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Several months ago I had a new home built. Recently, I noticed that the garage floor slab wasn’t pitched correctly. It appears to slope correctly until about 6 feet from the door. At that point there is a low area and then the slab slopes up toward the door. The worst area is about 3/4 of an inch lower then the edge of the slab at the garage door.
Fortunately, due to my roof line, I don’t expect to get rain infiltration very often. However, I live in a heavy snow area. My concern is that snow melting off my cars will create a large pool (or ice rink) in my garage.
My builder wants to top off the low area of the garage with some sort of concrete product to restore the correct pitch. He assures me that this $25/bag product will last. I’ve had little success with topping concrete products myself lasting through even one winter. What is your opinion of this solution?
BTW, there are no cracks in the slab (other than the control joints), it just looks like it settled during the pour (maybe because the slab was done in the winter?).
Replies
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Can you pass on the name of the topping product being proposed? It'd make comment a little easier.
Let's assume the product will bond well and wear well for the use. You'll still have to decide which bugs you more: an occasional puddle of water/ice, or a patch that will look different from the surrounding concrete every day of the year no matter how good a job they do. I have a small dip in a garage slab, maybe 1 or 2' dia, and I'd rather see it look pretty all year and sweep the water out once in a while than see a patch. Personal preference.
*Hi-Checked into this sorta problem once with Mapei guys (www.mapei.com) and they had their reservations about it (and they make top shelf product.) I'd get an opinion from someone other than the builder who deals with concrete resurfacing- perhaps now would be the time to get a deal on a nice epoxy coated surface that could level the floor at the same time...I dunno- just a thought...Good luck-B
*Brian's quite reasonable suggestion kinda touches on why I responded as I did. You could be in for a domino effect. Ya don't like depression? So have him fix it with topping mix. Now don't like uneven color/texture? So spend more money on epoxy/polymer/whatever. Then ya gotta maintain that, etc.If you're happy with the finished surface appearance, consider leaving well-enough alone before you end up pulling out the checkbook for an unplanned home improvement (which is exactly how I ended up with a polymer overlay garage floor--I like it, but I also kinda liked the $$$ I had to pay for it to fix a poorly finished slab).
*The builder should fix it at his cost, but I'm sure you're trying to cooperate with him and not stick it to him. Consider, though, that whatever you allow the contractor to try, you might want to say up front that if it doesn't produce satisfactory results, you'll ask him to find the cause and repour the slab. Your call if you want to do this.Another idea would be to core drill a small drain hole, say 1" diameter, to allow occasional water to drain. This will only work if the amount of water is small and infrequent, and it can drain away completely under the slab.
*" drill a small drain hole, say 1" diameter, to allow occasional water to drain."No, No, NoRadon and other possible gasesWater infiltration,Insects & snakes
*If the product the builder wants to use is the new Quickcrete product in the blue and yellow bag, it'll work fine. Its a thin flow topping and surface mix and I used it to even out a porch I poured that "ponded" water in one edge. Worked just like the manufacturer said it would and six months later its still there. $20 a bag is not cheap but its worth it.As mentioned however, the poured area is noticeable from the rest of the original slab if that matters to you.Mike
*i $20 a bag is not cheap but its worth it. I beg to differ. It did just want the doctor ordered, yes? And the product holds a feather edge. And you didn't have to form up. And you did it all by yourself, no crew, in a couple of hours. Now what would you pay? Sorry about latching on to just that one sentence; picking fly poop out of pepper, I guess.
*I'm going to assume something. (Uh oh) Did I read Nicko's post correctly in that there is a fall of 3/4" in six feet? I'm assuming I did. So all the contractor comes up with is a halfass patch job? If it were me--and alot of other guys here--I would be busting a nut to do right by Nicko. I propose the builder be not so pennypinching. This is gonna be one of those things that will cause the owner distress in years to come. (If Nicko bought 'down and dirty' craftsmanship he wouldn't be coming here complaining about it.) If Nicko wouldn't mind, have the builder top out the entire garage. Even at 1/2" thickness, this stuff cures to 3,500 psi. Takes less than one day with two guys. Would Nicko be pleased knowing the contractor is genuinely concerned about Nicko's dissatisfaction? You bet. Inexpensive advertising, I say.
