Steps and Stair Leveling Across the Carolinas

Concrete steps and stoops are heavy, and they sit on the same soil that moves everything else. When the soil beneath them settles, the steps sink or tilt as a unit, which throws off the even rise people's feet expect at the entry.

A common sign is a gap opening between the top step and the house as the stairs pull away and tip, and the uneven rise creates a stumbling point at the entry. In the Piedmont around Charlotte and Greensboro, expansive clay that swells and shrinks with the seasons is the usual cause, and the soil directly against a foundation, where steps often sit, is often backfill that was never fully compacted.

Around Asheville, runoff on sloped lots can wash out the support beneath an entry stair. The same backfill problem affects porch slabs beside the house.

Steps and stair leveling lifts the settled concrete back to its original position and restores the even rise between treads. We drill small ports in the steps or the slab they sit on, then pump material beneath under controlled pressure until the concrete rises back to grade and the void is filled. Polyjacking foam injection is commonly used for steps and stoops.

As the steps return to position, the gap that opened at the house closes back up. Because we lift the existing steps, the repair keeps the original concrete in place. The lifting methods are compared on our concrete leveling methods page.

Lifting is the right approach when the steps are structurally sound and have settled or tilted as a unit. It is not the answer when the concrete is cracked apart or crumbling, in which case lifting is not the right repair for that section.

Chipped or spalled edges on otherwise sound steps can be rebuilt with a concrete patch. During the inspection we determine which situation applies and recommend accordingly.