6 Rapid Repairs for a Shipshape Spring Home Exterior

Spring may have arrived, but in cold-weather climates, wicked winter isn’t likely to have vanished without a trace. Those frigid temperatures and severe storms take their toll, often compromising key elements of your home's exterior, hardscaping, or both. Besides being unsightly, such damage can, if neglected, lead to further deterioration. That’s why it's a good idea to carefully evaluate your home and property now, before time passes and those small snags become much bigger issues. Armed with rapid-setting, easy-to-use products from CTS Cement | Rapid Set, you can quickly complete a wide range of repairs involving commonly used materials like concrete, stucco, and more. Click through now to see a sampling of projects that can help you undo the ravages of winter and prepare your home for spring and summer as well as the colder seasons ahead.

This content has been brought to you by CTS Cement | Rapid Set. Its facts and opinions are those of BobVila.com.

Driveway Do-Over

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Driveway Do-Over

Vehicle traffic isn’t the only strain on your driveway. If you live in a region with cold winters, then ice, snow, and the natural freeze-thaw cycle all conspire to stress concrete driveways. Certainly, the material has a deserved reputation for durability, but it’s not totally invincible. Now that spring is here, inspect the driveway for weathering, flaking, staining, or crazing (networks of shallow, spiderweb-like cracks). Eliminate such surface imperfections and protect the concrete against future damage by using a concrete resurfacer like Rapid Set NewCrete. A high-performance mortar, NewCrete spreads easily over the existing concrete, self-curing to a smooth, like-new finish.

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Next Steps

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Next Steps

Favored for its looks and longevity, brick appeals to homeowners for its broad versatility as well. Indeed, whether it's used for exterior siding or as a component in hardscaping, brick excels in any number of home design roles. Wherever it's employed, though, brick requires care, and never more so than in the case of entryway steps. Here, the wrath of winter and the impact of so many footfalls eventually compromise the mortar that holds each brick in place. For the sake of aesthetics—and much more important, safety—secure the installation with Rapid Set Mortar Mix. The low-shrinkage repair compound sets quickly. In fact, you can walk on the steps in just an hour.

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Walk On

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Walk On

No concrete walkway lasts forever. It’s only a matter of time before hard use and weather exposure combine to cause structural damage that must be addressed—the sooner the better. After all, crumbling, chipping, or deeply cracked concrete only gets worse until, in the end, there's nothing to do but rip it out and start over. Fortunately, repairing serious flaws in concrete can be easier than you may expect, thanks to Rapid Set Cement All. Besides its impressive adhesion properties, the multipurpose product also boasts exceptional strength. In fact, it's three times stronger than the average concrete. It sets faster too, in just 15 minutes, and can stand up to foot traffic after an hour.

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Fixed Foundation

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Fixed Foundation

When was the last time you assessed the condition of your home’s foundation? Veteran homeowners do so at least twice a year, knowing in the near term even small holes and cracks can lead to a slew of problems, including mold and mildew, wood rot, and pest infestations. By the same token, if ignored over the long term, gaps in the foundation can gradually worsen, ultimately giving rise to complex structural issues that are typically quite expensive to resolve. In other words, it pays be proactive. Equip yourself with Rapid Set Mortar Mix, a durable blend of hydraulic cement and quality sand. This workable, fast-setting formulation makes fixing flaws in the foundation simple and quick.

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Facade Facelift

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Facade Facelift

The worst winter weather can wreak havoc on stucco exteriors. If your stucco requires patching, don’t delay! Procrastination invites the intrusion of moisture and the myriad headaches that so often come in its wake. With Rapid Set Stucco Patch, repairing cracks and gouges in stucco is neither labor-intensive nor time-consuming. For one thing, it bonds remarkably well to pre-existing stucco. For another, the mixture makes it easy to match the texture of the patch to the surrounding area. Best of all, you can achieve same-day results, because unlike slower-to-dry products, you can paint on non-shrink, crack-resistant Rapid Set Stucco Patch just two hours after applying it!

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Sure Footing

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Sure Footing

A fence relies on sturdy posts in order to stand upright. If any posts are leaning, then the nearest fence sections are likely to be leaning too, and one day gravity or a gust of wind could bring them all the way down. Now that the severe storms of winter have passed, consider reinforcing posts that are leaning in any direction. Ideal for both construction and repair, Rapid Set Concrete Mix makes this an easy task to cross off your weekend to-do list. Simply widen the posthole with a shovel, then fill in with the high-strength, rapid-setting concrete, being sure to keep the post plumb. Allow 15 minutes for the concrete to set, and you're done.

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Don't Miss!

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If you have the money to hire a handyman for every household woe, go ahead. But if you want to hang on to your cash and exercise some self-sufficiency, check out these clever products that solve a million and one little problems around the house. Go now!