Concrete driveway building in San Carlos CA - a slab built for what you park
Cracked, sinking or pooling driveway? We build a new concrete slab sized to your vehicles and pitched so water runs away from the house.
What does it take to build a new concrete driveway?
Concrete driveway building in San Carlos means we form, pour and finish a new flat slab from the street to your garage, with its thickness and steel matched to the vehicles you park so it holds up under their weight. Most of the waiting comes after the pour, while the concrete hardens enough to drive on.
Most people who call us about a driveway have an old one that's cracked, sunk or holding water, and some want a matching slab out back through concrete patio construction while we're there. The price mostly turns on the size, how thick the slab has to be for what you park, whether an old driveway has to be broken out and hauled away, and the finish you pick. The schedule turns on the weather, getting the old slab out and the wait before you can drive on it, and the written estimate I send after the visit spells out the work for your driveway.
How do you know your driveway needs replacing?
Most calls start with something you notice on the walk to the car. These are the signs we see most on driveways around San Carlos, and what each one usually points to.
Cracks that keep widening or run across the whole slab usually mean it's moving, not just shrinking.
One section sitting lower than the next usually means it has settled, and the lip catches feet.
Puddles that sit after rain, or water running toward your garage, usually mean the slab is pitched wrong.
A dusty, flaking surface that chips under your shoes often comes from how the top was poured and finished.
A slab lifted along one edge near a tree usually means roots have pushed up underneath it.
Edges crumbling where tires roll off the slab usually mean it was too thin there to carry the load.
If water is heading toward your house or a raised edge is catching feet, call us at (650) 866-1977 instead of waiting for it to get worse.
How does a new driveway job run in San Carlos?
Here's how a driveway job goes with us, from the first call to the last look. I usually handle the visit and the final walk-through myself, and our crew does the work in between.
Call or send the form
Call (650) 866-1977 or send the form, and we'll get back to you to set a time for the visit.
I measure and look it over
I come out to measure, see where the water runs and ask what you park and how often, since a work truck or an RV changes how we build the slab. You get a written estimate with the work spelled out, so you can see what you're paying for before you decide.
We schedule, form and pour
When you're ready, we schedule the work, and our crew sets the forms, pours and finishes while I check it as it goes. We plan the pour around the heat of the day, because concrete that dries out in midday sun ends up with a weak, dusty top.
Walk the finished driveway together
I go over the finished driveway with you before we call the job done. We also go over when it's ready for feet and when it's ready for the car, so nobody drives on it too early.
Get a written estimate for your new driveway
Send the form and we reply within one business day to set a time. I'll come out, measure and send you a written estimate, free, with no pressure and no obligation.
- Call
- (650) 866-1977
- Hours
- Mon–Fri: 8 AM–11 PM, Sat–Sun: 7 AM–11 PM
Slab thickness, steel and finish for your driveway
The biggest choice is how thick the slab is and what steel goes in it, and that comes down to what you park. A standard slab with wire mesh is usually fine for everyday cars. A work truck, an RV or heavy daily traffic usually calls for a thicker slab with rebar, steel bars tied in a grid inside the concrete that keep it from pulling apart under load.
The top is usually a broom finish, fine lines dragged across the wet concrete so tires and shoes grip when it's wet. If you'd like color or a pattern, stamped concrete is an option, but when the budget is tight I'd put the money into thickness and steel first. Nobody sees the inside of the slab on day one, and it's the part that decides whether the driveway holds up.
San Mateo County's construction guidance advises against digging or grading in wet weather, so a San Carlos driveway in the rainy months usually waits for a dry stretch before we break ground. The same guidance keeps cement washout out of driveways, streets, gutters and ditches, with mixers washed only where the water drains to a lined containment pond, so the rinse water from your pour stays out of the gutter.
Concrete driveway questions from San Carlos homeowners
How much does a concrete driveway cost in San Carlos?
A Bay Area cost guide puts an unreinforced concrete driveway at about $8 to $14 per square foot, not counting removal of an old one. Breaking out an existing driveway raises the cost per square foot, and a heavier slab with steel adds to it too. Your written estimate lays out the work for your driveway.
How long does a concrete driveway last compared with asphalt?
One Bay Area builder puts concrete at 30 to 40 years with almost no required maintenance, against 15 to 30 years for asphalt, which also needs sealcoating every 3 to 5 years. The same builder points out that the freeze-thaw cycles that crack concrete in cold states hardly happen here, which takes away the main argument for asphalt. For a driveway you plan to keep, I'd pick concrete.
When can I drive on my new concrete driveway?
One Bay Area builder advises keeping cars off for about 7 days, though walking on it is fine after 24 to 48 hours. The concrete keeps curing, slowly gaining strength as it holds its moisture, until it reaches full strength at roughly 28 days. We'll help you plan where to park for that first week before we pour.
What causes a new concrete driveway to crack?
Concrete shrinks as it cures, so every slab cracks somewhere, and the joints decide where. Control joints are cuts in the surface on a planned grid, and when they're sawn on time the slab cracks along the bottom of the cuts where you can't see it. Joints cut late or skipped are how you get cracks wandering across the middle.
Who is licensed to build a concrete driveway in California?
A contractor with California's concrete license class, which covers forming, pouring, placing and finishing pavement and flat concrete work, is licensed to build a driveway. The state's minor-work exemption for unlicensed people tops out at $1,000 and applies only when the job needs no permit and they employ no one, so most driveway jobs are well past it. We're fully licensed and insured.
Do I need a permit to build a driveway in San Carlos?
If the work is within, under or over a State highway right of way, yes, because Caltrans issues encroachment permits for that work and lists driveways among its examples. For everything else, when a job needs a permit we settle with you who will pull it before work starts and write that into the contract.
Other concrete work that goes with a driveway
Concrete patio construction
If you'd like a place to sit out back too, pouring a patio the same season keeps both slabs close in color and finish.
Stamped concrete services
When a plain gray driveway doesn't suit the front of your house, a stamped pattern and color give it the look of stone or brick.
Get your new driveway measured and priced
Call (650) 866-1977 or use the form to tell us the rough size, what you park and whether an old driveway comes out, so I can come out ready to plan the right slab.
Mon–Fri: 8 AM–11 PM, Sat–Sun: 7 AM–11 PM