Old patio cracked and sinking, or just bare dirt out back? We dig out, pack the base and pour a slab built to stay put.
Concrete patio construction in Irvine starts with digging out and packing the ground beside your house, and then we set forms and pour and finish a slab built for how you'll use it, whether that's a table and chairs or a shed.
Most patio calls I get start with a slab that's cracked, sinking or pulling away from the house, or with a backyard that never had one. Either way, we break out and haul off anything old, dig down to firm ground, pack it and set forms before any concrete arrives, because the work under the slab is what decides how it holds up.
The price moves with the size, any tear-out, how thick the slab has to be for what you'll put on it, and the finish, from a plain broom finish, the light texture that keeps it from getting slick, to stamped concrete. The schedule depends on the weather for the pour, the curing wait before you use it, and any permit or HOA approval. I'll give you your own figure in a written estimate that shows what's included.
You reach us at (949) 518-3401 or through the form, and we set a time for me to come out. If you're in an HOA, mention it so we can plan for their approval.
I look over the site, take measurements and ask how you'll use the patio. You get a written estimate that shows what's included, so you know what you're paying for before you decide.
If you go ahead, we take care of any permit the job needs and do the prep and the pour with our own crew. Either my foreman or I run the job on site.
Before we leave, we walk the finished work with you and go over how long to keep off it while it cures. Then we clean up so your yard looks the way we found it.
I was taught that the ground under a slab matters more than the finish on top, so that's where we spend our time. We dig out soft dirt instead of raking it level, pack the subgrade, the ground the slab sits on, and set forms that won't shift during the pour. Where the load calls for it, we add rebar or wire mesh, steel that holds the slab together if it cracks.
On hot days we book the pour for the cooler part of the day, because concrete placed in the midday heat can end up with a weak, dusty top. We cut control joints, shallow grooves that give the slab a straight place to crack, and then keep it properly cured, damp and covered so it hardens slowly instead of drying out. If you'd like a matching walk out to the driveway or side gate, our concrete sidewalk building work ties right in.
What a patio job with us covers:
A patio with a few hairline cracks that's still flat and solid can usually be cleaned up and sealed, and I'll tell you so instead of selling you a new one. When the slab has sunk, tilted or broken into pieces that rock underfoot, the trouble is in the ground beneath it, and patching the top won't fix that. In that case we break it out, rebuild the base and pour fresh.
Size is the biggest part, followed by any old concrete we have to break out and haul off and how far the crew has to wheel materials to reach your backyard. A slab built for a shed costs more than one for patio chairs, and a decorative finish costs more than a broom finish. If the budget is tight, I'd trim the finish before the base, because the base is buried on day one and decides how the patio holds up.
I learned this trade under a boss who made me tear out forms and set them again until they were right, and I've run United Irvine Concrete the same careful way since I started it here in Irvine in 2013. If the honest answer to your plan is no, I'd sooner tell you that, sir or ma'am, than give you a hopeful yes.
Our quotes say plainly what you're paying for, and we do exactly what we said we'd do. Our crew works carefully around your house and landscaping and leaves your property as tidy as we found it.
Call with the patio's rough size and anything heavy you plan to set on it, and we can talk through thickness before I come out.
Send the rough size in square feet, any shed or heavy load planned and your HOA status. We reply within one business day to set my visit, and the estimate is free with no obligation.
One Orange County cost guide puts a plain concrete slab or pad at about $7 to $14 per square foot, not counting staining or stamping. Where yours lands depends on size, tear-out and thickness, and rebar or wire mesh adds a little per square foot. I measure in person and give you a written estimate that shows what's included, with satisfaction guaranteed on every job.
The same Orange County guide puts standard home slabs at four to six inches thick, with patios at the thinner end. A slab that will carry a shed or another heavy load needs the thicker end, which is why I ask how you'll use the patio before I write a number down.
You should be able to walk on a new slab within 48 hours, though concrete takes a month to fully cure. To be safe, the guide suggests waiting a week before putting heavier loads on the patio, so hold off on moving the heavy furniture back right away.
Early cracks usually come from the slab drying too fast. Industry guidance says poor curing can leave shrinkage cracks and a flaking surface, and a web of fine surface cracks can show up during finishing when the top dries faster than water rises to it. We cut control joints and keep the slab cured, and it's fair to ask any crew how they finish on hot days, since the guidance calls for finishing without sprinkling water on the surface.
California requires a state-licensed contractor for any job that needs a building permit, uses extra workers, or costs $1,000 or more in labor and materials. The Contractors State License Board issues a concrete contractor license that covers forming, pouring and finishing flat concrete work like a patio. We're licensed and insured, and I'm glad to answer any question about it at the estimate.
The city's own list doesn't settle it, so check before you build, because its list of minor projects that need no permit names fences under 6 feet tall but not concrete patios. Ask Irvine's Building & Safety office about your job, and if it needs a permit, we prepare and file it and keep you posted on where it stands. Where an HOA applies, the city makes the permit holder responsible for getting its approval, so we give you the drawings and details your HOA needs.
We're based in Irvine and build patios in Costa Mesa, Tustin and the other cities below. Choose yours, or call us if your city isn't listed.
