More driveway, same driveway
Widen it, add a strip for the third car, or swap out the one panel that failed. Poured five to six inches thick with rebar.
Driveway add-ons
Driveways get built for two cars and then life adds a third. Or a teenager, or a work truck, or a trailer that needs a place to back into. The usual result is a car parked half on the rock, tires chewing a groove along the edge of the slab. A strip of new concrete beside the old one solves it without touching what you already have. It is the least concrete that fixes the most daily annoyance.
Widening a driveway by a few feet is fussy work. The new slab has to match the height and slope of the old one, tie in at the sidewalk and the garage, and still drain. The volume is small, often two or three yards. That mix of slow layout and little concrete is exactly what large crews avoid. We take these on pour days set by town, sharing the truck with other small jobs nearby.
Common sizes
- Widening strip, 3 by 40
- Adds enough width to open car doors without stepping into the rock.
- Third car strip, 10 by 20
- A parking spot beside the driveway for one more vehicle.
- Single panel, about 10 by 10
- One cracked or sunken section cut out at the joints and poured new.
- Side approach, 10 by 30
- Runs from the driveway to the side gate for a trailer or the toys.
How the job goes
- 1
Match the existing slab
We measure the height, slope and joint lines of the old driveway. The new section is laid out so its joints continue the old pattern, which is most of what makes an addition look like it belongs.
- 2
Dig and tie in
We dig along the old edge, compact gravel, set forms and tie rebar. Where it helps, we drill steel dowels into the side of the existing slab to help the two pieces stay at the same height over time.
- 3
Pour and broom to match
The concrete is placed, screeded even with the old slab and broomed in the same direction as the original. The color will be lighter at first. The texture and the lines are what we can match on day one.
- 4
Joints and keep off
We cut joints to line up with the old ones and leave the forms on for a day. Then the section is taped off. Foot traffic after about a day, cars after about a week, anything heavy after about a month.
What makes it last
Concrete fails from the bottom up. These are the parts you will never see once the job is done, and they decide how the slab holds up.
- Five to six inches with rebar
- Vehicles are a different load than patio furniture. Driveway sections are poured five to six inches thick with a rebar grid, which helps the slab hold together under turning tires.
- Dowels at the old edge
- A new strip that is not tied to the old driveway can settle on its own and leave a lip. Steel dowels across the joint let the slabs move apart slightly but help hold them even in height.
- Drainage that still works
- Your driveway already sends water somewhere, usually toward the street. The addition has to carry the same slope and not trap water against the garage, the house or the fence line.
- Base under the outer edge
- Cars tend to ride the outside edge of a widening strip. We extend the compacted gravel past the form line so that edge is supported and less likely to break off under a tire.
Start with a photo.
435·220·5536Text us a photo of the spot and rough measurements. We will tell you what we can from the photo, or come out and take a look. Rather type it out? Use the form.
Driveway add-ons: straight answers
Will the new concrete match my driveway?
Not in color, at least not for a while. New concrete is lighter, and old concrete has years of sun, tire marks and dust in it. Height, slope, joint lines and broom texture will match. The color difference fades as the new section weathers.
Can you replace one bad panel?
Yes. We cut along the joints, break out the panel and look at why it failed. Often the base washed out or was never compacted. We fix that, then pour a new panel with rebar. One panel is a normal job for us.
Can you widen the part by the street?
Your city may have rules for work near the street, and your HOA may have rules about driveway width, so check first. We can widen the section on your lot up to wherever those rules allow.
How long are we parking on the street?
About a week for cars on the new section. If the addition is a side strip, the rest of your driveway usually stays usable the whole time. Heavy trucks, loaded trailers and RVs should stay off the new concrete for about a month.