Mudjacking

[Dragster Racer]

We have a front porch on our house with a 6" concrete slab. The house is 3 years old, and the portion of the slab toward the house has settled a couple of inches. This ends up being a problem because not only does the sideing look funky where the slab has moved away from it, but water now gathers when the wind blows rain under the porch roof.
The contractor specified that the slab sit partially on the lip of the basement wall to prevent this very thing from happening. Well, that pour was done on a day he was not present, and there is little way of telling if that happened, although the result is proving that it didn't go down like that. The concrete contractor went out of business, but the general has not abandoned us,and has been great to work with. We have talked about mudjacking. Access holes could be drilled into the slab, but could also be hidden by drilling in the basement wall beneath the slab.
If we replace this slab, it will not only be costly, but will be a disaster for the landscaping and yard and even the nice curved/stamped/stained sidewalk we did. I know that the base is round rock and it is the depth of the basement under this slab.
What do you think? Is this a good candidate for mudjacking?
It is about 9'X30'. Any idea on cost for this project?

 

[larry4406]

No experience with mud jacking. I would be leary of drilling holes into the basement wall and ending up with a leaking basement.

 

[hidollartoys]

This is where that X-ray vision would be handy.

Alljokes aside, Mudjacking is an option in this case. However, there are some unknown that could compromise the outcome. Was the slab "pined" to the foundation? If so that could limit the amount oflife that could be achieved. The strength of the porch slab is also a consideration. Is it cracked now or is it still a solid piece. Cracks could provide a place for the slab to break. Since mudjacking is using pressure to "lift" the slab, this pressure will also be experienced by the foundation adjacent to the slab.

If the existing slab and adjacent foundation is solid, mudjacking is a viable option. Understand that it may not ultimately correct the slab recession. There may still be some misalignment.

 

[Dragster Racer]

I think the lack of pinning is what the problem is here. I am fairly confident that it is not. No cracking at this point.

 

[crankshaftdan II]

We have a front porch on our house with a 6" concrete slab. The house is 3 years old, and the portion of the slab toward the house has settled a couple of inches. This ends up being a problem because not only does the sideing look funky where the slab has moved away from it, but water now gathers when the wind blows rain under the porch roof.
The contractor specified that the slab sit partially on the lip of the basement wall to prevent this very thing from happening. Well, that pour was done on a day he was not present, and there is little way of telling if that happened, although the result is proving that it didn't go down like that. The concrete contractor went out of business, but the general has not abandoned us,and has been great to work with. We have talked about mudjacking. Access holes could be drilled into the slab, but could also be hidden by drilling in the basement wall beneath the slab.
If we replace this slab, it will not only be costly, but will be a disaster for the landscaping and yard and even the nice curved/stamped/stained sidewalk we did. I know that the base is round rock and it is the depth of the basement under this slab.
What do you think? Is this a good candidate for mudjacking?
It is about 9'X30'. Any idea on cost for this project?

No expert opinion here either-however if you don't know if the slab is pinned to the foundation and you drill holes in the wall/s and start pumping in mud to fill the void-once that is achieved and pressure starts pushing up the slab-the mud might seek the path of least resistance and push the wall into the basement!! The slab will probably require more pressure to lift than to blow in the basement wall!! This would be a case of calling in a pro for a written/guarantee to protect your best interests-as basement walls are NOT cheap to straighten and repair. Just my two cents worth.

 

[Steevo]

I'll be interested in this thread. I have a front walk that has sunk over two inches at the end that abuts my front step, making that first step about 9-1/2" now. I have been considering mudjacking it or breaking it out and replacing.

 

[kbs2244]

I just had it done to a front step hat broke off the porch slab.
82 inch left to right.
One end down 4 inches, the other 2 inches.
They drilled 2 holes and lifted it with no problem.
$150.00

 

[superdutymike27]

I just had it done to a front step hat broke off the porch slab.
82 inch left to right.
One end down 4 inches, the other 2 inches.
They drilled 2 holes and lifted it with no problem.
$150.00

Just had the driveway approach done in the spring. 14 holes, 4 inches deep, $300.00. I can get the rides out alot easier now and don't risk scraping the bottom's anymore.

 

[Dragster Racer]

That gives me an idea price wise anyhow.

