Goodbye Summer, Hello Pool Deck Repair

Prep your Pool for Next Summer

Autumn is nearly here and it’s time to start putting away the bathing suits, packing up the beach chairs, and covering the pool. But wait, autumn and winter isn’t the time to ignore your swimming pool! Swimming pools are a great relief in the summer, but it’s important to make sure that they’re safe. This not only means keeping an eye on the kids when they swim, checking the chlorine levels and skimming out leaves, it means making sure the concrete around the pool is level and safe. If you have sinking concrete around your pool, autumn is the time to fix it in preparation for next year. 

What causes pool patios to sink?

Slab settlement is the movement of concrete when the soil below cannot support its weight. This is common in sidewalks, driveways, porches and yes, especially around pools. Pool decks and patios can settle from its close proximity to water. When water moves underneath concrete, it washes away the soil that should hold it up. Heavy rainstorms and pool flooding can speed up this process and wash away supporting soil. Without support, concrete will sink and become uneven. Pool patios need to be even to avoid trip hazards. Children running around can slip and fall, especially when the concrete is wet and slippery.

During construction of a pool, a hole is dug in the ground and the pool is built over it. Poorly compacted fill soil is another common cause of concrete sinking. The concrete is poured over these dirt holes, and if the job isn’t done well a void is created under the concrete. With nothing to support the heavy concrete, it will sink and fall into the soil. Gravity always works, if there’s nothing to support the concrete it is going down. 

So, how can it be fixed?

Replacing the concrete is expensive and a huge undertaking. The concrete must be removed with a jackhammer and heavy equipment is hauled in. It’s loud, disruptive, unattractive and doesn’t solve the problem. When new concrete is poured over the same poor soil, it will just end up sinking again. It’s as inevitable as Jersey Shore traffic after Memorial Day. Mudjacking is messy and takes several days to dry. The mud slurry used in mudjacking can splatter over the property and its weight can often make the soil below it worse.

However, PolyLEVEL is fast-drying, affordable and best of all - it works. PolyLEVEL is a modern take on fixing concrete that doesn’t disrupt the property and doesn’t require new concrete. PolyLEVEL uses a high-density polymer foam that raises concrete slabs back into place, stabilizing them for good. PolyLEVEL uses less holes than mudjacking, uses the concrete that is already there, and requires no concrete trucks.

The foam injection is environmentally friendly, waterproof, and it is only 4lbs per cubic foot (compare that to 120lbs per foot for concrete). Once injected into the sinking concrete, PolyLEVEL lifts it up back into place and dries quickly. The concrete can be walked over in just 30 minutes or less! PolyLEVEL is strong for its weight, it can lift up to 4,000 pounds per square foot. And unlike the alternatives, PolyLEVEL comes with a long-term warranty for peace of mind. 

Often, sinking slab problems only get worse with time. They will not magically fix themselves and rise back to place. So, while autumn approaches and the pool goes on the back burner, consider fixing that sinking patio with PolyLEVEL. Next year when the weather gets hot again and the new bathing suit styles are in stores, you will be thankful that you fixed the problem in advance with PolyLEVEL.

Call Quality 1st Basement Systems for a free estimate today!