What Is PolyRenewal™?

The kind of repair method you choose for your concrete is just as important as choosing to repair the slab in the first place. Not all contractors are able to offer the best concrete lifting solutions, either due to a lack of machinery, a lack of training, or wanting to stay in their comfort zone with the method they’ve worked with the most. Such is the case with polyurethane foam injections and mudjacking, two seemingly similar forms of concrete lifting that yield quite different results.  

• What PolyRenewal™ Does 

With PolyRenewal™, contractors can inject polyurethane foam underneath a sinking slab to lift it up and even it out. Concrete settles because the soil underneath isn’t stable anymore, so it needs to be replaced with a more reliable material. Polyurethane is a synthetic plastic that is completely impermeable, so it doesn’t erode over time like soil does. In fact, it can serve as a waterproof barrier that doesn’t allow moisture to reach the soil. 

Polyurethane is also light weight. This means that, once cured, it does not place a heavy load on the loose soil below and cause even more erosion. This is not the case with mudjacking, which uses a cement slurry that is rough, heavy, and capable of accelerating the soil erosion process. Despite its lightness, it can support over 100 tons of pressure.  

• How PolyRenewal™ Is Installed 

Part of the reason our clients love PolyRenewal™ is because of how quick and easy it is to install. Contractors will drill multiple holes into the settled slab and then use a machine to inject the polyurethane foam. The holes drilled are small–about the size of a penny–which allows us to work with weak concrete without the risk of further breakage. The machinery used also is small, so contractors can lift concrete in places that would normally be too difficult to work in. 

The foam is injected, and it expands, filling in every gap that’s under the slab. The expanding foam eventually pushes up against the slab until it’s able to lift it. The contractors inject enough to completely even out the slab and make it look like it never settled in the first place. The holes drilled then are patched up, and the foam is left to cure for 15 to 30 minutes. The entire process can be done in less than a day, depending on the scope of the job.