Imagine you’re having a party in your backyard. The music’s great, the food’s even better, and the company is exquisite. The atmosphere is phenomenal, and everybody’s having a great time… Until one of your guests trips over an uneven patio slab and breaks their nose.
You rush over there to help, and on the way, you step into a giant puddle on your walkway.
It’s not really a party anymore, is it? Apart from being eyesores, uneven walkways and patios can be dangerous, and if you don’t fix them on time, you’ll need to spend quite a bit of money on replacements once they all completely break apart.
The good news is you don’t need to tear everything out; there are ways of fixing all the cracks and holes. Let’s see how to do it.
How to Prepare for a Leveling Project
Unless you prepare for this properly, it (likely) won’t go well because a leveling project can’t really be rushed, as rushing could lead to poor results, which are hard to fix.
Here’s what I would do before I start the actual work.
1. Assess the Situation
First, I’d take a very close look at the patio and walkway to see how things are. I’ll walk across to see if there’s any pooling water, cracks, or uneven slabs, basically I’m inspecting and assessing the situation.
Once I notice a problem, I’ll mark it so that after I’m done inspecting everything, I know exactly how much work there is and exactly what needs to be done. Another important thing is to check what’s causing unevenness. It could be soil settling, growing roots, or improper drainage.
This part is important because without understanding what’s causing the problem, I won’t know what to do in order to fix it.
2. Get Tools and Materials
What you’ll need is a level, a compactor, a trowel, and a pressure washer to clean the surface, prepare it, and in the end, make sure it’s even. As far as materials go, they vary depending on the type of repair you’re doing.
Usually, it’s sand, gravel, concrete mix, or foam filler. From my experience, foam filler is ideal for lifting sunken concrete slabs, and sand and gravel are great for restabilizing the pavers.
3. Safety
Whenever I’m working, safety is and always should be the priority (no matter the project). For this one, you’ll need gloves, safety goggles, and appropriate footwear. This means that, regardless of how hot it is outside, you can’t really do these repairs in flip-flops; just imagine something heavy dropping on your foot. OUCH!
Also, before I start repairing, I always check if there are any issues with drainage. This is a very common problem and it’s what mostly causes uneven surfaces. If you don’t take care of it, you’ll have to keep repairing the surface over and over. And you don’t want that. I know I don’t (from experience).
How to Level Surfaces
Okay, time to get down to business!
1. Leveling Concrete Patios and Walkways
There are several ways to go about this.
Foam jacking is a modern way to fix sunken slabs, but unless you’re a pro, you need to hire one. So what would I do if I were looking for foam jacking near me or in the area where I live? I would just hit the Yellow Pages, try to look some up on social media or websites like HomeAdvisor or Angi. Or just Google them since many foam jacking (or polyjacking) professionals today have their own websites. You can also find them as concrete repair specialists, or even mudjackers; that’s probably the most traditional term since mudjacking was the go-to method in the past and get a professional in your area to help you out.
Pro foam jackers will use lightweight polyurethane foam that will lift the slab until it’s level. It’s less invasive than mudjacking (fewer drilled holes), and it doesn’t take long to do.
Speaking of mudjacking (the old method), that’s another method of repairing. What you do is you inject a slurry mixture beneath the concrete slab and then the mixture lifts and levels it. It’s a bit more invasive, though, because you’ll need to drill a few holes into the slabs themselves. I find this method much more difficult and tedious.
Patching is the simplest method, but it only works for minor surface issues; basically, you apply a fresh level of concrete over the surface, wait for it to dry and it’s as good as new. Hence the name.
2. Fixing Pavers and Natural Stone Walkways
As beautiful as pavers and natural stones are, they can shift over time. The good news is that re-leveling the pavers is really simple. I usually start by removing the pieces that look off, and then I check the base. If you’re replacing damaged pieces or upgrading your space, explore premium outdoor pavers and tiles to enhance the look and finish.
If the base has shifted, I adjust it or add sand to make a stable foundation before I replace and compact the pavers. You won’t need a professional for this part, you can do it yourself (DIY).
If I encounter a natural stone walkway, all I have to do is to stabilize the stones that’ve shifted; I add gravel or sand beneath them and that’s pretty much it.
3. Prevention
Even though fixing these issues is relatively simple, nobody really wants to bother with it, so why not prevent it?
There are several things you can do. One of them is basic common sense, and doing what’s logical – I use quality materials like crushed stone or geotextile fabric and make sure the base is properly compacted. If you get a stable foundation right away, it won’t settle as easily.
Regular maintenance is also important for keeping patios and walkways leveled; I clean and reseal the surfaces once in a while to protect them from damage. This is more of a maintenance step, but I like doing this on every job. In addition to all this, I’ll always make sure drainage isn’t the issue. This can cause headaches in the long run if you forget abou it.
Concrete doesn’t like water and ineffective drainage is one of the most common causes of uneven surfaces, along with erosion.
Conclusion
You could be romantic and say that every crack and wobble tells a story of weather, time, wear… Kind of like the wrinkles on our faces, that show we’ve laughed, smiled, cried, lived in general. Or you could be realistic because there’s nothing romantic about those cracks and they need to be fixed ASAP.
There are a lot of methods you can use, some are DIY, some rely on professionals, but there’s really no reason to keep tripping over uneven slabs in your backyard.
