What happens under and around a slab decides how long it lasts. In Baton Rouge that means clay, heavy rain, big trees and, in some places, a fault line.
Do I need to worry about drainage when I add concrete?
Yes. Drainage is the first thing to plan. Baton Rouge gets around five feet of rain in a typical year, often in hard bursts, and a slab sheds all of it. The water has to run to the street, a ditch, a swale or a drain, without crossing a neighbor's lot or pooling at your foundation. We decide the slopes before we set a single form.
My patio or driveway slopes toward the house. How bad is that?
Bad enough to fix. A slab that slopes toward the house feeds water to the clay beside the foundation every time it rains. That soil swells, then shrinks when it dries, and the edge of the house moves with it. If the slab was poured that way, the cures are a channel drain cut in along the house, lifting the low side, or replacing the slab with the fall reversed. If it tilted over time, find out what settled first.
Can tree roots crack or lift concrete?
Yes. Tree roots thicken every year, and a root under a slab lifts it with slow, steady force. Live oaks, water oaks and other large shade trees do most of the lifting in Baton Rouge. In a drought, big trees also pull moisture out of the clay, which makes the ground shrink and the slab drop on that side. So a tree can raise one part of a driveway and lower another.
Can you fix the concrete and keep the tree?
Usually. To keep the tree, avoid cutting large roots close to the trunk, since that can kill it or leave it unstable in a storm. Better choices are to route the new walk farther out, raise it slightly to bridge the root, use a thinner reinforced section over the root zone, or switch to pavers there. Baton Rouge values its live oaks, and trees in the public right of way are not yours to cut, so ask the city-parish first. For a prized tree, an arborist's advice is worth the fee.
My neighbor's new concrete sends runoff onto my property. What can I do?
Talk to the neighbor first, with photos taken during rain. Often a small drain or a regraded edge solves it. Louisiana law deals with natural drainage between neighboring land, and in general an owner may not make water flow more heavily onto the lot below. If talking fails, you can ask the city-parish drainage staff through 311 to look, and a Louisiana lawyer can advise on your rights. This is general information, not legal advice.
Does clay or soft soil change the job?
It changes most of it. Baton Rouge clay swells when wet and shrinks when dry, so a slab here needs a compacted base, steel, joints at closer spacing and steady moisture around its edges. Soft soil, found in low spots, old fill and near bayous, has to be dug out and replaced. Keeping gutters and downspouts from soaking one side of a slab does as much good as anything we pour.
Does the Baton Rouge fault damage driveways and slabs?
Where it passes, yes. The Louisiana Geological Survey has mapped active faults in East Baton Rouge Parish, including the Baton Rouge fault and the Denham Springs-Scotlandville fault. They creep slowly instead of causing earthquakes, and the ground on one side sinks relative to the other. Along the trace you see a step in the street, cracked curbs and damage in a line through driveways and houses. New concrete poured across a fault will crack again. Flexible surfaces and well-placed joints cope better there.
My gravel driveway turns to mud. Is concrete the answer?
It can be, though a gravel driveway that turns to mud has a base problem. Stone laid straight on clay gets pushed down into it. Concrete solves that for good if the soft soil is removed first. A cheaper route is to rebuild the gravel properly, with fabric under it, a thick layer of crushed stone and a crown so water runs off. Many owners outside the city pour concrete near the house and keep rebuilt gravel for the rest.
My patio was poured over an old trench and it has settled. Can that be fixed?
Yes. A trench for a sewer, water or gas line is hard to pack well, and it keeps settling for years. The slab above follows it down in a strip. If the patio is intact, lifting can raise it and fill the void. If it has cracked along the trench, that strip should be cut out, the trench fill compacted in layers and the section poured again. First make sure the pipe in the trench is not leaking.
I am in a flood-prone area. Should my patio or slab be raised?
A little height helps with ordinary storms, but raising ground in a flood zone is regulated. Fill displaces flood water onto others, and the parishes around here control it. For a patio, we set the surface above the lawn and slope it so it drains. For a slab that will carry a building, the permit sets the floor height. Flood water itself does little harm to sound concrete. The harm comes from soil washed out from under it, so check for hollow spots after any flood.
The only real price is one written after we have seen your property. The estimate is free. Call (225) 434-4721 or text us a few photos.