Can Mold Concrete Pitting, Flaking & Staining Cause Slab Settling?

Concrete pitting, flaking, and staining can debilitate your concrete. But can it cause concrete settling? The truth is, it can’t. Concrete settling has nothing to do with the concrete itself and everything to do with the soil under the slab. It can accelerate the settling process but not actually cause it.  

• How It Accelerates Settling 

Concrete pitting, flaking, and staining accelerates settling because it debilitates the slab. As the slab grows weaker and cracks, water is able to seep through and saturate the soil below a lot easier. The slab relies on the soil as a stable foundation, but soil can easily get displaced by water. 

In Virginia, the Washington–Baltimore combined statistical area, and West Virginia, the soil is sandy, loose, and fine-grained. This means that it will wash out if met with any water. A weak, porous concrete slab contributes to concrete settling by allowing water to wash out the soil further. It’s also more likely to break when settling against the loose soil.  

• What You Can Do About It 

If your concrete slab has settled, there is a way to repair it. JES offers PolyRenewal™ as a solution. PolyRenewal™ is a concrete lifting method that involves injecting polyurethane foam under the concrete slab so that it replaces soil as a support for the slab. The polyurethane foam is capable of lifting the sunken slab back into place and evening out your driveway, patio, or pool deck. 

Polyurethane foam is impermeable, meaning that it does not allow water to seep through to the soil below. Unlike other materials used for concrete lifting, it does not erode with water, and it is not affected by the freeze-thaw effect, making it a permanent solution to concrete settling.