 

[malibu101]

I just had it done to a front step hat broke off the porch slab.
82 inch left to right.
One end down 4 inches, the other 2 inches.
They drilled 2 holes and lifted it with no problem.
$150.00

Just had the driveway approach done in the spring. 14 holes, 4 inches deep, $300.00. I can get the rides out alot easier now and don't risk scraping the bottom's anymore.

These costs seem great. Considering the cost of the alternatives.

 

[036.6turbo]

I have used mudjacking, if you don't mind the holes in the slab. Mud jacking is an acceptable alternative to tearing out the slab and repuoring. (They patch them afterwards.)

 

[Dustoff 35]

I had this done at my house about 5 years ago. A void underneath the front porch developed as the foundation backfill settled. We had a 6 to 8 inch gap underneath the slab which was stamped and colored. To break it out and replace would have cost about 3 to 4 times the cost of the mudjacking. It has held up well, no complaints.

 

[Falcon67]

TxDOT supported and jacked most of Highway 59 between Porter and Humble TX like that, that's about 8.5 miles of 4 lane highway. Was still ruff as hell but they got almost all the moguls out of it. Ought to work for your porch.

Note - they have since replaced the whole thing with 8 lanes and it's now Tx59/I-69.

 

[Herb67SS]

Might want to ask yourself if you are turning a six inch thick sinking slab into a twelve inch thick sinking slab? If the base is not supporting the current slab, how is adding more weight solving the settling issue? I'd want to pin that slab to the foundation wall once it was "jacked" back to the correct height.

My limited experience w jacking says it's a temporary solution to the symptoms of a problem that has a high likelihood of returning if not solved with a more substantial solution.

Just my $.02 worth.

 

[pop pop]

What Herb said. Plus you risk damage to the basement wall, very likely! Jacking is good and has it's place, but I wouldn't do this one.

 

[cyamaha2007]

Ask a mud jacking company. I help a friend out that does it for a living. We have lifted massive slabs, A porch would be easy. What probably happened was the basement was dug and poured, They left a 2ft void between basement wall and dirt, this is done so they can tar and have room to strip forms. Then they pushed the dirt back into the void and back filled the basement with a bobcat. Its hard to compact this area, it can be done but is labor intensive. So It probably wasnt, Fast forward to you porch pour, The concrete guy comes in compacts the soil adds gravel and pours your porch. OK, no the compactor he ran only is effective in 4-6in increments. So the top "crust" is compacted but 6in under that is loomy soft soil. You can test my theory drive a stake 2ft deep by your porch 10in from the basment wall. It will likely be easy. Now drive a stake in virgin soil (like the middle of the yard). It will be much harder. With proper prep work there would be no need for a ledge or pinning of the slab.

 

[davedriveschevys]

Once you get it jacked into place you could drill pin holes from the basement into the slab edge, and set the pins from the basement.

And use this for setting pins, http://www.strongtie.com/products/anchorsystems/adhesives/atxp/index.html?source=anchosystemshp

 

[camarotoolman]

2nd. davedrive.

 

[joes169]

Once you get it jacked into place you could drill pin holes from the basement into the slab edge, and set the pins from the basement.

And use this for setting pins, http://www.strongtie.com/products/anchorsystems/adhesives/atxp/index.html?source=anchosystemshp

Probably not possible, as most every stoop rests against the wood skirt board, above the foundation wall. For this reason, it's certainly not likely to be "pinned" to the foundation. What they should have done from the beginning is leave a floor ledge (2" min) at the top of the foundation for the stoop to rest on. Even with clear stone backfill, it's not uncommon for that area to settle.

For now, mudjacking would be at least a temporary solution for a fraction of the cost of replacement. Just understand, you may be back down this road in a few years and you'll always have to look at the 1.5" core holes left from it. Don't allow anyone to drill through your basement walls to mudjack it, and if the mudjacker suggests doing so move on and find someone who cares a little more about their customer's property.......

 

[Dragster Racer]

Probably not possible, as most every stoop rests against the wood skirt board, above the foundation wall. For this reason, it's certainly not likely to be "pinned" to the foundation. What they should have done from the beginning is leave a floor ledge (2" min) at the top of the foundation for the stoop to rest on. Even with clear stone backfill, it's not uncommon for that area to settle.

