Concrete contractor in Lafayette, LA - slabs that start with the ground underneath
B&R Lafayette Concrete Construction is a concrete contractor based in Lafayette, LA. We build driveways, patios, steps, sidewalks and slabs for homes here, and lots and walks for small businesses, starting with the ground underneath.
Lafayette as we see it from the driveway
I learned this trade on a Lafayette crew, setting forms and doing grade work long before I finished a slab, and I started this business here in 2023. The city has a little of everything for concrete work. There are older neighborhoods near downtown where driveways and walks have been patched for decades, ranch houses on wide lots, and newer subdivisions where the first patio was often poured in a hurry. Small business owners call us too, for walks and lots in front of shops and offices on the busier roads.
Most yards here are flat, so water doesn't have an obvious place to go, and the slab has to give it one by the way we grade it. We work the same way in Broussard and the other cities around Lafayette, but here the job very often starts with digging out what the last crew left under the old concrete.
Services in Lafayette, LA
Concrete driveway building
Many older driveways here sank because the base was only raked flat. For concrete driveway building, we dig out soft dirt and pack the base.
Concrete patio construction
Flat backyards here can send water back toward the house. We pour patios that fall away from your walls, with joints cut where cracks should go.
Concrete steps construction
Front steps on older houses often pull away from the porch as the ground settles. We rebuild them on packed ground, tied to the porch slab.
Concrete sidewalk building
Tree roots and settled ground leave trip edges in walks across older neighborhoods. We break out the bad sections and pour new ones level with the rest.
Garage floor concrete
Older garage floors here often crack and hold water in low spots. We pour new floors that drain toward the door, on a packed base.
Concrete parking lot building
Small business lots in Lafayette take delivery trucks every day. We pour them thick enough for that load, with steel inside and a plan for runoff.
What a Lafayette job involves before we pour
Permits for a house in the city of Lafayette, and for almost any structure that goes with one, are handled by Lafayette Consolidated Government's Permitting Division. Its guidance doesn't spell out where a driveway or patio falls, so we confirm what your address needs before anything is scheduled, and when a permit is needed we take care of the application, which is usually what sets the start date. If you'd like to check on any contractor, the Louisiana State Licensing Board for Contractors is the place to do it, because the city doesn't issue business licenses and asks businesses for a certificate of occupancy instead.
What moves the price here is mostly what you won't see later: how much soft dirt has to come out before we pack the base, whether an old slab has to be broken out and hauled off, the size and thickness of the new one, the finish, and how close the truck can get. The schedule turns on the permit and the weather, because we'd rather wait a day than pour into rain or onto soaked ground. We bring the same habits to jobs in Scott and Carencro, and your written estimate lists each of these items so you can see what you're paying for.
What Lafayette ground and older slabs do to concrete
The calls we get most here start with pooling water. On a flat lot, a driveway or patio that tips even slightly toward the house sends water against your walls or into the garage every time it rains hard, and that water works its way under the slab too. Before we set a single form, I walk the lot and look at where the water runs now, and we grade the new slab so it falls away from the house and toward a place the water can actually leave.
Sinking is the other common one, and it nearly always traces back to the subgrade, the dirt the slab sits on, being raked level instead of dug out and packed. We take out the soft material, pack the base in layers, and add rebar, the steel bars that hold the slab together if it does crack, where the load calls for it.
Get a written concrete estimate for your Lafayette property
We reply to every call and message within one business day to set a time for me to come out to your Lafayette property. The estimate is free, done on site and comes with no obligation, and you'll have it in writing with what's included and what isn't.
How a concrete job runs when you call us in Lafayette
Call or send the form
Call (337) 216-1997 or use the form, and we'll set a time for me to come out. It helps to tell us roughly what you'd like built and what's there now.
Walk the spot with me
I look at the ground, ask how you'll use the slab and check where water goes on your lot. If we're replacing a driveway, please move the cars off it before I arrive so I can see the whole thing.
Review your written estimate
You get a written estimate that lists what's included and what isn't, so the base work and the joints are spelled out along with the finish. Take whatever time you need with it.
Clear the permit before scheduling
We check with the permit office for your address before anything goes on the calendar. If a permit is needed, we handle the application and keep you informed, and we schedule the work once it's cleared.
Pour, check and let it cure
Our crew lead runs the work days with our finishers, from digging out and packing the base to the pour and the broom finish, a light texture that keeps feet and tires from slipping. I come by to check the work and answer your questions, and we tell you when the slab is ready to walk on and when it's ready for your car.
Questions Lafayette homeowners ask about concrete
Do I need a permit to pour a slab for a shed in Lafayette, LA?
The city's building code guidance names sheds and carports among the structures that need a permit, and the exemption it lists covers only a small detached shed sitting on piers or skids. A shed set on a poured slab doesn't fit that exemption as written, so we check with the permit office for your address and file the application if one is needed.
When does Louisiana require a licensed contractor for work on my house?
State law counts improvements or repairs to an existing home as contractor work once the project is worth $7,500 or more. The same law keeps a home improvement contractor off structural work such as footings, foundations and floor slabs, so for a slab under a room or an addition, ask what kind of license the contractor holds. We're fully licensed and insured, and I'm glad to answer that question on site.
How much does a new concrete driveway cost in Lafayette, LA?
A driveway here is priced on its size and thickness, the base work your ground needs, any old concrete we have to tear out and the finish you choose, so I give you a written figure after I've seen the spot. If the budget is tight, I'd keep a plain broom finish before I'd cut back on the base, because you can dress up a surface later, but you can't fix what's under it without tearing the slab out.
Will my new concrete driveway crack like the old one?
Concrete can still crack, but a packed base and control joints, the grooves we cut so the slab cracks along a straight line we chose, keep it to places you won't mind. Old slabs usually crack at random because the joints were cut late or skipped. On hot days we also pour early, because a slab whose top dries too fast in the midday heat can turn weak and dusty.
How long before I can drive on a new concrete driveway?
You can walk on a new driveway well before you can park on it, because concrete keeps gaining strength for days after the pour, and that waiting time is what we call curing. We'll tell you the day it's ready for foot traffic and the day it's ready for your car, and cool or wet weather at the pour can push both back a little.
Where can I find sandbag sites in Lafayette before a storm?
The city lists sandbag sites across Lafayette Parish on its homepage, and every site is self-bagging, so bring your own shovel and some help. The same page points to the LUS Hurricane Handbook for safety tips, evacuation routes and emergency contacts. For the longer run, a slab that falls away from the house helps move storm water off your walls, and I'm happy to look at that when I come out.
Call us about your Lafayette concrete job
Call (337) 216-1997 or send the form before you settle on a size or a finish, because what I find in your ground and the way water moves on your lot can change both, and thank you for considering us.