I have a problem. My house and driveway is lower than the street level. Usually, when this is the case, they will build a slight rise or berm into the driveway near the street, to keep the street water out. Unfortunately, there is no berm, and when there are heavy rains, I get a lot of street water. I have determined that if I built a berm only 3" high, it would prevent the majority of the street water from entering. So my question is this: Can I build a berm out of concrete directly over my existing driveway? Would it stick, would it break off? Any tips on how to do this so that it lasts? It would very much resemble a speed bump, same proportions.

Thanks,

Thomas

I will work for a short tome but then it will crack and saperate from the original concrete.

The best option would be to cut a section out and put a trench drain in and pitch it to one side of the drive. The water would come down the drive and go into the drain. Trench drains come in different widths and and have different grates types. Shop around. I'll post some pics of what I'm taking about.

I would check with your public works department from your city before undertaking any modifications. It may not be that bad in your neck of the woods, but here in Chicagoland you have to be sure that everything has been checked by the city engineer, or they may make you pull it all out and start again. I don't think they'll approve anything that would impede the drainage of the roadway, which your proposal may do.

You may be better off to try to design a drain system that drains the water that comes down the driveway rather than trying to dam it off at the entrance.

Take a look at Sacrete concrete web site.

What you need to do is several steps to ensure it adheres properly, and does not crack.

You need to clean the old concrete with acid. You may need to use a special primer, then you need to use a specific type of concrete that is designed for applications less than two inches thick, and over old concrete.

Rich

Unfortunately, a trench drain wouldn't work in this instance. The street is higher than my property, and if water went into a trench, I would have to let it drain somewhere, and that would put it to the right of my driveway, and the water would still go onto my property. I am trying to prevent the water from entering my property. The neighbor in the back and downstream of me just complained to me about the amount of water entering her property from mine.

With a trench drain, you pitch it in one direction about 1/8 inch per foot.
At the lowest end, you dig a dry well.

The size of a drywell depends upon your soil...in Texas there is alot of clay that does not drain to well.
Up here...a decent drywell is about a 2 foot diameter hole, four feet deep.
Fill the hole with 3/4 stone up to and above the bottom of the drain...cover the stone with weed cloth and put a few inches of soil on top.
What that does is buy you time...the drywell gives a place for the water to go and then it has time to sink into the ground.
Again....its very dependant upon you soil...that is how fast does your soild perk...how lond does it take to drain the drywell of water..

And the other consideration is this. Do you get massive thunderstorms that flood the road? if so a smalll drywell may just overflow.

Rich

Yes, we do get big thunderstorms that flood the road. I know the berm wouldn't prevent all that kind of runoff, but it will help. Most driveways have this sort of thing built in: A slight rise, before the long decent.

If you are set on adding a "hump" you should cut out a section of the driveway and add in the hump as one big chunk of concrete. Make the hump a separate pour from the rest of the drive way. This way the driveway and the hump will react to the weigh of your cars as they roll over them separately and they will not crack.

In my experience (15 years as an excavation contractor) installing concrete onto another concrete surface will be a short term solution, it usually won't last. I would cut out the section and install a new one piece section with the slope and shape you want.

Dave

I have sucessfully added a "hump" using hi-strength quick dry designer mix bag concrete. Stuff is expensive but they use it also to repair expansion joints, pothole repairs on freeway. But I hate humps in driveways...use a bonding agent to adhere the concrete to the old concrete.
I would go the strip drain route as Paul has suggested with atleast 1/4" of fall to the drain. Now some of these drain have fall built into the bottom of them so the top is level but the water drains away properly. Run the piping into your drainage system even if it takes extra work to do...Install a "Y" cleanout at the beginning so you can clean it out if it needs it.


I have been doing construction for 32 years....

"Do it right once or you keep fixing it"


Geoff

I've seen speed bumps added to flat roads. They look like they are precast elsewhere, and dropped into place. Three or so pieces of rebar are inserted vertically into holes in the speed bump and road to prevent horizontal movement of the bump from cars. Some have that heavy duty grey concrete calking between the bump and the road.

