Difference between Mudjacking and Polyurethane Concrete Raising
Also called foam lifting, polyurethane for concrete raising has been in practice for about 20 years. However, the price of the equipment and polyurethane material made it way too expensive for private contractors to adopt and replace traditional mudjacking. It has mostly been used by the Department of Transportation to raise streets and highway roads. Well, until now! What changed?
1.The equipment:
Today, smaller and affordable basic trailer units can be bought for under $50K that contain everything needed to do the job. They can also be pulled by a simple pickup truck that can carry the equivalent of 5 cubic yards of material. The polyurethane can be shipped and stored in 55 gallon drums.
2.The material:
This used to be protected under a patent. By mixing a two-part polyurethane, a reaction is created and the material expands to fill voids and raise concrete slabs. On-demand instead of batched. The average cost of Polyurethane material at $153.00 per cubic yard.
3. The selection:
There are several types of foam depending on the job requirements:
Lightweight and fast reactive
High density foam (for heavy slabs on highways)
Single component polyurethane to bind and stabilize loose soil
(http://www.mudpumps.com/materials/)
Mudjacking Versus Polyurethane concrete raising
Both techniques are used for similar projects with settled concrete: garage floors, driveways, entry, porches, sidewalks, basement floors, pool decks etc.
Both achieve the same results and are cost effective alternative to pouring new concrete but the process is a bit different.
Mudjacking equipment:
As a minimum you will need a paddle mixer, a truck that can carry 5 cubic yards of material, a front end loader, a yard to store bulk materials!
Mudjacking material:
Lots of dirt! Pumping 100 lbs per cubic foot of sand mixed with Portland cement under the settled slab. Foam, on the other hand, weighs about 2 lbs per cubic foot! The cost of mudjacking material is less than $20.00 per cubic yard. So it is quite cheap.
Mudjacking, doing the work:
Mudjacking involves heavy work like shoveling material into a mixer, drilling lots of 1” holes and moving a pump around the job site.
Compared to mudjacking, polyurethane concrete raising is pretty light work, much less physically demanding. For one, no dirt to haul, one person can handle the job. Using a pickup truck you can move the trailer unit anywhere on the site, as close as you need to be, drill a few 5/8” holes, inject the liquid foam in them. 5/8” holes are very tiny compared to having to drill many 1” holes when mudjacking. So there is little patching to do. The job is completed in record time and the surface is immediately ready to be used. In less than 15 seconds, the liquid turns into foam and reach its final volume. Once cured, it will never lose its density! You can cover a much larger area in less time than with mudjacking because of the material can easily be delivered in any area and cures so quickly.
So if you are tired of hauling dirt, heavy physical labor, ready for something new and cleaner, you might want to look into foam raising. It is here to stay and has a very promising future.
And, if you have mastered the art of mudjacking and are in need of a good concrete pump, check out our mudjacking pumps specials.
Or give us a call at: (503)283-2105
Reference Material:
Mudjacking 101: How to repair broken concrete
http://www.mudpumps.com/concrete-lifting-options-the-pros-the-cons/
