Causes of Concrete Settlement
Concrete slabs can be susceptible to settlement from a wide variety of factors. In some areas of the United States, naturally occurring soils can consolidate over time, including areas ranging from Texas up through to Wisconsin. Soil erosion also contributes to concrete settlement, as this is very common for locations with improper drainage. Concrete slabs built upon filled-in land can excessively settle as well. This is common for homes with basement levels, as the fill on the outside of the foundation frequently is not "compacted" properly. In some cases, the slabs pitch down, directing water down towards the basement level. Tree roots can actually heave a slab upwards; this is quite common along public roadways, especially within Metropolitan areas.
Read more about this topic: Concrete Leveling
Famous quotes containing the words concrete and/or settlement:
“freeways fifty lanes wide
on a concrete continent
spaced with bland billboards
illustrating imbecile illusions of happiness”
—Lawrence Ferlinghetti (b. 1919)
“A Tory..., since the revolution, may be defined in a few words, to be a lover of monarchy, though without abandoning liberty; and a partizan of the family of Stuart. As a Whig may be defined to be a lover of liberty though without renouncing monarchy; and a friend to the settlement in the protestant line.”
—David Hume (1711–1776)