Concrete contractor in Cupertino, CA - level slabs on a packed base
Hallmark Menlo Park Concrete is a concrete contractor based in Menlo Park. We pour driveways, patios, walkways, steps, retaining walls and foundations for homes in Cupertino, and we start every job with the ground under it.
How a Cupertino concrete job gets started
We come down to Cupertino from Menlo Park to pour driveways, patios, walkways, steps and foundations. On a job here, the first thing I sort out isn't the concrete. It's the paperwork, because the City of Cupertino issues its own permits for construction and remodeling at homes.
So a Cupertino job usually runs in the same order. I look at the site and write the estimate, we find out what the city asks for at your address, any permit goes in, and only then do we set a date to dig out and build the forms. When a permit was needed, the city's final inspection closes the job out.
What we check on the ground first
Before I price a slab, I look at what it will sit on and where the water goes. Where an old driveway has sunk or cracked, the subgrade, the packed soil and gravel under the concrete, usually wasn't dug out and compacted. Where water pools by the garage, the old slab often falls toward the house. Those two things decide how long new concrete lasts.
- Soft base. If the base was only raked level instead of dug out and packed, the slab settles with the dirt under it and cracks where it sags.
- Water toward the house. When a slab tips toward the foundation, rain runs to the wall instead of away from it, so we set the forms to pitch it the other way.
- Cracks nobody planned. Concrete shrinks as it dries, and if control joints, the shallow grooves that tell it where to crack, are cut late or skipped, it cracks wherever it likes.
The concrete work we do for Cupertino homes
Most flatwork jobs, which covers driveways, patios, walkways and garage floors, start because the old slab has sunk, cracked or started pooling water. When the budget is tight, the base is the first thing people want to trim, because nobody sees it after day one. I'd trim the finish before the base, since a plain broom finish, the light texture that keeps it from getting slick, on a well-packed base will outlast a fancy surface on loose dirt.
Steps, retaining walls and footings are a different kind of job, since they carry weight or hold back soil, and rebar, the steel set inside the concrete, does a lot of that work. Where front steps have pulled away from the house or a wall has started to lean, we look at what's underneath before quoting new concrete steps or a rebuild.
Getting us out to Cupertino
We're based in Menlo Park and cover Cupertino the same way we cover Atherton and Sunnyvale. Call or use the form, and I'll come out to look and write the estimate myself. Price turns on size, how much old concrete comes out, the base and the finish, and the schedule on any permit and how long the slab must sit.
Tell us about your slab
Tell us what you want poured or replaced and roughly how big it is. We reply within one business day, and I come out to look and write the estimate.
(650) 582-0556- Free estimate at your property
- No obligation to book
- Base and drainage looked at
Common questions about concrete in Cupertino
Do I need a permit for a concrete driveway or patio in Cupertino?
You need one unless the job is on the city's exempt list, because Cupertino's Building Division requires a permit for any construction or alteration outside it. If work is found under way without one, it stops until a permit is issued and the fees double. We check before setting a date and handle the paperwork or help you with it.
What licenses does a concrete contractor need to work in Cupertino?
Two, a California contractor's license and a Cupertino business license. The state licensing board requires the first when a project needs a building permit, uses any additional workers or runs $1,000 or more in labor and materials, and the city won't schedule a final inspection until the contractor and every subcontractor hold the second. We're licensed and fully insured.
How long does permit plan review take in Cupertino?
The city reports the first plan review averaging 20 to 30 business days, with each review after that averaging 10 to 20. Small projects can go to a counter plan review, where a permit can be issued the same day if the plans are complete. Since that wait comes before any digging, I set the pour date around it.
How long will I be without my driveway after new concrete is poured?
You can walk on new concrete well before you can drive on it, and I give you both dates for your slab at the pour. The wait is curing, the time concrete keeps hardening after it's placed, and cars on it too soon can crack an edge or mark the surface.
Will my new concrete driveway crack like the old one did?
Some fine cracking is normal in any slab, and I'd rather tell you that now. What we can control is where and how much, with a dug-out and packed base so it doesn't settle, joints cut on time so cracks follow the grooves, and pours kept out of midday heat, which can leave a weak, dusty top.