneath your driveway may need additional work, such as grading, leveling, and repair. Concrete driveways compresses the soil and dirt bed underneath over time, sure, but it doesn’t always do so evenly. Weeds and other pests can grow between the cracks, leaving an unsightly mark on your property. Thankfully, you’ll have no regrets once you gaze upon that clean, gorgeous – and most importantly, flat – driveway.

Removing gravel and concrete driveways is a seriously demanding job. Operating machinery to lift heavy slabs of concrete and breaking it up enough to be removed goes above and beyond a basic DIY project. If you’re not sure where to start, start with us. Legacy Exteriors Inc. specializes in driveway design and installation, resurfacing, sealcoating, and general maintenance – as well as necessary demolition and removal.

So, you’re staring at your dilapidated old driveway wondering … what now? Do you call someone, or try to handle it yourself? And what tools go into smashing up concrete? Here’s a simple tip: concrete is much, much harder to break apart when compressed against the ground – it needs to be lifted at one side before breaking it. That’s a key reason why you shouldn’t go ahead and start chipping away now – lifting a driveway without the know-how, of course, is rather difficult.

Lifting a driveway requires some heavy-duty machinery if the driveway slab is heavy. While a sledgehammer can be useful when dealing with thinner concrete driveways, a jackhammer is often used for breaking down thicker pieces, as is machinery for lifting and moving the heavier slabs.

Deconstructing a concrete driveway is a challenging job that should be left to professionals. The job entails lifting and breaking down massive concrete slabs, as well as removing any concrete and natural waste and disposing of it in an environmentally friendly manner. If you’re still hoping to treat it like a DIY project, keep in mind you’ll need to check for any required permits to remove concrete and identify where utilities are located underground before you proceed.

Removing a gravel driveway may sound simpler than concrete, but it comes with its own challenges. There are so many small chunks of gravel that could be missed or misplaced, and the bed beneath an older gravel driveway is likely uneven. The earth may even need leveling or grading.  Plus, how do you properly dispose of gravel stones with minimal harm to the environment?

In smaller cases, gravel stones are raked, and any condensed, compacted areas are broken up in the process. When dealing with larger driveways, a plow attached to a vehicle is often a faster, smarter choice. It’s key to make sure the plow blades are not set too deep, as not to disturb the soil structure below and cause instability. Once all the gravel has been rounded up, it and other waste are removed and safely disposed of to minimize the impact on the environment.

The skilled team of professionals at Legacy Exteriors Inc. gets driveways. We also get excavation, one of our signature services, which allows us to grade, level, and repair the surface beneath your former gravel driveway. That’s essential to repairing and preparing a space without a driveway for a replacement. After all, it would be upsetting to have a gravel driveway replaced by concrete, except the grading step was skipped and you’re now pulling up on dips and cracks.

“It’s a small driveway – I can do it all myself!” isn’t always the flex you think it is. If you can remove a concrete slab and safely haul and dispose of the pieces yourself, we salute you. From permits to environmentally friendly disposal, there are so many factors you must contend with. Hiring a professional not only reduces stress, but it ensures the job is finished correctly – turning what could be constant revisits and repairs after you finish (or an amateur team leaves) into a one and done.

If there’s one thing we want you to keep in mind, it’s the time you’ll save by choosing us. We’re experts at providing clean, long-lasting work, finishing projects efficiently, and providing environmentally safe waste disposal once we finish. With years of experience working with his father in the industry, as well as running equipment from the age of seven, Alex is accomplished at all the above – as is his crew.

Ready to have the most magnificent new driveway in all of Windsor and Essex County? Don’t pick up the phone more than once – call (519) 791-1506 or navigate to our contact us page. We’d love to hear about how we can improve your driveway situation.