When the weather changes in the Midwest, it not only affects us but also the environment and surrounding components. Specifically, when winter hits the Kansas City and Mid Missouri area (Columbia, Jefferson City, and Lake Ozark), the freeze/thaw cycle can damage many things, including concrete surfaces. And if your concrete is uneven, it can cause more extensive damage if left untreated.
If you want to protect your concrete surfaces and reduce extra exposure, then you must level the concrete before winter comes. Let’s get to know how many ways this can affect the concrete and the preventive measurements. Let’s explore some winter preparation: the key reasons to level your concrete.
8 Reasons Why You Must Level Your Concrete Before Winter
The main eight reasons why it’s a must to level concrete before winter hits Kansas City and the Mid-Missouri area include:
Safety Issues
Uneven concrete surfaces are unsafe for people, houses, and vehicles. And in winter, when the irregular surface is covered with snow and ice, it becomes more dangerous. Anyone can trip and fall, vehicle tires can get damaged, and different house or structural components can get damaged indirectly. But when the concrete surface is leveled, there’s less chance for hazards.
RELATED: Pro Tips: Lifting Concrete to Eliminate Trip Hazards
Longevity of Concrete
If the concrete surface around your house is properly maintained and leveled, it will be able to withstand harsh weather conditions like extreme cold, freezing, precipitation, and then the thawing impact. The damage to the concrete surface will decrease, preserve its longevity, and replacement won’t be necessary. One of the main questions is when to repair vs replace your concrete.
Frost Heave Protection
Frost heave, or freeze-thaw cycle, occurs when the air temperature drops enough to freeze water and then rises again to make it thaw. This freeze-thaw cycle of water has dramatic consequences, like damaging the infrastructure and concrete components. When the concrete is leveled, water can’t accumulate on the concrete surface, and frost heave can’t affect it.
Water Damage Protection
Water pooling can happen in sunken parts of uneven or sloped concrete, including your sidewalk, driveway, garage, porch, patio, and pool areas. When the temperature decreases to the freezing point, the pooled water freezes and its volume expands. It leads to cracks and damage to the concrete surface. But when the concrete is leveled, there’s no chance of concrete damage due to water pooling.
Increased Property Value
An uneven concrete surface doesn’t look aesthetic at all; anyone will understand that the property isn’t well-maintained. But a leveled concrete surface improves the curb appeal of your house, and the property value will increase.
Prevent Basement Flooding
Some of the Kansas City homes have basements near the concrete surfaces. If the level of the concrete is uneven, the depressed concrete area or cracks will help seep water into the basement. This problem can damage your house and property. That’s why you should level your concrete before winter comes to prevent basement flooding.
Cost Savings
Since the problems regarding concrete damages reduce when you level your concrete surface before winter arrives, the expenditure to solve those problems also reduces. There will be fewer hazards and accidents, so extra costs will be saved.
Slow Snow Accumulation
When the concrete surfaces are properly leveled, the accumulation of snow and ice is low. And even if snow accumulates, shoveling becomes much easier and takes less time to get rid of.
What Happens If You Don’t Level Your Concrete Before Winter?
Several types of problems can occur if you don’t level your concrete before winter. Again, let’s continue to explore the impact of homeowners who don’t consider Winter Preparation: The Key Reasons to Level Your Concrete.
Concrete Cracking
When you don’t level the concrete before winter, new cracks begin to form in the concrete while the old cracks widen. It happens because there are many weak spots and stress points on an uneven concrete surface.
Tripping Hazards
Uneven concrete surfaces cause a lot of fall and trip hazards, and it becomes more dangerous in winter when we can’t even see if the surface is even or uneven.
Vehicle Damage
When the concrete driveway or parking area is uneven, it can leak the tire, scratch the undercarriage of your vehicle, or make parking challenging. So, if you don’t level the concrete surface, you won’t be able to protect your vehicle.
Water Accumulation
Water accumulation or pooling occurs a lot, specifically when rain occurs if the concrete surface is irregular. This can lead to ice patches, safety hazards, and cracks in the formation.
Reduced Aesthetics
Uneven concrete surfaces aren’t appealing; they have negative impacts on the appearance of your house, which can significantly reduce the property value. And in winter, since most things will be covered in snow, the aesthetic imperfections are more noticeable.
Foundation Problems
Water can seep through uneven concrete and pool near the foundation and crawl space, where the frost heave can affect those structural elements too. This will eventually lead to serious foundation problems.
Random Expenditure
When the concrete is not leveled, you can face physical accidents or vehicle accidents and need to spend extra for them. Also, for the replacement of concrete surfaces, there will be another surge in expenditure.
How to Protect Concrete from Winter Damage
You can consider several methods to protect your concrete surface from winter damage, such as:
Sealing
You can apply a high-quality sealer to seal all the cracks and put up a protective barrier that won’t let water, salt, or any other chemicals penetrate the concrete.
Proper Drainage
Poor drainage systems can leak water, seep into concrete, make water pools, freeze, and cause damage. So, you better adjust or install the drainage system properly.
Heated Driveways
There is a heated driveway system available that can melt snow and ice as soon as they start accumulating on the concrete surface. You won’t need to shovel if your driveway is heated. Also, you can use electric snow melt mats or cables that help prevent ice formation, and you won’t need manual snow removal.
Protective Coverings
You can shield the concrete surfaces from freezing and heavy snowfall by using protective coverings like tarps or plywood.
Proper Maintenance
You need to make sure the concrete surface and other parts related to it are properly maintained. For example, make sure the gutters are always clean, repair cracks promptly, store snow removal tools properly, avoid using chemicals to melt snow, use a blower or shovel, but make sure the shovel edges aren’t metal.
Snow Removal Service
When the area is too large for you to shovel the snow, you can consider hiring professional services that offer snow and ice removal effectively and promptly.
The key to preventing concrete damage from harsh and extreme winter conditions is proper maintenance and preventive measurements. If you’re not sure about what needs to be done, consult with your local professionals. PolyMagic services all of the Kansas City metro and into central Missouri, including Columbia, Jefferson City, and Lake of the Ozarks. We offer free estimates – give us a call today! 816-765-4800