Lowering Raised Concrete: How to Even Out Your Raised Concrete Slabs

Find out how you may be able to even out your raised concrete with concrete leveling.

Dealing with raised concrete slabs can be a frustrating and potentially dangerous issue. Bad curb appeal, liability from trip hazards, and damage due to improper water drainage are just a few of the many problems that raised concrete slabs can cause.

Luckily, however, there is a convenient and cost-effective way to even out unlevel concrete. This process, called concrete leveling, is a great way to preserve your existing concrete rather than replace it.

At A-1 Concrete Leveling, we’ve been leveling concrete for over 30 years. In this time, we’ve helped countless customers regain safe, even, and great-looking concrete with our concrete leveling, repair, and maintenance services.

In this article, we’ll walk you through how concrete leveling can help with raised concrete slabs so that you can decide if it’s an option worth exploring for your uneven concrete.

Can Raised Concrete Slabs Be Lowered?

Technically, raised concrete slabs themselves cannot be lowered. But, while it may appear that the slabs themselves have risen, in most cases, it's actually the surrounding concrete slabs that have settled, creating the illusion of a raised slab. 

This can be resolved by using concrete leveling to lift the adjoining settled slabs back up to an even position. By lifting the sunken slabs, the surface is evened out, which can help eliminate the trip hazards and other issues caused by the “raised” slab.

How to “Lower” Concrete Slabs 

In order to achieve the effect of lowering what seems to be a raised slab, you actually need to lift the adjoining settled slabs back up to the level of the raised slab.

This is done with the concrete leveling process, which follows these steps:

1. Strategic holes are drilled through the sunken concrete slabs
2. A leveling compound is pumped through the holes and under the settled slabs, filling the voids and lifting them up
3. Once the slabs reach the proper level, the drill holes are sealed and the area is cleaned off

Related Resource: How Concrete Leveling Works

Raised Concrete Slabs Due to Tree Roots

In most cases, raised concrete is the result of the surrounding slabs sinking, which gives the impression that the correctly positioned slab is raised. However, in some cases, raised concrete slabs may be the result of tree roots pushing against the concrete from below. 

It is important to note that in cases with tree roots, concrete leveling may not be a feasible solution because the roots actually push the concrete up as they grow, making an attempt at concrete leveling only temporary.

Installing a root barrier can help by preventing further growth of the roots beneath the concrete, but it still does not guarantee that concrete leveling will be able to achieve an even grade. 

Depending on the severity of the tree root problem and the extent of the damage to the concrete, you may ultimately need to consider removing the tree and replacing the raised slabs.

Your Next Steps

If you're dealing with raised concrete slabs and want to even out your concrete, you now know that concrete leveling may be the convenient and cost-effective solution you've been looking for. 

A-1 Concrete Leveling has over 30 years of experience in leveling concrete and helping countless customers regain safe and great-looking surfaces.

Want to learn more about concrete repair and maintenance? Check out some related topics from A-1's online resource library, Concrete Academy:

• Why Concrete Settles
• How Concrete Leveling Works
• How to Repair Concrete

To explore how concrete leveling can help you with your raised concrete slabs, click the link below to request a free onsite cost estimate with an expert from A-1 Concrete Leveling!

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