Concrete Driveways in Colorado Springs, CO

Concrete driveways in Colorado Springs face a combination that wears slabs out fast. Overhead, there is strong sun most of the year and a winter pattern of afternoon melt and overnight freeze. Underneath, many Front Range lots sit on clay that changes volume with moisture. The Colorado Geological Survey ranks expansive soil as the most significant geologic hazard in the state and puts cracked and heaved driveways on its short list of the most common symptoms. When we look at a failing driveway, we are usually reading the evidence of one or both.

Reading the old slab

A driveway tells you how it failed if you know what to look for.

• One panel tilted up at an edge: soil swelling under that corner, often near a downspout or sprinkler
• The panel by the garage sunk below the floor: loose backfill settling next to the foundation
• Fine flakes and pits across the surface: freeze-thaw and de-icer damage to the top layer
• Long cracks with no change in height: shrinkage or missing joints, often cosmetic
• Crumbling edges along the lawn: thin edges with nothing firm beneath them

One settled panel can sometimes be lifted, and shallow surface wear can sometimes be resurfaced. When heave, settlement and flaking are all present, a new driveway is normally the better value.

Under the concrete

We remove the old slab and whatever soft or organic material sits below it. Then the subgrade is shaped, moisture-conditioned and compacted, and a layer of road base goes down and is compacted again. The Colorado Geological Survey specifically lists letting clay dry out too much before pouring as a construction mistake, so we do not let an open subgrade bake for days in the sun before the truck arrives.

HomeGuide's driveway cost guide sets the minimums we start from: at least 4 inches for ordinary cars, 5 to 6 inches for RVs and heavy vehicles, and 6 to 8 inches at the edges. Areas where a work truck, trailer or camper parks get the extra depth and extra steel. Exterior mixes are air-entrained, and joints are saw-cut on a layout drawn before pour day.

Widening and new curb cuts

Adding a lane is easy on your side of the property line. Touching the curb is a different matter. The City of Colorado Springs' Driveway Cut Application covers new second driveways and changes to existing curb cuts, and it has to be approved by City Engineering and Traffic before a concrete permit is issued. The application lists, for low-density residential lots:

• A maximum driveway width of 24 feet, and a curb opening of 12 to 24 feet
• At least 5 feet from the adjacent property line
• At least 20 feet from the garage to the front property line or back of sidewalk
• A scaled drawing, with about 5 business days allowed for review

If a street tree or its roots are in the way, the city asks that its Forestry Division be contacted. Outside city limits, El Paso County Development Services handles access instead. We sort out which applies to your address before you commit.

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Slope and runoff

Plenty of driveways here climb or drop toward the street. That slope is useful, because it carries meltwater off the slab, as long as it does not carry it toward the garage. We set the grade at the forms, add an isolation joint where the drive meets the garage floor, and look at where each nearby downspout empties. Moving a downspout a few feet is cheap, and a corner that stays wet is where swelling clay pushes up first.

Finish choices

• Broom texture: the default for good reason; it grips when there is slush on it
• Exposed aggregate: stones showing at the surface; hides tire marks and dust
• Plain lanes with a decorative border: color or a stamped band at the edges only
• Smooth steel trowel: we avoid it on sloped driveways because it gets slick

The first month

HomeGuide's guide says walking is generally fine after 24 to 48 hours, cars after at least 7 days, and heavy vehicles after about 30 days. Wait 28 to 30 days before the first coat of sealer, then reseal every 2 to 3 years. Use sand rather than chemical de-icer the first winter, and skip ammonium nitrate and ammonium sulfate products in later years. Adjust sprinklers so they do not soak the driveway edges every morning.