Drive way defect?

[tegguy]

My driveway is less than 4 months old and already has a good sized crack across is. Is this normal or is this improper prep?

The crack sprawls about 3/4 of the way across the 3 car driveway

 

[southalabama]

My vote without seeing the big picture. Improper placement or lack of expansion joints.

Are there any joints in slab? How big is slab?

 

[Wingnut65]

Could use a little more info... Size of driveway? Approximate Geographic Location?

There are two types of concrete... Concrete that has cracked, and concrete that will crack. All concrete will crack. The secret is to control the cracks with designated control joints. They should be cut to create approximately 100 sf slabs.

So, a bigger picture of your driveway would help to see what there is and where the cracks occur.

I am in the process of sealing all the cracks in my driveway with Sika self-leveling sealant from HD. (The wood was to keep leaves from blowing on the fresh sealant)

 

[TommyK]

My vote without seeing the big picture. Improper placement or lack of expansion joints.

Are there any joints in slab? How big is slab?

Yes that looks like a shrinkage crack. They are inevitable. The trick is to get it to crack where you want it to which is what southalabama is alluding to.

 

[8man]

I know two things about concrete, 1) it's gray and 2) it cracks. Normal driveway cracks.

 

[Clik]

It's normal. You can sweep some dry cement dust into it if it bothers you.

I've never used it but I'm told you can order a mix that has strands of chopped fiberglass in it which helps prevent cracking, but I've never heard of any company that will guarantee against cracking even using the fiberglass.

 

[tegguy]

Our driveway is about 46 feet long and 24 feet wide and has 2 horizontal control joints and 1 vertical control joint

 

[Leaflessshadetree]

So the you have 6 sections are roughly 15.3' x 12'. That's a little larger than I'd want. If they had done one more horizontal and you would have had 11.5' x 12' which would have been better. (11.5' x 8' if they had done an additional vertical too).
Not a whole lot you can do about it now. Unless you want to make 3 more horizontal cuts and end up 12 7.5' x 12' sections.

 

[dbabicky]

I poured concrete professionally for years. You get 2 guarantees with concrete............it get's hard, and it cracks !

 

[tegguy]

So the you have 6 sections are roughly 15.3' x 12'. That's a little larger than I'd want. If they had done one more horizontal and you would have had 11.5' x 12' which would have been better. (11.5' x 8' if they had done an additional vertical too).
Not a whole lot you can do about it now. Unless you want to make 3 more horizontal cuts and end up 12 7.5' x 12' sections.

I'll post a picture later but there are 4 large sections and 2 smaller and this crack is on the smallest section and crosses the vertical control joint

 

[tegguy]

I poured concrete professionally for years. You get 2 guarantees with concrete............it get's hard, and it cracks !

I understand concrete cracks but after 4 months I was a little surprised. I'm just trying to make sure I don't have an improper base that's going to cause more issues later

 

[RV77]

I had 45 yds of concrete driveway poured two years ago and mine also cracked like yours did.Dont worry about it.

I used a diamond grinding wheel on a grinder and beveled the crack and put self leveling sealer in the crack and its been fine.That stuff is awesome and after it dries nothing will affect it or remove it.

 

[A**holes Garage]

If it's not wider than the thickness of a nickel, it's normal and it's not worth contacting your local ROC or complaining about.

 

[joes169]

I understand concrete cracks but after 4 months I was a little surprised. I'm just trying to make sure I don't have an improper base that's going to cause more issues later

What most people don't realize is that shrinkage cracks in concrete form from the bottom to the top, so they can take a while to notice.

Your driveway sections are far too big IMPO, at least for the enviroment that I work in. It's extremely rare for us to every joint over 8' on exterior concrete. Most say that's a waste of time, but I think that replacing cracked concrete sections in a new driveway is a waste of time, money, and resources.......