You have concrete problems around your home causing tripping hazards and pooling water. Some concrete sections are sloping in ways you don’t want them to. You’re trying to decide if concrete lifting or leveling is a good choice. How much does this kind of repair cost?
More importantly: How much does this kind of concrete repair cost compared to removing the concrete and putting in new stuff instead?
At Anchor Foundation Repair, we have been repairing concrete driveways, sidewalks, patios, parking lots, and more for decades in the Bryan/College Station Area. We offer a type of concrete leveling called mud jacking and are familiar with the basic costs of concrete replacement.
We recognize that there is value in both choices at different times. We’ll tell you about the average costs of each option in a fair and equal manner to get your concrete problems handled.
This article compares the cost of mud jacking to the cost of full replacement. Then you can decide which approach and price point is right for your concrete repair needs.
Good Candidates for Concrete Leveling Repairs
If your concrete is in good shape, not crumbling, or cracked all over, then it’s a good candidate for concrete leveling. The surfaces have just sunken, tilted, or sloped the wrong way slowly over time. These scenarios are all fixable ones using some type of concrete repair service.
In this article, we are honing in on the costs of mud jacking to repair uneven concrete and bring it back to its original position. We want to cover a few highlights of this method first.
Basics of Mud Jacking for Concrete Repair
Readily available in the Brazos Valley area, one standard repair method used to fix uneven or sunken concrete issues is mud jacking. Mud jacking for concrete lifting brings your slab surface back to the proper elevation and slope needed to perform its function.
Before we compare costs, let’s quickly review some basics of mud jacking:
- Repair concept raises sunken slabs from underneath using injected material,
- Less wasteful and aims to reuse/preserve existing concrete, and
- Cheaper than the cost of fully replacing your sunken concrete.
Mud jacking for concrete leveling uses the idea of lifting or moving as if with a jack i.e. to jack up a car to change a flat tire. Only the “jack” is not a metal tool that comes in the trunk of your car, but a material that is pumped underneath the concrete slab that lifts the surface back into position. Mud jacking uses a slurry mix of water, topsoil, and Portland cement.
Mud jacking reuses existing concrete that is otherwise in good condition. Keeping the original concrete in place reduces waste vs. “throwing it away” and starting over.
Mud jacking has several benefits over pouring brand-new concrete for a few reasons. The process is less costly, faster, and less of *a production* than a full replacement. The good news is that full replacement of your concrete is not always necessary with this less costly choice on the market.
Cost of Mud Jacking
Mud jacking costs are more favorable for more extensive repair jobs than smaller ones because of material costs and the start-up process. Since slurry is made with cement mix, topsoil, and water, it’s not very expensive stuff. Larger jobs will require lots of material for the “jacking” process so it makes sense that lower supply costs would be beneficial.
Both small and large projects need an equal amount of legwork to get the process going. So time-wise, the cost benefits are a little better for larger jobs.
You probably want something more “concrete” as far as pricing is concerned. There’s nothing like a well-placed pun, amirite? The information in this chart approximates costs for basic, average, and extensive mud jacking repair work.
In a nutshell, a basic mud jacking project with one or two concrete panels needing repair would cost around $1,600. An average-sized mud jacking repair falls in the $2,700 range, and an extensive repair that includes the entire driveway could be up to $7,000 or more.
Cost of Full Concrete Replacement vs. Mud Jacking
The charts in this article above show that mud jacking costs range from $1,600 to $7,000 depending on the extent of repairs needed. We mentioned that this repair method is more cost effective than a full replacement of concrete surfaces.
*How cost-effective are we talking then?* Here’s a chart on estimated pricing for removing and fully replacing concrete surfaces presented similarly to the other two repair methods.
You can see that the pricing for a full replacement of concrete is significantly higher than mud jacking. The full replacement of concrete’s base cost is estimated at $4,500, an average-sized project cost of $7,500, and a full driveway replacement cost of $18,000. The cost of a full replacement can be around three times as much as mud jacking.
Is there a particular option that is starting to sound better to you?
When Full Replacement of Concrete Makes More Sense
Yes, we have established that mud jacking is cheaper overall compared to the full removal and replacement of problematic concrete. Mudjacking is a way to prolong the life of mostly good concrete. But mud jacking is not an appropriate fix in all circumstances–the concrete has to be worth saving in the first place and the result is still not flawlessly perfect.
There is certainly a time and a place for full concrete replacement.
- If the concrete is very degraded, cracked all over, or crumbling then it’s likely beyond its life and should be fully replaced.
- If the concrete appearance is very important and you want it to all be uniform and flawless, then full replacement is the way to go.
- If you have a specialized tile or irreplaceable or difficult-to-match finish, you might not be happy with the appearance unless it is fully redone.
Mud jacking does leave some evidence of the work being done and won’t fully mend cracks (it only closes them up). So if you have a very particular *end-appearance* in mind or your concrete is in really bad shape, then full removal and replacement may be a better choice for your needs.
More on the Pros and Cons of Mud Jacking
Now you know about the costs of mud jacking compared to the cost of full replacement of your sunken concrete surfaces. We’ve hinted at some of the pros and cons in this article, but you’d like more details on the advantages and disadvantages of this mud jacking.
Anchor Foundation Repair does mud jacking to raise and level concrete surfaces in Bryan, College Station, and the surrounding Brazos Valley communities like Navasota and Madisonville. We can help you with a concrete repair project to eliminate tripping hazards and other issues with sunken slab sections around your home.
Want more details on the pros and cons of using mud jacking for your concrete repairs? We’ve got you covered with some more *solid* info that is fair and unbiased.