Concrete Contractors in Parkersburg, IA

The EF5 tornado of May 25, 2008 destroyed 288 of Parkersburg's 830 houses and left 100 more with moderate to heavy damage, according to Wikipedia's account of the storm. The south side of town was leveled. Wikipedia also reports that 265 houses have gone up since, more than 90 percent of them with a tornado safe room. For concrete contractors in Parkersburg, that rebuild defines the town: a big share of its driveways, walks, garage floors and basement slabs were poured within a few years of one another.

A town of same-age concrete

Census estimates count 248 Parkersburg homes built from 2000 to 2009, about 27.4 percent of the town's 906 housing units, and 97 more from the 2010s. Much of that concrete is now fifteen to eighteen years old. Slabs poured in a rush of rebuilding, sometimes on freshly filled ground where older houses once stood, can show:

• Settlement where backfill around new foundations compacted over time.
• Garage aprons that have dropped below the floor.
• Cracks at re-entrant corners, where a driveway turns or meets a walk.
• Joint sealant that has dried out and let water in.

What we do about it

Most of this is fixable without a full tear-out:

• Cut out and replace only the panels that have settled, on a properly compacted base.
• Clean and reseal joints and cracks before winter.
• Apply a penetrating sealer to slow salt damage.
• Correct grading where water runs toward the house.

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Adding what the rebuild left out

Many families rebuilt the essentials first: house, garage and driveway. Fifteen years on, they want the rest. Common projects:

• Patios and stamped concrete off the back door.
• Side pads for trailers or a second vehicle.
• Shed and detached garage slabs for storage.
• Walks from the driveway to the back yard.

Older homes outside the storm path

Not every house in town was rebuilt. Point2Homes still counts 159 homes from 1939 or earlier and 145 from the 1970s. Their concrete needs the usual work on older property: crumbling steps, uneven walks and garage floors that have cracked into plates. We take those case by case.

Easy access

Parkersburg is at the junction of Iowa Highways 14 and 57, just north of U.S. 20, so getting a ready-mix truck and equipment into town is simple. Point2Homes puts owner occupancy at 85.9 percent, and most projects here are owners planning for the long haul.

Near Beaver Creek

Wikipedia places Depot Park, with the historic depot and caboose, on the north side of town next to Beaver Creek. Lots on lower ground near the creek hold water longer in spring. There we use a deeper crushed stone base, keep slabs below door thresholds and send downspout water away from the slab edges.

A town that keeps growing

Wikipedia shows Parkersburg at 1,870 residents in 2010 and 2,015 in 2020. The high school and athletic field were rebuilt in 2009 for $19 million. With the town still adding residents, there is steady demand for patios, side pads and garage slabs on lots where the rebuild covered only the basics. Wikipedia also describes Parkersburg as a model of disaster recovery, and much of that recovery is visible in the young concrete on the south side of town.

Call (319) 481-5867 or send photos through the form, and we will set up a visit to Parkersburg.