Driveway and garage apron repair
Fix the step-down at the garage door, low spots that ice over, and driveway slabs that have tipped toward the house.
The garage apron, the slab right outside the overhead door, is one of the most common pieces of concrete to sink. It usually sits on soil that was dug out and pushed back in when the foundation went in, and that backfill can keep settling for years. Once the apron drops, you get a lip at the door, water running back toward the garage, and an open seam that lets more water in every spring.
Signs your driveway needs attention
- A lip or step-down where the apron meets the garage floor
- Puddles that freeze into the same patch of ice
- Slabs tipping toward the house or garage
- Joints wide enough to slip a coin into
- Cracks that get wider after each winter
Level it, patch it or replace it?
A settled slab that's still solid is a good candidate for leveling. Surface flaking and pitting from salt and freeze-thaw cycles is a different problem, and lifting won't fix it. A driveway broken into many pieces, or failing from end to end, is usually better replaced.
The approach by the street
The stretch of driveway between the street and the sidewalk, the approach, sits in the public right-of-way. In St. Cloud, installing one takes a permit issued only to a contractor with a Minnesota residential building contractor license or a city commercial contractor license, and residential approaches have to meet the city's standard detail plate. The rest of the driveway on your lot doesn't fall under that permit. Neighboring cities have their own rules.
What drives the price?
- The number and size of slabs
- How far the apron has dropped
- Whether any slab is cracked through
- Joint sealing and any drainage changes
Pricing is set by the contractor after an on-site look, once they know how big the void is and what caused it. We don't quote prices, and a number given over the phone before anyone has seen the slab is only a ballpark.
Where we connect you with help
Common questions
Why did my garage apron sink?
Most often because the backfill under it has kept compacting since the house was built, or because water has washed out the base. Leveling fills the hollow and lifts the slab.
How soon can I park on it after leveling?
With foam, often within an hour. With mudjacking, contractors usually ask you to wait longer. Ask your contractor for their timing.
Related services
- Concrete leveling (mudjacking and foam)
- Sidewalk repair and trip hazards
- Steps, stoops and patios
- Joint sealing and crack repair
More background: St. Cloud concrete repair guide.
Slab dropped over the winter? Walk turned into a trip hazard?
Call and a local concrete contractor will come look at it and quote the fix.