Concrete driveways in Lakeland, Fl is often preferred because of their low maintenance. While asphalt requires upkeep over several years, concrete, once installed and sealed, requires very little care. A concrete driveway can be an excellent choice for the exterior of your home. Concrete is a durable substance that can offer years of use without requiring many repairs.
Proper maintenance is the key to a concrete driveway that adds function and aesthetic quality to your home. A crumbling driveway can affect your home’s curb appeal, which can be an issue if you plan on selling soon. Lakeland Concrete Services will give you specific pointers to maintain the appearance of your driveway while ensuring it will stay crack-free for years to come.
Concrete Driveway Repair
Some conditions can shorten concrete’s lifespan and result in unsightly cracking, discoloration, settlement, or scaling. Instead of ripping out the concrete and starting over, you can often save money by repairing your driveway, as long as the concrete is structurally sound. There are different methods of repair such as patching/filling cracks, concrete resurfacing, or concrete replacing.
Patching/Filling – Fillers and patches are visibly different from the concrete they are applied to. Also, patches aren’t water-tight, meaning that eventually, water will seep between the patch and original concrete, reopening the crack or hole. Filling a few small cracks or holes can be a relatively easy DIY project done with materials purchased at your local hardware store.
Driveway Resurfacing –Resurfacing allows you to add decorative finishes such as stamping or coloring. Your driveway will look new without the added work and expense of removing it and installing a new one. A middle ground between patching and replacing, refinishing with an overlay provides a longer-lasting and more aesthetic repair than patching.
Concrete Replacement – If there’s a leaky pipe causing erosion under the slab causing it to sink, crack, or get discolored, or roots growing under the concrete causing it to crack or lift, you may be left with no other choice but to replace your driveway.
Benefits of Installing Concrete Driveways
Concrete Driveways last longer. How long your driveway lasts will also depend on whether it was properly installed. For example, Lakeland Concrete Services will make sure your new driveway has a stable foundation that can drain water. You must hire a concrete company that has plenty of experience in driveway paving.
Aside from being long-lasting, it also requires low maintenance. Maintaining a concrete driveway or parking lot is simple. It usually needs to be hosed down once in a while. You can choose to have it sealed as this is a good investment since it protects the concrete from the elements. But you don’t have to do this every year.
Beauty and curb appeal is also another factor. If you want the concrete to look like one made from paver stones, it can be stamped with imprints to give it exactly that look. If you like the look of a rock driveway, you could have a layer of pebbles embedded in the concrete while still having a more durable surface than asphalt. You could have colorants mixed into the concrete to resemble the soil or reflect your artistic tastes.