Cahokia Mounds State Historic Site sits on the edge of Collinsville, on the flat Mississippi River bottomland the ancient city was built on more than a thousand years ago. The neighborhoods around it, out toward Collinsville Road and the low ground of the American Bottom, sit on that same soft, water-holding valley soil — and a lot of the driveways here have been fighting it for decades.
We replace worn-out concrete driveways throughout this side of Collinsville. When a slab has cracked apart, dropped at the joints, or heaved unevenly, patching just buys a little time. Replacement done right — with the base rebuilt underneath it — is what actually solves the problem.
Why Replacement Beats Patching Here
The ground is the problem, not just the slab. The low bottomland near the Mounds holds water and stays soft, and a driveway is only ever as stable as what's under it. When the base has given way, resurfacing or patching the top does nothing — the new material cracks along the same failures. We take the old slab out and rebuild the base before we repour.
Aging slabs poured to old standards. Many driveways in the older Collinsville neighborhoods have been in the ground for decades, on bases that weren't built for today's expectations and worn down by generation after generation of Illinois freeze-thaw. Once a slab is cracked end to end, it's cheaper in the long run to replace it than to keep chasing repairs.
Settling and heaving on soft soil. On this kind of ground, slabs settle where the base washed out and heave where water froze underneath. That uneven movement is exactly what patching can't fix. A full tear-out lets us regrade, compact, and set drainage that moves water away from the house.
Drainage on flat, low lots. The bottomland is flat, so water doesn't run off on its own. A replacement is the chance to correct a driveway that's been draining toward the garage or foundation for years.
Tear-Out and Haul-Away with Our Own Trucks
This is where the "Truck Service" in our name earns its keep. On a driveway replacement, one crew handles the whole job — breaking out the old slab, loading it, and hauling it off with our own trucks, then prepping the base and pouring new. No separate demolition company, no waiting on an outside hauler to clear the old concrete before we can start.
That matters on a replacement more than almost any other job, because the demolition and haul-away are half the work. When it's all one crew and our own equipment, the old driveway is gone and the base is being rebuilt the same day, not a week later.
Our Process
1. Free on-site estimate. We come out, look at the failing driveway, check the base, the soil, and the drainage, and measure. You get a written price before any work starts.
2. Tear-out and haul-away. We break out and remove the old driveway with our own crew and trucks and clear every piece of debris.
3. Base prep and grading. We rebuild and compact the sub-base over the soft ground and set the slope to drain water away from the house.
4. Forming and reinforcement. Forms and reinforcement go in, spec'd for the conditions on your lot.
5. Pour and finish. We pour, finish, and set the surface texture, timed to the weather.
6. Curing. We tell you exactly how long to stay off it before foot and vehicle traffic.
Get a Free Estimate
If your driveway near Cahokia Mounds is cracked, settling, or heaving past the point of patching, we'll come out, look at the property, and give you a straight written price on a full replacement. No pressure and no obligation.
Call us at 618-280-3200 or reach out through the contact page.
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