Three year old driveway crumbling away
Posted by John from Creighton, NE, US on March 27, 2007
I’m not sure this pertains to your field of expertise….my driveway is three years old and starting to break up. In some spots it is worse than others. The top eighth inch is flaking off in one area and in another area you can push a screwdriver in a quarter inch or so. In the latter area it retains a “wet” look like after it rains and it stays damp for days or even weeks after. I have pictures I could email if that would help solve my problem. I would like to find out what caused it and how to repair it. Thank you.
It is difficult to comment on such problems without visiting the actual site. But reading your question it seems the problem in your case seems to be due to one or more of the following reasons:
1. Bad quality concrete (low grade, low strength, high porosity, more water in the concrete mix).
2. Insufficient pavement thickness.
3. Improper sub base or less compacted subgrade soil.
4. Improper finishing of the concrete surface (excessive bleeding or formation of laitance on the concrete surface).
I would recommend you to call an engineer or a qualified contractor to come and have a look at your driveway.