*Topping? Cool Whip!
*Nicko responding again:Thanks for all the comments so far. Some more comments from me:I don't know the name of the product the builder intended on using. I'll try to get the name. He did mention that he wasn't sure if it could be layed down thicker than 1/2 an inch. I am concerend that a product that can be feathered can also work at a thickness of 3/4 inch. As I said before, I also worry about water getting between the layers and frost popping up the topping.We talked about drilling a hole but we both dismissed it because of concern as to where that water would go. I live in an area that gets well over 10 feet of snow a year due to my proximaty to a large lake. It snows almost every day in the winter. That means I bring a lot if snow into the garage every night. Thats a lot of water going down that hole. Also, the temperatures tend to stay a somewhat moderate 20s and 30s which tends to melt the snow in the garage.In terms of the dip in the slab, I wasn't very clear. If you take a 10 foot long taught string from the slab edge at the door into the garage, you get a dip of 3/4 inch in the worst spot. Other areas may only dip 1/2 or 3/8 inch. The low area on average seems to be 6 feet from the door. I could live with sweeping out the water if the puddle weren't overly large. I think the puddle could be as large as 6 feet across. It also becomes difficult to sweep when the puddle freezes.I'm certainly not out to screw the builder. I want to be reasonable. I don't whine to him about crooked towel bars or dings in the drywall. However, my new home is not a low end house either. It's over 2500 sq ft and the garage is 3 car. I spent a lot of money and just want a slab that performs as well as the slab did in my previous starter home. I also don't want to have expensive repairs 5 years from now when the builder is long gone.The suggestion about topping out the whole slab 1/2 inch sounds appealing to me. Would I expect to have the same life out of the floor as I would without the topping? (given my climate, parking cars in the garage etc).BTW, how would a epoxy coated surface level my floor? I thought epoxy coatings are just a little thicker than floor paint.Thanks again for the discussion.
*If you look at toppings for the whole garage, also look at polymer overlays. They can fill in the low spots and be 3/8" elsewhere. They can be quite decorative. But they can run $7/ft +.I've used self-levelling underlayments that can fill an inch and also be feathered, so it's doable. Of course, a patch will always look like a patch. Even if you carefully patch and then cover the whole garage with epoxy or similar, the finish texture of the underlying surface can telegraph through. So unless the patch is as slick as the original, and the edges are perfectly feathered, you will always see evidence of the patch.
*Do not accept the patch! The contractor should replace the slab. All of the products mention may not/will not last(20 yrs). The job should be done right since it is your home. Take out the slab re compact and start again.
*Nicko,In your area, the problem is not simply the accumulation of water from the melting snow. It's also the salt embedded in that snow. Salt will corrode that finish - especially if left to stand on the concrete.My feeling is also not to accept the patch. From your description of the irregularity of the slope, either the whole surface gets recoated, or the whole slab comes out. Address it now before the glacier comes.
*One more idea-work out a deal. As a builder, if I screw up, and it's a sticky situation where the client is being good about something, and I know it's my fault, I'd be happy to cut him a deal to get out of the mess. And some people can live with the mistake. If you can handle this, and he gives a good price, maybe it's a good solution. Maybe he can get the concrete sub to work something out too.Just a thought...
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Several months ago I had a new home built. Recently, I noticed that the garage floor slab wasn't pitched correctly. It appears to slope correctly until about 6 feet from the door. At that point there is a low area and then the slab slopes up toward the door. The worst area is about 3/4 of an inch lower then the edge of the slab at the garage door.
Fortunately, due to my roof line, I don't expect to get rain infiltration very often. However, I live in a heavy snow area. My concern is that snow melting off my cars will create a large pool (or ice rink) in my garage.
My builder wants to top off the low area of the garage with some sort of concrete product to restore the correct pitch. He assures me that this $25/bag product will last. I've had little success with topping concrete products myself lasting through even one winter. What is your opinion of this solution?
BTW, there are no cracks in the slab (other than the control joints), it just looks like it settled during the pour (maybe because the slab was done in the winter?).