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I have just finished renovating an investment property we bought 2 months ago, and it's finally ready to be listed for rent. There aren't many properties of this calibre in the market. The concrete driveway and concrete in the front garden area were looking tired and have been pressure washed. There are some gaps in the concrete at the edges and cracks in many places. I have quotes of $10K+ to rebuild the driveway (after removing existing concrete and pour new concrete), but can't afford to spend that much. I have received 2 other quotes that are lower and more affordable, but need advice on how long these would last.
1) Concrete repair, removal of damaged cracked concrete areas where required and repair with new cement around the front driveway and inside the garage; approximately 10-15 bags of cement required. At least a week after the concrete has been poured, acid wash and pressure cleaning. Seal driveway, garage and concrete surrounding the garden beds with a) White Knight White Heavy Duty Ultra Pave Concrete And Paving Paint I/N: 1540599, mixed with b) White Knight 200g Ultra Pave Grip Additive I/N: 1540637.
2) Acid wash and pressure cleaning. Seal driveway, garage, and concrete surrounding the garden beds with a) White Knight White Heavy Duty Ultra Pave Concrete And Paving Paint I/N: 1540599, mixed with b) White Knight 200g Ultra Pave Grip Additive I/N: 1540637.
Questions on Option #1:
A) Will the cement adhere to the old concrete in option #1?
B) Will this be rugged enough for a driveway?
Questions on Option #2:
C) Any way to fill the cracks and holes before painting?
D) Apart from acid washing, any way to improve the adhesion of paint to old concrete and reduce peeling of paint?
Hello @bazzyboy
Thanks for sharing your question about refreshing your concrete driveway. To stop water from leaking further into the cracked sections of your driveway, I suggest using Gripset Betta 1L Concrete Crack Filler. It is a unique solvent free crack sealer designed to protect cracks and joints in concrete pavements against water ingress and the breakdown of pavement surfaces.
By stopping the flow of water into the damaged area, it should prevent it from sinking further. The other option is to cut the damaged area with a concrete saw and replace the damaged portion of the driveway. Unfortunately, putting ordinary concrete on the damage sections will not really fix it. Another way would be to engage the services of a concrete resurfacing specialist. You can get a quote on how much it will cost to fix the damage and resurface the driveway.
Let me call on our experienced members @Dave-1 and @Nailbag for their recommendations.
If you have any other questions we can help with, please let us know.
Eric
Evening @bazzyboy
A hard call tho I would probarly end up with removing the broken sections only (Cutting across the large broken patches) and then replacing the concrete with new plus reo 
This is the path I would take Pun unintended but works well
Filling over the cracks will prolong the issue, Once cracked I really cant think of a way back without digging it out, and new concrete filled. Id just square cut the edges to make it look tidy. So to answer Q1 would be a no and a no 😕
When I was looking into what paint to use on my patio let alone a driveway one of the things that showed up was adhearance to concrete always seemed an issue. If you have it done by a professional company it sounds like it may last awhile but any flaking of paint means you are back to square one (cant paint over flaky paint) Unless you are really keen on painting the driveway I would probarly suggest to keep the dollars in your pcket and use elsewhere So Q2 is also a no 😕 and a no 😕
Dave
Hi @bazzyboy from my experience, any form of repair to concrete driveways always look like repaired concrete driveways with a limited life span. The photos shared show the levels undulate badly hence the breaks and will most likely continue regardless of any surface level repair and restoration. I imagine, though considerably a cheaper option over full replacement, they are still costly.
If this was my property, I would hold on doing anything for now as you have obviously already spent consideribly on the renovations. And I doubt the condition of the driveway will have a major impact on the rental value. Yes it's not attractive, but it's not structural, so no urgency. So, I would give it time to recoup the saving and replace the driveway. The property improvement will have some tax benefit and ultimately add value to the property when time to sell.
Regards, Nailbag
