Porches & Sidewalks in Port Huron, MI

A new porch or a new sidewalk is much more than just adding some concrete on the ground around your home. These features will improve your properties function, they will make new outdoor spaces for you to entertain, and they will make it easier to move around your property.  Sometimes you will be building a new space to entertain guests, and at other times, you will be replacing a worn out walking space.  Whichever one you choose, it is important to pick a competent concrete contractor to do your work.

As with concrete driveways, a good project always begins with proper planning and preparation.  Before the concrete is ordered, we will review the area and look at drainage patterns, and we will get an understanding for the space.  Most homeowners will focus on the size and shape of the space, but what is more important is what is underneath the concrete.  If this fails, then the entire concrete slab will fail.  The properly prepared base material will fully support the slab over time and any damage to the base material causes a lot of trouble.

When the patio area is measured, the area is to be excavated to remove any unwanted soil.  Seeing what soil is in the concrete area is vitally important.  All unsuitable soil will need to be removed.  After the area is excavated, we will install a suitable base material.  The base material will vary depending on the existing soil.  This process will help distribute the concrete load equally so that there is no settlement in the concrete.

Drainage is a huge consideration when dealing with patios and sidewalks.  Any water that is collected on top of the concrete will cause major problems.  It is our job to divert the water around the concrete or slope the concrete properly to remove the water.  While these details might be small for some contractors, we feel these issues are very important to ensure the duration of your new concrete surface.

Once the base is prepared, we will install formwork to ensure the proper shape of the concrete project.  The forms will ensure that the concrete is sloped correctly and it will also ensure that the concrete holds the right shape.  This step seems simple, but we take our time with this step, because this is the last step before the concrete arrives.

After the concrete preparation work is completed, we are finally ready for our truck of concrete.  The concrete is placed within the forms and then we finish it.  After the concrete is placed, we will ensure that the surface is leveled and that the concrete slopes in the correct direction.  Sidewalks also need to provide a safe footing spacing, so we put some time into this process.  Just like the driveways, the control joints are installed here as well.  In sidewalks, they are spaced every 5 feet, and in patios, the spacing can be closer to 10 feet.

Concrete patios are chosen by a lot of homeowners because they provide a very low maintenance space to outdoor living that can be enjoyed for years.  Concrete sidewalks offer a very similar advantage by providing a pathway around the property. When someone does both, they really invite everyone outdoors.  Either of these will add tremendous value to the home.

Whether we are building a nice new patio or replacing an existing sidewalk, we will focus on getting the work done correctly the first time.  Proper drainage and grading, excavation, installing the base material correctly, and all of our finishing techniques will ensure that your patio and sidewalk are installed in the best way possible.