Tear-Out · Columbus Concrete Repair
Concrete Removal & Tear-Out in Columbus, OH
Old slab in the way? Break it out, haul it off and leave the ground ready. Ask for a free estimate.
Serving Columbus and 31 nearby towns, from Dublin and Westerville to Grove City
Free Concrete Tear-Out & Removal Estimate
Tell us the type of slab, its rough size and what it is doing (cracking, sinking, heaving or flaking). Expect a phone call back to go through it and pick a day to come see the slab.
- Free estimates
- Tear-out and replacement
- Base rebuilt, not patched
- Homes and businesses
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Concrete Tear-Out & Removal
Concrete Removal for Columbus, OH
Sometimes the right repair is no concrete at all. An old patio nobody uses, a sunken shed pad, a back walk that leads nowhere, a slab left behind by a removed hot tub, or a cracked side yard you would rather turn back into yard: these are tear-out jobs. Other times removal is the first half of a replacement, and how it is done matters. Saw-cutting a clean edge where old concrete meets what stays keeps the remaining slab from chipping, and knowing whether rebar or wire is inside tells you how hard the break-out will be.
Removal is loud, heavy work, so the planning centers on access and protection. Equipment needs a path that will not crack a good driveway or rut a soft lawn, and debris needs a route to the truck. Once the concrete and any steel are gone, the area is raked clear of broken pieces and graded, ready for new concrete or for topsoil you bring in. When removal comes ahead of a new pour, base work starts right away so the ground does not sit open through a rainstorm.
What's included
What goes into concrete tear-out and removal
- 01
Patios, walks and pads
Slabs of any size removed, from a small landing to a full backyard patio.
- 02
Driveways and garage floors
Thicker, often reinforced concrete broken out with the right equipment and hauled away.
- 03
Steps and stoops
Old entry steps removed down to their base, including heavy precast or solid-poured sets.
- 04
Clean saw-cut edges
A straight cut where removal stops, so the concrete that stays keeps a sharp, unbroken edge.
- 05
Haul-off
Concrete, steel and debris loaded and taken away, not left in a pile at the curb.
- 06
Grading after removal
The area cleared and leveled for a new slab or for topsoil.
Examples
Concrete Tear-Out & Removal: examples
Example photos of the type of work.
How it works
Concrete Tear-Out & Removal, step by step
- 1
Plan access
Pick the route the equipment will take and protect drives, walks and lawn along it.
- 2
Locate and cut
Have utilities marked through 811, then saw-cut the line where removal stops.
- 3
Break out and load
Break the slab into manageable pieces, pull out the steel and load everything for haul-off.
- 4
Clean and grade
Rake out rubble, level the ground and leave it ready for whatever comes next.
Questions
Concrete Tear-Out & Removal questions
Will the ground settle after an old slab is removed?
It can. Clay that sat under concrete for years may be dry and firm, or soft if water was trapped beneath it. If a new slab is going in, soft spots are dug out and replaced with compacted gravel; if the area is going back to yard, it is graded with a slight crown to allow for settling.
How is concrete removal priced?
By volume and difficulty. Thickness, square footage, whether the slab holds rebar or wire, how close equipment can get and how far debris has to travel all play a part. A free estimate visit sizes it up.
Is anything needed before concrete removal starts?
Mainly clear access and marked utilities. 811 gets called so buried lines near the slab are located, and anything nearby you want protected should be pointed out. Taking out a driveway apron or a public walk generally involves the city or village, since that concrete sits in the right-of-way.
Can you remove concrete without replacing it?
Yes. Plenty of jobs are removal only: a patio being retired, a pad from an old shed, a walkway being rerouted. The concrete comes out, the debris goes, and the ground is left graded.
Is broken old concrete used as fill under the new slab?
No. Chunks of the old slab leave voids that settle and trap water, which is exactly the problem a replacement is meant to solve. The new slab gets a fresh, compacted gravel base.
Tear-out and replacement
Related work
Driveway Replacement
Partial or full tear-out of cracked, sunken or scaling driveways, rebuilt on compacted gravel with steel.
More on driveway replacement
Patio Replacement
Sunken, cracked or back-pitched patios torn out and poured again with slope away from the house.
More on patio replacement
Garage Floor Replacement
Garage slabs that sank, split or scaled from winter salt, broken out and poured new on a compacted base.
More on garage floor replacement
Service area
Concrete Tear-Out & Removal around Columbus
We handle concrete tear-out and removal for homes and businesses in Columbus and these nearby towns:
Franklin County
Pickaway County
Fairfield County
Delaware County
Licking County
Talk to us about concrete tear-out and removal
Describe the crack, the sinking or the heave, and get a free replacement estimate from someone who will tell you if it can wait.