Can this concrete slab/foundation be saved?

[zx2slow]

Purchased my first home about a year ago, nice location and a detached 2 car garage were big plusses.

The garage was not a priority as the house needed some TLC. Now that the major projects in the house are winding down I would like to take care of the garage. The structure will need replaced, poorly built sometime in the 1950-60's. I am looking at the slab and wondering if it can be saved or it should be replaced as well.

First off it looks like somebody put ~1" of asphalt over the slab. Popped a few holes in the asphalt and it seems like there is a slab under it and its in ok condition (At least in the holes I have made). There is no evidence of any heaving or structural damage.

Here is what I am working with, its easy to pry up as there appears to be no adhesion between the concrete and asphalt. Seems to be on the same grade as the driveway so that will need to be taken care of. It will be a bit of a project prying this up but it seems pretty doable. I am not sure if this can be resurfaced with something like Sakrete Flo-Coat or should be ground down or just completely removed.

The other issue is that the surface of sections of the side/foundation appear to be falling apart:

Just swept this and there appears to be about 1" of loose sand and aggregate in a few sections. Is this going to need to be removed or can I just go over with with something like top n' bond to clean up the appearance?

 

[Armorpoxy]

Hi, all resurfacers require a strong, stable, profiled underlayment, so you may not know until you get down to the bare concrete. If the floor was in good shape, why did they put something over it is the question?


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[zx2slow]

As far as I can tell it was to raise the floor to keep water out after someone put a thick coat of asphalt on the driveway. Previous owners were masters of half-assery.

 

[bczygan]

Asphalt is going to have to come out anyway, so clear it out and make an assessment then.

Photos when you do...

Bill

 

[LegacyIndustrial]

Might consider a modular tile system once the asphalt is out.
Re-post with pics when the half-assery is gone.

 

[ard]

The other issue is that the surface of sections of the side/foundation appear to be falling apart:

Just swept this and there appears to be about 1" of loose sand and aggregate in a few sections. Is this going to need to be removed or can I just go over with with something like top n' bond to clean up the appearance?

Hmm. Not sure what we are looking at...is that a stem wall, that the structure sits on?? Ideally you want to be sure the concrete that forms the foundation an supports the walls is sound. You need to evaluate those sections to see if it is some kind of half-assed patch, or if the whole thing has half-assed sections due to poor mixing, not enought cement, etc...

 

[James-W]

Well, here is the way I see it. You said the structure (garage) itself needs to be replaced. To do that you will no doubt need a permit. The local building authority will most likely want to know if the slab/foundation meets the current local building codes. For them to know that you will need to dig down around the sides and see if the depth is correct, and is the proper thickness, things of that nature. You will also have to do any repairs to the slab/foundation that it may need.

I guess the next thing is, what size do you want the new garage to be? To use the same slab you need to make the garage the exact same size. Is that what you want, or do you want it to be larger, or shaped a bit different? If you want it larger, or maybe wider and not as deep, or maybe you want it to be some other shape entirely, then you need to have a larger slab/foundation in the size/shape desired so you may as well get rid of what you have and start over again.

My vote, if we are taking a vote, is to knock it all down, start over from scratch, and build something that you really want, in the size/shape and the location that you want.

 

[Shiftless]

I agree with James-W.
Looking at that stem wall and hearing about the terrible floor and poorly built 60 plus year old structure, it seems to me that spending any significant money on the garage would be a waste. When the time comes, demolish it and rebuild correctly. Compared to a patched up wreck, an all new garage would be a selling point if and when you move.
The only snag might be if you have permitting problems for an all new structure compared to a repair of an existing structure. Setbacks are the first that come to mind. Many people around hear keep one wall and then proceed to "repair" the existing building for just that reason. One of my neighbors is keeping a 70 year old nothing special falling apart house and adding a 2200 sq. ft two story addition in the back.

 

[zx2slow]

Setbacks are a concern, one corner of the garage is within inches of the property line according to an old survey.

Cleared off a 10'x12' section of the garage floor, seems that the asphalt was used to level it out. The floor is in decent condition but not even. Looks like it was poured in and generally left to find its own level.