Driveways

Tear-out and replacement is most of our driveway work. We break the old slab, haul it off, fix the base and pour new. The old concrete tells us where it heaved, where it settled and where water sat, and that decides how much base to add and where the joints go on the new slab.

We also pour new drives, extensions, turnarounds, RV pads on a thicker slab with heavier steel, and the City approach at the curb. If the driveway ends at a carport or a gate, we pour the pad and footings and CJM Metals builds the steel on it.

Four inches is the standard for cars, SUVs and pickups. Go to 5 or 6 inches for an RV, a loaded trailer or a box truck. A 6-inch slab costs about 18 percent more than a 4-inch one, which is cheap next to replacing a cracked corner.

We reinforce with #3 rebar on an 18-inch grid, set on chairs so it stays at mid-depth, where mesh usually ends up walked to the bottom doing nothing. That adds $0.60–1.10 per square foot. Steel does not stop concrete from cracking; it holds the crack tight. More in how thick should a driveway be.

Arlington sits on expansive clay that swells when it rains and shrinks when it dries. Most driveway failures we tear out were never a concrete problem. They were a base problem.

We cut the subgrade to depth, compact it, and build a crushed stone base back up in lifts so the slab is supported everywhere and water has somewhere to go. On a tear-out we never assume the old base is good — if the subgrade is soft or wet when we open it up, you hear about it before we pour, not after.

Concrete cracks; control joints decide where. On a 4-inch slab we saw-cut every 8–10 feet within hours of the pour, and set expansion joints where the driveway meets the garage, the sidewalk, the approach and the foundation so each can move on its own schedule.

Slope is the part nobody sees and everybody lives with. We pitch a quarter inch per foot away from the garage for the first 10 feet and at least 1/8 inch per foot beyond it, and add a trench drain where the garage sits below the street. A driveway that drains toward the foundation is a foundation repair bill with a ten-year delay.

The strip between your sidewalk and the street curb is public right-of-way. We pull the right-of-way permit, pour the approach to the City's standard detail and schedule the inspection. Details in do I need a permit for concrete in Arlington, or confirm current requirements with the City of Arlington (One Start Development Center, 101 W. Abram St, 817-459-6502).

A typical two-car driveway is about four days: demo and base, forming and steel, the pour, then joints and cleanup. Weather moves pours. Walk on it at 24 hours, park a car at 7 days on a 4-inch slab (10 days at 6 inches), and keep heavy trucks and trailers off for 14–28 days. The curing time FAQ has the full timeline.