Or, notice the breaks between slabs? Like suggested above, cut a trench across the driveway and pour your speedbump into the trench. Might be fun holding the slumping concrete in place while it sets.

Or, do the trench drain thing but vent the outlet to a french drain. Basically a french drain is a trench, filled with rock and sodded over the top so it is unseen. They can be used to drain water to another location or can store it so that it is absorbed by the ground (aka dry well)
French Drain basics

Hope your teener is unraised. A slammed one might not make it over the bump.

Ken

In 72 my first new house was like yours. A bunch of homes built on a hill by different builders long gone. For the first and second july 4th I was pulling my front bedroom carpet up and drying out the front wall edge. The water was actually coming in my neighbors driveway and across the small strip of grass between us and setting in my front yard. I had to cut the yard down and make a small gradual ditch to drain around my house. With a shovel and a wheelbarrow. I also built a nice raised curb on his driveway side with two 14 inch pieces of pipe for planters and planted him two small hedges. I did the washed rock look. He thought it looked great. I actually lived on the side of a big gulley that all the water from the top of the hill drained into after coming down the street.

where does the water go in your neighbor behind your yard? The city should be able to help you figgure out a solution. Flood ins.?

I don't know if this is feasable but what if you got someone to cut a groove in the concrete and put a very thick piece of rubber on edge in the groove that would actually flex if you scraped a low car on it. Maybe you could just bolt it down. I'm sure it would be way cheaper than the trench but of course the trench would look the best. You could alway drill a 12inch forty foot hole and say you are helping to refill the aquifer.

Maybe the city needs to put a drain in the street since you are not the only one this affects.

Well, to answer some questions, I have already built a dry stream bed on the side of my house that takes this water down and away. Any water that comes onto my front yard or driveway, be it from the neighbor or the street ultimately goes down that stream bed. The neighbor behind me is bitching, because she irrationally thinks that because I dug out and lined the area with riverbed rocks that now she is going to get more water. The reason for lining with rocks, of course, is to keep the area from growing over with undergrowth that impedes rain water flow.

But anyway, the street water is just too much, and I would like to reduce it in part just to keep those river bed rocks from washing away. One idea I was thinking of was installing a driveway apron made of pavers up front near the street. That should give me the lift I need to keep the street water on the street. I have even seen on the internet where people cover their whole driveway with pavers. While I don't want to do that, I think an apron would look nice. I don't know how I would keep the pavers in place, near the street.

go look at the Sakrete website.

Concrete Glue
http://www.sakrete.com/products/product.aspx?ID=ConcreteGlue

Concrete Patch and repair for thin applications
http://www.sakrete.com/products/product.as...ConcretePatcher

There are quite a few new chemical bonding agents also...go search for "Portland Cement" and also go find your local stone yard that sells stone and pavers (Not HD) and ask them about the bonding agents.

You could always buy a speed bump and glue that down, just like the road guys do...and they do stick and hold if you do it right...good prep and the right epoxy.

Speed Bumps
http://www.barcoproducts.com/speed_bumps.asp

If all else fails, Use Miracle Putty. Billy Mays says is will stick to anything.

Rich

I have never heard of Sakret, but I have seen at Home Depot and Lowes the Quikrete line. They have a Concrete Resurfacer, which I think is the same sort of product. It is polymer based, and it seems very similar to the concrete self leveling stuff I used inside my home before putting the wood floor down. I wonder how many inches high I could build that stuff up.

Can I ask a dumb question???

Wouldn't the city / county be responsible for drainage and shouldn't they keep water off your property? Aren't you doing them a favor by channeling their water?

The city won't do anything. This is an older subdivision that was annexed by the city 30 years ago. Ten years ago we had a really bad rainstorm that really caused some terrible flooding, and even some homes in this subdivision had a foot of water in them. So I suppose I am not that bad off, but I don't want to take any chances with all the new development done upstream from me.

Oh goody!!!

New development means more water for you!

We had a hunderd year rainfall here and it was amazing seeing how the new subdivision vented the overflow into us after their little retaining ponds filled up.

First time I ever saw a car underwater with the headlights on.....

