Need to bring to the fore cut of settled sidewalk? A section of my sidewalk has settled a few inches cause a...
A section of my sidewalk has settled a few inches cause a tripping hazard. I plan on trying to pry it up with a long pry pub and putting gravel underneath. My question is: the section is around 9 feet long, should I cut the concrete at about 3ft. to be paid it easier to raise, or should I just try it as it is?
I have done this sucessfully. It take a LOT of time and effort, so be warned.
Has it really settled inches or lately an inch? If it is inches, you may have a much more severe problem. It is very unusual to settle more than almost an inch, two at the very most.
It is going to be way too chunky for just a pry bar, even a particularly long pry bar. Cutting the concrete is no easy chore either, plus it introduces additional problems.
What I do is to "tunnel" beneath the sidewalk section at each finish off. That is no easy task, but it is critical. I then thread a heavy fasten through the tunnel. Link the ends of the chain together and you have a loop to verbs up against.
For that pulling, I run a wooden 4x4 across the sidewalk and through the loop of chain. Put concrete blocks under the ends of the 4x4 to hold it up. Put some 3/4 inch plywood on the section of sidewalk beyond the one you are raising. Put an automotive floor jack on the plywood and another 4x4 going up to the loop of chain.
You after raise the floor jack and the chain and sidewalk booth will follow it up. Once the section is up, you put the dirt or gravel under it. It is prominent that layer of gravel or dirt is as straight as possible. Any lumps will put strain on the section.
My description might sort it sound difficult, but it isn't that bad. It does rob a lot of trial and error to place the pieces in the right position. Don't rebuke the plywood or the jack might break the other sections of sidewalk due to the pressure.
Again, this is really time consuming. It takes me at least possible three hours to do one section. That is typically 2 hours and 50 minutes of getting to where it will heave properly and 10 minutes once it is lifted.
Keep in mind that the slice being lifted is EXTREMELY unstable and might drop at any second. Do NOT get your hands underneath it at any time, even for a moment !!
I figured this out after watching some pro's working on another section. They took a LOT more work than I did because they tried to put the jack below the section. The jack just kept digging deeper into the ground underneath the section. They kept putting more pieces of wood on top of respectively other, under the sinking jack.
It was a bit comical to study. There were two rather ample, strong men who kept doing the same wrong thing for hours :-) I'm not strong and I did it adjectives alone and in less time.
i would put sand under it...if you dont get an even bed lower than it it may crack...once you raise it it may crack anyway , but its worth a try... rent a forklift
Answers: Cut within into 3 sections and it will still be tough. You don't want to use a pry bar because you may crack the concrete.
Use wood 2x4s and wood blocks and lift you time.
For under the concrete, don't use dirt. Use the special mix called stand for block walls.
-tcw