Concrete floors in Kent
Cracked or dished concrete floors in post-war Kent homes
Find out whether the cracking in your floor is shrinkage or ground movement. Describe what you see and a specialist firm will read it, with no obligation and no cost to you.
Ways a specialist can help with concrete floors
The right method depends on whether the slab itself failed or the ground beneath it moved. These are the approaches used across Kent.
- Subsidence Help When the ground below the slab has shifted and the floor is moving with it.
- Underpinning For deeper foundations where the existing support is no longer holding the slab level.
- Resin Injection Fills voids left by washed-out soil so the slab stops dropping further.
- Screw Piling Used for extensions and porches built on soft or made-up ground.
What people usually worry about first
A crack in a concrete floor raises immediate questions. These are the ones homeowners ask most often when they notice something wrong in a post-war house.
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Is my floor sinking or did the concrete just dry badly?
Shrinkage cracks stay thin and still. A dipping surface or widening gaps point to movement underneath.
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Will this crack make the rest of the house unsafe?
A cracked slab rarely threatens walls above unless the whole foundation is shifting together.
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Does the extension slab need its own separate fix?
Extensions often sit on shallower footings, so they move independently from the main house.
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Can I wait until spring to see if it gets worse?
Monitoring is normal practice, but waiting too long lets water wash more soil away.
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Is this because of the clay under my garden?
Weald Clay shrinks in summer and swells in winter, pulling slabs up and down.
What to have ready before a specialist asks
A structural engineer or groundworks firm will want specifics before visiting. Gathering these details now means the first conversation covers the actual problem rather than spending time establishing basic facts about the house and the damage.
Keep them somewhere easy to find when you describe the issue.
What happens after you send an enquiry
Details go to a specialist firm covering your part of Kent. They read the description and decide whether a site visit makes sense. The arrangement stays between you and them directly.
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Shortly after the enquiry is sent
Your description arrives with the specialist firm covering your area of Kent for review.
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Usually within two working days
The firm decides if they need photographs or should arrange to measure the floor in person.
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At a time you agree
If a visit is needed, someone comes to check levels and inspect the subfloor conditions.
Questions about concrete floors and ground movement
These cover the technical points that matter most when a concrete slab starts behaving badly in a Kent home.
What is the difference between curling and subsidence?
Curling happens when the top of a slab dries faster than the bottom, lifting the edges. Subsidence means the ground underneath has compressed or washed away, dragging the whole slab down with it.
Will a specialist lift the slab back to level?
Sometimes. Resin injection can raise a dropped section if the void is shallow enough. Severely broken slabs are usually removed and recast once the ground is stabilised properly.
Do tree roots really affect concrete floors?
Yes. Roots extract moisture from clay soils, causing the ground to shrink. Poplars and willows planted near older extensions are frequent culprits in parts of Kent built on former orchards.
Is hardstanding outside the house relevant?
Cracked driveways or paths often share the same failing sub-base as the interior slab. A specialist will look at both to understand how far the weak ground extends.
Why does the age of the house matter so much?
Post-war houses were often built quickly on compacted rubble or shallow hardcore. Those materials settle over decades, especially where drainage has changed since construction finished.
Tell us what the floor is doing
Send a description of the cracking or dipping. It goes straight to a specialist firm. There is no fee for this and no commitment to accept any work they propose later.
- No fee to enquire
- Read by a local firm
- No obligation to proceed