Have you studied the natural flow of the water? Does the city have any drains that they could add one before your house and tie into the drainage system. Annexed usually means they want your taxes and they will provide the city resources to support you and your neighbors.

After that house in 72 I always remember about the low areas in housing choices. I live on a hill now. Only bad thing about that is the wind always blows and lightning always likes high points. You should see two big oaks and their battle scars from the bad weather.

Thomas,
I am not sure others understand your dilemma. Having spent 23 years in the military, I spent a few weeks at a time in San Antonio. I once saw a thunderstorm come in and flood River Walk after only about 20 minutes. There is almost no civil engineering to handle rain water that I could tell... The cars on the freeway were practically at a standstill because of standing water. The prevailing local wisdom was that it is a flash flood - nothing you can do about that.

I'm no concrete expert but I do see your problem clearly...

You Got it ConeDodger, flooding is something they do not plan for. I did a petition and sent it to our council person after the flood of 98. She met with everyone, but did nothing.

URY914 wins the prize...replace "hump" with "lip curb" and your done. I'd be interested in seeing a pic of where the road meets your driveway.

So Ray....what's the prize?

...a sack of sakrete...good for lip curbs and speed bumps.

what exactly is a lip curb? Is that where the curb is shaped like a quarter pipe?

this section would span accross the front of your driveway....then it would transition back up to your normal curb height (at each end of course).

Thomas,
Why don't you post a couple pics of the driveway. Maybe that would help getting some ideas for a fix.
From what I read so far there has been some really good suggestions. If your looking for a cheap fix I dont think there is one. I really like the trench drain and dry sump idea. If you make the dry sump big enough it should work quite well.
I have a drainage ditch running through my yard which drains the road. I went round and round with the H.O.A. and the City but got nowhere so I took matters into my own hands and made a few changes. Guess I will find out how good my ideas are when monsoons hit here in Az. I hate H.O.A.,s Bunch of Anal Boot lickers looking for Utopia.
Hey, Good Luck with your problem.

II was going to post the same thing. My place is exactly like yours. High street with a steep (downhill) driveway right into the garage.

We also have a sump drain between two garages, but be careful here as if you get a ton of water and if the drain is clogged, your garage will flood. And it might happen in the middle of the night or when you are away. Ask me how I know.

Anyway I called the city and told them their street engineering was flooding my garage and they came right out, put in a 4" asphalt burm and now the driveway doesn't get any runoff from the street.

Well, after 30+ years in the plumbing business (20+ in Texas and 3 of those in San Antonio I feel I should put my 2 cents in as well. 1st, locate the easement. DO NOT do any work on the city side of this without proper permits and/or bonds deeperunless you like REAL headaches. This is usually the area from the curb and in 42". Sometimes it is 60"+. I found one that was 25'. Telephone and utility poles will be located in the easements, many times. The city can provide you w/ this info. Secondly, DON'T paste any concrete on top off another pour of concrete. As mentioned above, cut out a strip and replace w/ raised section. If you must paste on your hump, then at least drill 3/8" holes in existing slab and dowell it. At least when it loses it's bond w/ existing slab it will remain in place until the hump itself begins to break into pieces. It will unless you reinforce the hump w/ rebar and do a 4-5 bag pour. BTW, can you still fix a ticket in SA w/ a small bribe? I really miss that!

Ok, here is the pic. This was taken after a big rainstorm had subsided, but you can see the problem. Also shown is this sort of No-mans land in between my driveway and the street. Why they didn't pour all the way to the street, I don't know, most neighbor's driveways go all the way to the street.

Here is just one idea that I have where I would have to pour a ramp, but place cobble-stone pavers over the existing slab in the front. I like this idea because it can be tackled in stages that I can do by myself. Plus, pavers look nice.

That sucks - absolutely no road drainage at all! No ditch no nothing. Move

It really looks like that is standing water not just run off. You would almost need to run you lip curb 10 feet up the road.

BTW that "no man's land" on your diagram probably belongs to the municipality. Look for survey evidence as to where your property line is - probably 33' back from the centerline of the road. Someone suggested getting in touch with engineering department. I second that whole heartedly. You go changing public lands and sooner or later some PO'd official is going to show up and lay a beating on you.