Concrete patio construction in Lafayette, LA - a patio that drains away from your house
Mud by the back door or an old slab holding water? We pour a patio that sheds rain away from your house.
What goes into building a concrete patio in Lafayette?
Concrete patio construction in Lafayette, LA means building a slab next to your house that gives you a hard outdoor surface water can't soak into, so you have a solid place for chairs, a table or a grill that drains cleanly after a storm.
Most patio calls start with bare ground that turns to mud by the back door, or an old slab that has cracked, sunk or started holding water against the house. The price mostly follows the patio's size, the finish you choose and how easy the spot is to reach, while the schedule turns on the weather and on whether your address needs a permit. After I've seen your yard, you get a written estimate with your own figure and exactly what it covers.
What happens after you call us about a patio
Call or send the form
When you call (337) 216-1997 or send the form, we set a time for me to come out and see the spot. I'll ask how you plan to use the patio and look at where water runs off your roof and yard now.
Get a written estimate
You get a written estimate that lists what's included and what isn't, so you know what you're paying for before you decide. We also check with the permit office for your address before anything goes on the calendar.
Our crew builds the patio
On the work days our crew lead runs the job with our finishers, and I come by to check the forms, the slope and the finish and to answer your questions. If the weather is wrong for a pour, we'd rather move the day than rush the concrete.
Let it cure, then use it
Curing is the wait while the concrete hardens and gains strength, so we'll tell you when it's ready for foot traffic and when it can take furniture or a grill. Your satisfaction, guaranteed.
How we build a concrete patio, and the work around it
Before anything is poured, I talk through finishes with you, including which ones are easier to patch later on, because a patio picks up the odd chip or stain over the years. Then we set the forms with a gentle fall so rain runs off away from your house, since a slab that tips toward the foundation sends water right where you don't want it. When the concrete arrives, our finishers place it, pack it down and finish the surface before it sets, and we cut control joints, shallow grooves that give the slab a planned place to crack as it shrinks instead of a random one.
A patio often ties into other work around the house. If you'd like more than a plain surface, our stamped concrete services press a pattern into the concrete while it's still soft, and if the patio needs a path to the driveway or a side gate, we can build it with concrete sidewalk building as part of the same project.
Request a written estimate for your new patio
We reply within one business day to set a time for me to come out, and the on-site estimate is free with no obligation. After that visit you get the written estimate, and nothing is scheduled until you say so.
Concrete patio questions from Lafayette homeowners
How much does a concrete patio cost in Lafayette, LA?
The cost of a concrete patio in Lafayette comes mostly from its size and the finish you pick, and a plain broom finish usually costs less than a stamped or decorative one. Tearing out an old slab, a backyard the concrete truck can't reach, or steps and a walk tied into the patio all add to it. Our written estimate lists each of those, so you can see where the money goes.
Will water pool on my new concrete patio after it rains?
A few shallow puddles after a hard rain, often called birdbaths, are expected even on a well-built patio, but the slab as a whole should carry water off. Building guidance says a patio within 10 feet of the house should slope down and away from the foundation, so ask any crew how your slab will fall. Drainage matters here because one soil data site rates 11% of Lafayette Parish soil as highly expansive, the kind of clay that swells when wet and shrinks as it dries, with the trouble mostly on lots with poor drainage, cut-and-fill grading or old plumbing leaks. That's a parish-wide estimate, so I look at your own lot's conditions at the visit.
What is the best finish for a concrete patio if I want easy repairs later?
A broom finish is usually the easier one to repair, since one patio design site says it can be patched with a skim coat that blends in reasonably well. A broom finish is the light texture dragged across the wet surface for grip. Exposed aggregate, the look with small stones showing at the top, is nearly impossible to patch to match because the stone pattern is random.
How do I keep a new concrete patio from cracking?
No one can promise a patio won't crack, but you can lower the odds and decide where the cracks go, which is the job of the control joints we cut. In hot weather fresh concrete sets faster, which makes it harder to finish and raises the chance of cracking, so for a summer pour ask your crew how it plans for that, and we schedule our pours around the heat of the day. Synthetic fibers in the mix can help with shrinkage cracks while the concrete is fresh and in the first few hours of curing, but once it hardens, most fibers at the usual amounts won't hold back cracking.
Who is allowed to build a concrete patio in Louisiana?
Under the state contractor licensing board's rules, a home improvement job worth more than $7,500 and up to $50,000 has to be bid or built by a home improvement registrant or a licensed contractor. A job of $50,000 or more, or one with any structural work, has to be bid and built by a licensed Residential Building Contractor. We're fully licensed and insured.
Do I need a permit to build a concrete patio in Lafayette, LA?
The city's permit list doesn't settle it for a patio, so we check with the permit office for your address before any work is scheduled. The city requires a permit before most construction starts and for almost any home structure, and its list names carports and sheds but not patios. You can read the city's building permits page yourself, and when a permit is needed we take care of the application and keep you informed.
Other work that often goes with a patio
Stamped concrete services
If you want the patio to look like stone, brick or slate, a stamped surface presses a pattern and color into the concrete while it's still workable.
Concrete sidewalk building
A walk from the driveway or side gate to the new patio keeps shoes out of the mud and gives guests a clear, solid path around the house.
Get your patio planned before the pour
We take calls seven days a week, so call (337) 216-1997 or use the form and send a photo of where rain runs in your yard now, which helps me plan the slope before I arrive.