Concrete patio construction in Redwood City CA - a slab that stays level
Old patio cracked, sunken or holding water? We clear the ground, pack the base and pour a level slab that drains away from your house.
- Licensed and fully insured.
- Free quotes on site.
- Replies within 1 business day.
What goes into building a concrete patio in Redwood City?
Concrete patio construction in Redwood City means digging out the yard, packing a firm gravel base and pouring a flat slab you can put a table, a grill or an outdoor kitchen on.
Maybe it's bare dirt off the back door, or an old slab that's cracked and tipped toward the house. Either way, the price mostly comes down to the size, whether there's an old patio to break out, how much digging and base the ground needs, whether it needs steel, and the finish you pick. The schedule turns on the weather, how easy it is to get concrete into your backyard and what we find once the ground is open. I write all of that into your estimate, so you see your own number before anything gets dug.
How do you know your patio needs to be replaced?
Cracks that keep growing
A hairline crack is just concrete being concrete. When cracks widen or one side sits higher than the other, the ground under the slab is usually moving, and every rainy season of water getting in makes the break wider and the fix bigger.
Water pooling by the house
If puddles sit against the wall after rain, the slab is usually flat or falling toward the house instead of away from it. Leave it and the water keeps soaking in next to your foundation every time it rains.
A sunken or tipped slab
A patio that has dropped or tilted usually sat on dirt that was never packed, or on roots that rotted away. Past a certain point it's a trip hazard you can't patch, and the whole slab has to come out.
How we build a concrete patio
First I check where water runs off your yard, because a patio has to shed water away from the house, not toward it. Then we dig out deep enough for the gravel base and the slab, pull out roots and soft topsoil, and compact the gravel before the concrete truck shows up, since a patio lives or dies on what's under it. If you're planning an outdoor kitchen or heavy furniture, tell me at the estimate so we can put steel in for it. We pour early in the day so midday heat doesn't dry the top too fast and leave it dusty, then give it a broom finish, a light dragged texture so wet feet and chair legs don't slide, and cut control joints, shallow grooves that tell the slab where to crack. Concrete is going to crack somewhere. The joints just pick the spot. If the budget gets tight, I'd rather trim the finish than the base, because nobody sees the base on day one and everybody sees it a few years later.
If you want the patio to look like stone or brick, stamped concrete goes on in the same pour, over the same packed base. Most patios also need a way to get to them, so we often pour a concrete sidewalk from the driveway or side gate while the crew and the forms are already there.
Plain broom-finished slab
This suits most backyards and most budgets, because the money goes into the base and a surface with good grip instead of into looks. You can dress it up later with furniture and planters.
Slab with rebar for heavy loads
Rebar is steel bar laid through the slab so it holds together if it cracks. It suits patios that will carry an outdoor kitchen, a built-in grill or heavy furniture.
Get an on-site estimate for your new patio
Send the form and I'll get back to you within one business day to set a time. I come out, measure and look the yard over myself, and the estimate is free with no obligation.
(650) 587-4028- Based in
- Redwood City, CA 94063
- Hours
- Mon–Fri: 7 AM–11 PM, Sat–Sun: 6 AM–10 PM
What happens after you call about a patio?
Here's how it goes from your first call to the day you set a chair on the finished slab.
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Call or send the form
You hear back from me, not a call center. We set a time for me to come see the yard.
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I look the yard over
I walk where the patio is going, check where water runs and ask a lot of questions about how you'll use it. Your written estimate spells out the dig, the base, any steel and the finish, so you can see where the money goes.
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Our crew builds, we walk it
Our own crew does the dig, the base and the pour, and I check the work as it goes, including the base before concrete covers it. When it's done, we walk the finished patio with you.
Why Redwood City homeowners call Elite Redwood City Concrete for patios
I'd rather tell you what your patio actually needs than sell you extras. Get in touch and I'll come take a look.
I come out to look myself
I look at every job in person, and our own crew does the work. The person who priced your base is the same one checking it before the pour.
Running pours long before 2013
I ran crews and pours for another contractor for years, then started this business in 2013, and we've been at it 13 years. I still care most about the parts you won't see once it's poured, the base, the drain and the steel.
Licensed and insured, crew included
We're licensed and fully insured. California makes concrete contractors carry workers' comp even with no employees, which most trades don't have to do, so ask any bidder for proof.
Patio permits and backyard work in Redwood City
Whether your patio needs a permit depends on the job, and I'll tell you at the estimate. If it does, we handle the paperwork and inspections with the city or the county. It matters for who you hire, too. California's small-job exemption, now $1,000, lets someone work without a contractor's license only when the job needs no permit and they employ no one, so a cheap bid from someone unlicensed gets risky fast once a permit or a helper is involved.
Around here we see a lot of older backyards with big trees, patios poured flat or tipped toward the house, and side yards too tight for a concrete truck. We sort out the drainage and how the concrete gets to the back before pour day, and we run into the same yards on jobs in San Carlos and Menlo Park.
Questions about concrete patios in Redwood City
How much does a concrete patio cost in Redwood City?
One cost guide puts a concrete patio in the San Francisco area at about $7 to $14 per square foot, materials and labor included. That's the area's going rate, not our price. Where yours lands depends on the size, tear-out, base work, steel and finish covered above, and your estimate gives you your own number.
Does my concrete patio need rebar?
Not always, but one cost guide recommends it, especially if heavy furniture or an outdoor kitchen is going on the patio. Settle how you'll use the patio before you get quotes, since heavier plans point toward steel, and tell me at the estimate.
What causes a concrete patio to crack or sink?
Usually it's the base. Gravel that isn't compacted keeps settling under the slab's weight, and that settling shows up as cracks, sinking and an uneven surface. Roots, grass and topsoil left under the slab do the same, because they squash down unevenly, which is why ours come out first.
What license should a concrete patio contractor have in California?
Look for the C-8 Concrete license, which covers forming, pouring, placing and finishing flatwork like patios, walks and driveways, as the state licensing board describes it. The board also suggests asking the contractor to show you their pocket license before you hire.
Is a patio job a home improvement contract in California?
Yes. California contractor law counts building or replacing a patio as home improvement, and those contracts carry special legal requirements. The state wrote those rules to head off as many problems as possible, so read your patio contract with them in mind before you sign.
How do I compare concrete patio quotes in Redwood City?
Ask each contractor how they'll compact the base, because that's the step that protects the patio and the easiest one to skimp on. Then ask where the control joints will go, since the concrete code requires joints in slabs poured on the ground.
Related concrete work for your patio
If a gray slab feels too bare for your yard, stamped concrete gives the patio a stone, brick or tile look while keeping one solid poured slab underneath.
A patio is only as useful as the way you reach it, so a poured walk from the driveway or side gate keeps feet off the wet lawn.
Cities where we build concrete patios
Elite Redwood City Concrete is based in Redwood City, California, and works up and down the Peninsula and into the South Bay. The 12 cities below each have their own page, from San Mateo to Mountain View, but they aren't the only places we go.
Get your patio estimate on the calendar
Have the rough size in square feet, what you plan to put on it and a few photos of the yard handy when you call (650) 587-4028 or send the form, and the first conversation goes quicker.
Redwood City, CA