For now, mudjacking would be at least a temporary solution for a fraction of the cost of replacement. Just understand, you may be back down this road in a few years and you'll always have to look at the 1.5" core holes left from it. Don't allow anyone to drill through your basement walls to mudjack it, and if the mudjacker suggests doing so move on and find someone who cares a little more about their customer's property.......

The ledge was provided, but I don't think the concrete guys used it. I think what probably happened is that they used the ledge space as an area for the form.
I have a quote for about $1k. Cheaper by far and way less mess in this case than the alternative. Heck, the landscaping that would likely be destroyed cost way more than that.

 

[Kevin54]

I'd be very leery about mudjacking against a foundation. A poured foundation may be alright, but a block foundation......

Mudjacking is going to move the weakest area. If the slab is weaker than the foundation, theoretically it should move the slab. But if the mortar joints and blocks are weaker than the sunken slab, theoretically, it's going to push the foundation wall in. The foundation is tied in at the top by the weight of the house plus it is fastened to the sill plate, so it SHOULD be stronger than the slab.

I'd be very interested to see what a mudjacking company says.

Here is a video and some info on it. I don't think we have anyone close to me that does it, or at least no one relatively close. I'd be interested in seeing it done first hand. Here is the info and the short video of it. http://www.raiserite.com/inAction.htm

BTW....at about 1:29, you can see it squirting out between the walk and curb.

Just read this to one the warranty

Is there a warranty?
Yes! If the concrete slab(s) sink(s) more than 1/2" within one year of performing the work, Raise-Rite will come out and rework the settled slabs. Full warranty details are printed on the back side of the estimating proposal.

Sounds like a fairly good warranty for what they are doing. The heavier the slab, the better that warranty becomes.


If someone does have it done, one needs to really shop around. In doing a search for mudjacking in my area, I ran across a couple of ads. One requires no money until the job is done. Another wants money up front before starting and even has a financial plan to finance it for 48 months. So cost must really vary in different places. If you have to finance a mudjacking job, you may as well have something tore out and put in new concrete.

This is from another site that sort of explains what will happen after mudjacking:

When is Mudjacking NOT Appropriate?

Mudjacking is effective for heavier concrete structures when used in conjunction with slab piers. It should not be considered as a standalone solution to lifting a settling footing or floor slab in your home.

In most cases, mudjacking alone will not be able to lift both a slab and the heavy partition walls that sit on top it.

If mudjacking does lift the concrete slab, it may be difficult to control where mudjacking lifts the walls, causing them to lift unevenly.

More importantly, this kind of solution is temporary. Even with the voids filled, the soil below is likely to continue settling over time.

Ultimately, you'd have to call your contractor to your home over and over again to repeat the mudjacking process -- or call someone who can use a different solution that can fix it once and for all!

 

[Dragster Racer]

It's not block. It's poured walls.

 

[ford33]

I had about 40 feet of concrete sidewalk mudjacked 10 years ago. The sidewalk was raised about 3-4 inches. It lasted 6 years before it sunk again to the original depth. I had to live with varying levels of sidewalk as some sections settled more than others and cracks developed in the concrete.

Last month, the sidewalk was taken out and replaced with a new concrete sidewalk. I live in a townhome with a homeowners association in Chicago and it took many requests to have it replaced and done correctly.

I consider mudjacking to be a temporary solution.

The sidewalk is about 3 feet from a concrete basement wall. No problems with the foundation wall.

 

[Dragster Racer]

Mine ended up going very well. Everythink looks good and drains the direction it should. The earth around it cannot move, so this may last longer than average. Worked out well for me.

 

[diggerrick]

My dad just had 2 areas jacked on his back patio.

It cost a helluva lot more than $150!

 

[sublimate]

Now that it's back in the right place, can you drill holes thru the basement wall into the front porch slab and drive rebar into them with some epoxy to keep it from sinking again?

 

[Dragster Racer]

Now that it's back in the right place, can you drill holes thru the basement wall into the front porch slab and drive rebar into them with some epoxy to keep it from sinking again?

I was thinking of that, but we will just see how it stays for now. We have great visual reference with the siding up against it, so if it moves even a little we will see it.

 

[finn]

I had a 12' x12' patio jacked 10 years ago and it looks fine. Cost was less than $300 for the patio and a section of sidewalk.
I don't like the round patch scars, but I do like the two grand I saved by jacking instead of replacing.
Go for it