Concrete Patio Installation in Cedar Rapids, IA

When it's time to stop patching

Hairline cracks in an old slab are mostly cosmetic, and plenty of patios live with them for years. We start talking replacement when the cracks run all the way through, when a section has dropped and holds water, when the surface has gone rough and flaky underfoot, or when the slab has tilted and sheds water toward the house instead of away from it. Weeds pushing up through the seams and a patio that has turned into loose pieces point the same way.

Patching a slab that has already moved rarely holds. Cedar Rapids freeze/thaw cycling keeps working on whatever is shifting, so a patch over a dropped section tends to crack again.

If the yard is gravel, bare dirt, or a run of pavers that never sat right, there's nothing to save and we start fresh. If part of an existing slab is sound and the rest has failed, we'll tell you which is which.

How we pour and finish it

Once the concrete is placed, we strike it off with a straight 2×4 screed board to bring the surface level, then work it with a float. We cut control joints at planned locations so that any cracking happens along those lines instead of wandering across the middle of the slab.

We broom the surface once the concrete is firm enough to hold the texture. That gives you a finish with grip when it's wet.

Curing is the step people skip. We keep the concrete damp or cover it with plastic sheeting during initial curing, following the concrete manufacturer's instructions. Keep chairs, grills and foot traffic off the slab until that curing period is over.

What a patio costs

A basic 20×20-foot plain concrete patio typically runs $1,600 to $4,800. On a phone call we can talk through where your patio is likely to land in that range. Once we've walked the yard and seen the job, we put the firm number in writing.