What Is Street Creep and How Can You Prevent It?
To Stop Street Creep, It Helps to Understand What Causes the Problem
It might have a funny name, but “street creep” can have a negative impact on your driveway and your home’s foundation. Street creep is a term used for a concrete issue that starts in the street, gradually “creeps” up your driveway or garage slab and can move to your home’s foundation walls.
Street creep begins with thermal expansion, the process of materials expanding when they’re warm but shrinking when they’re cold. To combat this natural expansion and contraction, expansion joints are cut into the concrete when it’s installed. For your home, one joint is usually placed at the top of your driveway, against your garage, and another is placed at the bottom, against the sidewalk or street. This becomes an issue, however, when debris gets into these joints. Let’s put this into perspective and show how this can become an issue for you.
During colder months, concrete slabs in the street contract slightly, which means the gaps between them get bigger. This is also the time when sand is often put onto the street and sidewalks to melt ice. But that sand also gets in these newly expanded gaps. As warmer weather arrives, the concrete expands, but because the sand has filled the gaps, there is no room for the slabs to expand. So, instead, the whole street becomes a little bit longer.
This expansion issue pushes more on your curb every year, eventually creeping onto your driveway, garage slab and foundation walls. On average, this expansion creates an extra .125 inches a year, which is 2.5 inches in 20 years, and a full 5 inches in 40 years!
If you live at the end of an intersection, cul-de-sac or on a corner, you may want to check for the possibility of street creep immediately as these areas are at a higher risk.
Identifying Street Creep Symptoms
When street creep causes damage, there are usually some key symptoms to look for.
- There is no space between the driveway and the garage.
- There are cracks in your garage slab and the foundation wall behind the garage.
- The foundation walls on the sides of the garage are bowing.
- There are gaps around the foundation walls under the garage.
Preventing Further Streep Creep From Happening
Year after year, street creep can push on your driveway, garage slab or foundation walls. The built-in expansion joints that your driveway has, even if built perfectly, aren’t wide enough to accommodate the natural movement that street creep creates.
The only long-term solution is to add more space for expansion. This job should be done by a professional who can use a concrete saw to cut a four-inch-wide slot in the driveway down to the soil. The four-inch slot will be filled with a flexible material that allows it to be squeezed or compressed during the summer months.
If you’ve noticed the effects of street creep on your driveway or are concerned about future street creep, contact your local Foundation Supportworks dealer today. They’ll be able to inspect your property and give you a free estimate!