Have a 10 x 20' concrete patio that needs to be replaced

Oh, that is perplexing! Your concrete is cracking and separating for a reason. It could be settling or even a tree root. It really needs replaced after the cause of your current patio breaking up is fixed.

I a few ideas.

The first is to see if you can get the work done on payments by a reputable, licensed, bonded contractor that has references.

The second is to fill cracks with sand and cover with carpet, only not putting it clear to the edge.

The third is to tear out concrete and save up for the patio of your dreams!

Hope that helps!

: )

Use a pressure washer to remove peeling paint, loose material. Purchase a bag cement crack repairer from your local home improvement store follow the directions on how to repair the cracks. Once cured, Prime and paint with product designed for cement. If you paint a design on the cement, you can mask some of the small flaws. Alternatively, you could also put a new layer of cement over the old (still repair the large cracks) using a self levelling cement

I have painted my concrete porch floor to resemble old bricks. A rectangular sponge (several) and craft paint, leftover interior or exterior paint, stain....any paint in brick colors you already have will do. Clean the concrete as well as possible, and allow it to dry, Put several colors of paint onto individual containers. I used paper plates and pie tins because they were large enough to dip the sponge in. Dip sponge into several colors, maybe 2 or 3, but do not saturate it. (Brown, tan and brick red are good colors, also cream, brown and burgundy. ) Then lightly press the sponge onto concrete. Lift up and see....too light? Press harder or dip into paint again. Practice on old cardboard or paper first, it helps! Use any size sponge, and any pattern. Takes patience, but can be done in stages. I rolled on, and even sprayed on, a clear polyurethane protective coat when all paint was dry. That was over a year ago, and my porch floor has held up very well, even in rain and sweltering southern heat, and much walking on. The cracks and bad spots will still be there, tho you can patch some before painting if desired. Good luck in whatever you do!

rather than ripping up entire patio we chipped off the top layer and did a uniform bluestone overlay...

First, fill in all cracks and smooth out as much as possible. Put on some gloves and use a wet sponge over the top of the concrete to smooth out the roughness. Use a floor sander to sand off the old paint...you can either rent one or use a hand sander and take your time. Most hand sanders have wire brush attachments.

If it is under cover, you can purchase a large indoor/outdoor rug for under $200. I just bought an 8'2"x11' for $181 at Wayfair...included shipping. Or you can buy a smaller one and paint around the edges of a colorful rug.

My deck was stained with years of leaves making a mess. We tried to clean it and it did not work so I bought a rug. It has all the colors in it that I pained the used furniture I purchased. The chair pillows were on sale at WalMart.

After you power wash it, paint a rug on it, Pinterest has some great ideas for patio painting; as well as Hometalk.

There are some really great ideas that other diyer's have already given. If it were me, I would sand as much of the paint off as possible. Renting a commercial sander of course. Then clean out the cracks as much as possible, then fill with a crack filler that allows for expansion. Let the cracks work for you, using a stain especially made for concrete, paint a random "flagstone" pattern on it. Make sure to seal it with the appropriate cement sealer. It'll take some practice, but I've seen others use this technique and with amazing results. Just a thought, good luck to you.

you don't say if this is freestanding or butted up against the house. If the cement is cracking and heaving it was probably not installed properly in the first place and your ground freezing and thawing could be causing the problem. other than ripping it out and replacing it you do have several options. You could frame it out with timber and fill it in with more cement. This would be a bandaid and prolly end up with more issues down the road because your not fixing the problem. You could build a wood deck over top of it. Or simply frame it out with timber and fill it in with a few inches of sand and river rock or patio pavers for a different kind of patio. A timber frame would also allow you to build a cover for it or tarp it over in the winter. If you fill it with stone you may even be able to build an inexpensive fire pit. You have a 10x20 canvas to play with.