Stamped concrete services in Saratoga CA - color that's planned before the pour

Most people who call us about stamped concrete have a plain patio that's cracked or sinking, or a yard plan that needs something nicer than a broom finish, the light swept texture regular concrete gets for grip. The price moves with the size of the area, how much old concrete we break out, how much base work the ground needs, the pattern and how many colors you want, and the schedule turns on the weather, whether the city needs a permit for your spot and the cure time before we can seal. When I come out for the estimate, I write all of that down, and I'll explain any line on it as many times as you want.

We start under the surface, because that's where stamped concrete holds up or doesn't. Our crew digs out and packs the subgrade, the ground the slab rests on, instead of just raking it level, and we check where water runs so the finished slab sheds it away from your house. We set the forms, add rebar, steel bars that help hold the slab together, where the job calls for it, and we pour early in the day so midday heat doesn't leave a weak, dusty top. Your quote spells out whether the color goes in mixed through the concrete or added at the surface, and which sealer we'll use, so nothing about the look is a guess. We press the pattern while the concrete can still take it, cut control joints, shallow grooves that give the slab a planned place to crack, and then let it cure a good while before sealing, because sealing too soon can spoil the look. If the budget gets tight, I'll suggest a simpler pattern or one color before I'll cut corners on the base, since you can live with a plainer finish but a rushed base shows up later as settling.

Stamped work usually sits next to other concrete. A stamped patio often needs a path to reach it, so we can pour a new concrete sidewalk that matches or sets it off, and if a stamped driveway runs up to your garage, it's a good time to look at garage floor concrete too.

In Saratoga, where the concrete sits on your lot decides which city office gets a say. Any new, widened, repaired or replaced driveway needs an encroachment permit from Saratoga Public Works, and other concrete within 15 feet of the street edge may or may not need one, so the city asks you to check with Public Works before work starts. Paving within five feet of a protected tree's dripline, the line under the outer edge of its branches, needs a tree encroachment permit from the City Arborist, and if you're adding a driveway the city asks you to contact the Planning Division about a planning permit. The city also limits how much of your front yard and your whole lot can be paved, whether or not a permit applies, and the city's planning questions page is where to find out the amounts. We check early what the city wants for your job, and when a permit applies, we handle the contractor's side and help you with the parts that fall to you.

A lot of the stamped jobs we see around here are patios on sloped or tree-shaded back yards and long driveways out to the street, so we plan the drainage and the tree spacing before we talk patterns. We're based in Saratoga, and we do the same work in Los Gatos, Cupertino and the other cities around it.