Concrete Contractor in Crown Point, IN - Flatwork That Sheds Water

A FARA, the state's floodplain step, is required for local floodplain permitting and for FEMA Letter of Map Amendment applications in A zones, the flood zones as the Indiana DNR names them. The state also requires one for a regulatory determination where the drainage area upstream is more than 1 square mile, in areas unmapped on the FIRM flood map and in areas known to be flood prone. If your lot could fall in any of those, ask me about it at the estimate so we know where it stands before anything gets scheduled.

FEMA treats any area with a 1% or higher chance of flooding each year as high risk, which means at least a one-in-four chance of a flood over a 30-year mortgage. That only applies to your home if your area carries that level of risk. For a concrete job, it's a good reason to know where your lot stands before we pour next to the house.

FEMA says floods can happen almost anywhere, and heavy rain, poor drainage and even nearby construction can put a home at risk. Drainage is the part a concrete job can help with, so we pitch slabs near the house to carry water away from it, not toward it.

I give you that number in writing after I've measured, since no two driveways here start from the same ground. A plain broom finish, the light brushed texture that gives tires and shoes grip, costs less than stamped or colored work, and a thicker slab or a bigger tear-out costs more. If something has to give, I'd cut the finish before the base, because the base is buried on day one and it's what keeps the slab from sinking with the dirt.

Concrete can crack, but we decide where, and a slab on a packed base shouldn't break up the way most old ones do. The old driveways we tear out usually failed because the base was raked level instead of dug out and packed, or the control joints, cut lines that give a crack a straight place to go, were cut late or skipped. We pack the base and cut the joints before the slab can pick its own spots.

You don't have to chase it yourself, because we check with the city's building office before we schedule anything and handle the permit when the job needs one. We're fully licensed and insured, and if your lot is in a flood area, we'll go over the FARA question above with you too.