Concrete driveway building in Bentonville AR - a slab that sheds water and stays level

You need a right-of-way permit from the city's Transportation Department for any work on the street, curb, gutter or sidewalk, which the end of a new drive usually touches. Its permit list names grading, not driveways, so the department is the place to ask about the rest. When yours needs a permit, we apply and set up the inspections.

The city requires driveways to be concrete out to the right-of-way, the city's strip along the street, with a minimum thickness over a packed base there. The City Engineer can ask for more, so we check the city's street standards before we set forms. If you're on a state highway, the Arkansas Department of Transportation grants permission and can later order changes.

Pour during a stretch with no freeze expected soon after, because a national concrete group urges caution in late fall, winter and early spring if fresh concrete could freeze while it's still full of water. We also avoid midday heat, since a top that dries too fast turns weak and dusty later.

Probably a little, because university research on home concrete finds some cracking normal, mostly from drying shrinkage and temperature swings. A crew limits it with a low-water mix, proper curing and saw cut joints made early, deep and close enough together, so ask any crew how they handle each, including ours.

Calcium chloride and rock salt are acceptable on concrete, according to a national concrete group, while ammonium sulfate, ammonium nitrate and magnesium-based salts destroy the surface. The guide suggests sand on new concrete, moderate amounts later and hosing off salt cars leave. It also advises a stronger mix where a slab gets deicer, so we pick yours with you.