Frequently Asked Questions

For a driveway, patio, walkway or slab, a residential concrete contractor handles the whole job: tear-out, base, forms, reinforcement, pour, finish and curing. A general contractor usually makes sense only when concrete is one part of a bigger build, like an addition. We do residential flatwork across Grand Junction and the Grand Valley.

HomeGuide's national cost guides list standard-to-basic concrete driveways at $6 to $15 a square foot, plain patios at $4 to $12 and stamped patios at $9 to $30, and new sidewalks at $7 to $17. What you actually pay depends on tear-out, base work, access, thickness and finish, which is why our price comes after a site visit and in writing.

Usually water and soil. The Colorado Geological Survey lists Grand Junction among towns on Mancos or Lewis shale, which has swelling potential, and uneven wetting from sprinklers or downspouts makes soil move under one part of a slab. Winter freeze-thaw and fresh concrete drying too fast in summer heat add to it. A compacted base, good drainage, control joints and proper curing reduce cracking.

The City of Grand Junction requires a right-of-way permit for any work in the public right-of-way, including driveway changes, sidewalks, and curb and gutter, handled through its Engineering Division. Work entirely on your property may have other rules depending on whether you are in the city or unincorporated Mesa County. We check before we schedule.

Spring and fall are easiest. Grand Junction's average last freeze is around April 25 and its first freeze around October 11, and summer brings many days over 90 degrees. We pour all season, using morning pours and damp curing in summer, and blankets or a heated mix if a fall job runs into cold nights.

A few hairline cracks, a chipped edge or one dropped panel are usually repair jobs: seal it, patch it or lift it. HomeGuide's leveling guide draws the line at cracks wider than a quarter inch, heavy spalling or surface damage, and concrete that is badly deteriorated; past that point, replacement is the better buy. We will tell you where your driveway falls.

Walking on it is usually fine in a day or two, and a car can go on after about seven days. Hold off longer with pickups pulling trailers or with an RV, since concrete is still gaining strength for roughly four weeks. Your pour date and the weather decide the exact days, and we write them down for you.

For standard to basic finishes, HomeGuide's national figures run $6 to $15 a square foot. Its size table puts a 400-square-foot two-car drive at about $2,400 to $6,000, and taking out an old driveway adds roughly $2 to $6 a square foot. Base work, thickness and access move the number, so ours comes after a site visit.

HomeGuide's guide calls for at least 4 inches under ordinary cars, 5 to 6 inches for RVs and heavy traffic, and edges of 6 to 8 inches. Plenty of valley driveways carry a camper or trailer, so we often thicken the side where it is parked.

If the job touches the apron, curb cut or city sidewalk, the City of Grand Junction requires a right-of-way permit through its Engineering Division. For work fully on your lot, rules depend on whether you are in the city or unincorporated Mesa County. We check before we schedule.

In most cases. We saw a clean edge along the existing slab, build up the base beside it, drill in dowels and pour the addition. Fresh concrete looks lighter than old concrete for a while, so expect a visible line between the two at first.

HomeGuide's comparison table gives concrete driveways 30 to 40 years. Reaching that depends on a firm base, keeping water from getting under the slab, and resealing on schedule.

HomeGuide's national ranges run $4 to $12 per square foot for a plain patio and $9 to $30 for stamped. A 16 by 16 foot plain patio comes to about $1,000 to $3,100. Backyard access, tear-out and the finish you choose make the biggest difference.

Concrete stays cooler than most dark pavers or asphalt, and lighter integral colors stay cooler than dark ones. A broom or exposed aggregate finish also helps bare feet. Shade from a pergola or sail does the most.

Yes, if the pad is built for it. HomeGuide notes hot tubs call for 6 inches of concrete with added reinforcement, rather than a standard 4-inch patio. We build that section thicker and wait for full cure before the tub is filled.

A compacted base, slope away from the house, control joints at the right spacing, proper curing, and keeping sprinkler water off the edges. No slab is crack-free, but joints make cracks form in straight, planned lines.

Most of the time. Dowels drilled into the old slab tie the new section to it so they move together. Plan on the new concrete looking a shade lighter than the old for a while.

HomeGuide's national ranges are $9 to $30 per square foot for a stamped patio, $8 to $26 for a stamped driveway and $10 to $21 for a stamped walkway. Pattern detail, number of colors and borders move the price within those ranges.

It can be smoother than broom finish, especially when sealed. We use textured patterns for walks and pool areas and can add an anti-slip grit to the sealer.

Some fading of the sealer and surface color happens under strong UV. Integral color mixed through the concrete fades far less than surface-only color, and resealing every two to three years restores the depth.

Like any slab, it can. We cut control joints along pattern lines where they blend in, and a good base and drainage keep movement down.

Not with a full-depth stamp. A thin stamped overlay is possible on a sound slab, but if the old concrete is cracked or sunken, replacement is the better choice.

HomeGuide's national figures are $7 to $17 a square foot for new sidewalk, which works out to $28 to $68 per linear foot at 4 feet wide. Tearing out an old walk and pouring new runs roughly $10 to $25 or more a square foot.

Yes, within city limits. Grand Junction's permits page requires a right-of-way permit, handled by the Engineering Division, for sidewalk work in the public right-of-way. We will tell you if your job needs one and what the application involves.

If the panel is still in one piece, often yes. HomeGuide lists mudjacking at $4 to $9 a square foot and foam lifting at $8 to $25. Panels that are broken, heavily cracked or flaking are better torn out and repoured.

Three to four feet is typical for a front walk. At four feet, two people can walk side by side, and a stroller or wheelbarrow fits easily.

Roots that can safely be cut are trimmed, and extra base goes under the new walk. Taking out big roots can hurt or kill a mature tree, so near large trees we may suggest moving the walk or a different kind of fix.

Four inches is typical for sheds and light garage use. Heavier loads like RVs, trailers and shop equipment need 5 to 6 inches or more with rebar, and structures may need thickened edges or footings per their plans.

HomeGuide's national range is $6 to $8 per square foot for a 4-inch slab and $8 to $10 for 6 inches. A shed slab of 100 to 400 square feet runs about $600 to $4,800, and a two-car garage floor about $2,400 to $6,900.

It depends on the structure, its size and whether you are in the City of Grand Junction or unincorporated Mesa County. We check with the right office before we schedule.

For garage, shop and other interior floors where moisture coming up through the slab matters, yes. Outdoor pads usually do not need one.

Wait about a month for the concrete to reach full design strength before parking heavy RVs or trailers on it.

Small cracks can be sealed and a sound slab can be resurfaced. HomeGuide recommends replacement when cracks are wider than a quarter inch, with significant spalling, or when the concrete is badly deteriorated.

Both lift a sunken slab by pumping material underneath. Mudjacking uses a cement-based slurry and costs about $4 to $9 per square foot; foam leveling uses expanding polyurethane at about $8 to $25, according to HomeGuide. Foam is lighter and often lasts longer.

Usually because water keeps reaching the soil under it from sprinklers, downspouts or a leak. Leveling without fixing the water source often leads to resettling, so we look at drainage on every repair.

For a slab that is sound underneath but worn or flaking on top, it usually is. HomeGuide lists resurfacing at $3 to $7 a square foot. Wide or active cracks will telegraph through a new surface, though, and then replacement is the better value.

Fall is ideal, before the first freeze around mid-October, so water cannot get in and freeze over the winter.