Stamped concrete services in Pasadena CA - the look of stone in poured concrete
Tired of a plain gray patio or a cracked driveway? We pour, color and stamp a slab with the joints hidden in the pattern.
What is stamped concrete, and is it right for your Pasadena slab?
Stamped concrete is poured concrete that we color, press with rubber mats while it's still soft and then seal, so your patio, driveway or walk in Pasadena gets the look of stone, brick, wood or tile in a single pour.
Most people call me about one of two things. Some have a plain gray slab they're tired of looking at, and others have an old one that's cracked and sinking and has to come out anyway. The price mostly turns on the size, how much old concrete we haul off, how much digging and base work the ground needs, and the pattern and color method you pick. The schedule turns on the permit question, how much prep the site takes and our crew's calendar, and your written estimate gives you the figure for your own job. If the walk to your door is in rough shape too, concrete sidewalk building can go into the same plan so the grades and the pattern line up. We're based in Pasadena and work across the cities around it.
How do you know it's time for stamped concrete?
Most calls start with something the homeowner sees on the slab they already have. Here's what people usually notice, and what it tends to tell me about the concrete underneath.
Your driveway is cracked and coming out anyway, and you'd rather replace it with a pattern than plain gray.
Cracks wander across the slab in random lines, which usually means the joints were cut late or skipped.
Sections have sunk or tipped, which usually means the base was raked level instead of dug out and packed.
Water pools on the patio or runs toward the house, so the slab was set sloping the wrong way.
The top is chipping or dusty, which often goes back to a pour done in the midday heat.
You're planning a new slab and want more than a broom finish, the plain lined texture for grip.
If water runs toward your house or a section has tipped enough to trip on, call (626) 345-7318 instead of waiting, since both usually get worse with time.
What happens when you call us about stamped concrete in Pasadena?
From the first call to the final walk-through, you'll deal with me. Here's how a stamped job runs with us, and what you'll have in hand before you decide anything.
Call us or send the form
You call or write, and we get back to you to set a time for me to look at the job. I come out myself, so the person who sizes it up is the one who runs it.
I measure and write it up
I measure, ask how you'll use the space and walk you through the base, the drainage, the pattern, the color method and where the joints go. You get a written estimate that spells out what I'd do and why, so you can see where the money goes before you commit.
We prep, pour and stamp
Once you say go, we settle who's pulling any permit and put that in writing, then dig out, pack the base, form it, pour, color, stamp and seal. Our crew does the work, and I'm on site running the job.
We walk the finished slab
When it's done, I walk the job with you so you can check the pattern, the joints and how the water runs off. I'll also tell you what to watch for so you know when the sealer needs attention.
Get a written estimate for your stamped concrete
Send the form and we'll reply within one business day to set a time. I come out, measure and give you a free written estimate on site, with no obligation to go ahead.
- Call
- (626) 345-7318
- Hours
- Mon–Fri: 8 AM–11 PM, Sat–Sun: 6 AM–10 PM
Color, base and sealer choices for stamped concrete
Color goes in one of two ways, and I pick it around how you'll use the area, because a driveway and a quiet patio don't need the same thing. Integral color runs through the full depth, so a chip or a saw cut shows the same color and the slab ages without pale scars, though it won't reach the deepest or brightest tones. Color hardener forms a harder top skin, but its color sits only in that layer, so a deep gouge shows gray.
The part I won't cut is the base, the packed layer the slab sits on, because it's hidden on day one and it's the first thing people want to trim from the budget. A base that's raked level instead of dug out and packed settles with the dirt, and no pattern saves a slab that's sinking. If money's tight, I'd rather you pick a simpler pattern. Inside a garage, where a pattern isn't the point, we'd talk about garage floor concrete instead.
Every stamped slab gets sealed at the end, and the sealer changes how the color reads. Penetrating water repellent sealers are a good way to keep out water and stains, but most of them leave the color as it is. If a rich, deep color is what you're after, ask which sealer we plan to use, and I'll tell you why I picked it for your slab.
Stamped concrete questions we hear in Pasadena
How much does stamped concrete cost in Pasadena?
Stamped concrete in the Los Angeles area usually costs about $15 to $30 per square foot, and that's the going range around here, not our price. Where your job lands depends mostly on how much old concrete comes out, the base work, the pattern and the color method. I'll measure and put your own number in a written estimate.
What is the best way to color a stamped concrete driveway?
Color hardener is the usual pick for a driveway, because of the tougher top skin it forms. It's spread and floated onto the fresh surface, and if that step isn't even, the color comes out blotchy, so ask any crew how they keep it even across the whole slab. I'm glad to walk you through how we do it.
What causes stamped concrete to crack?
Stamped concrete cracks for the same reasons any slab does, so it needs control joints, cuts that give a crack a planned line to follow, on the same spacing as plain concrete. Without them the slab picks its own line, usually right across the prettiest part. We tuck our joints into the pattern so a crack has somewhere to go besides the middle of your best section.
How often does stamped concrete need to be resealed?
Reseal when the surface needs it rather than on a set number of years, which is what trade association guidance recommends. Resealing is the most common upkeep for stamped concrete, and the time to plan one is when water stops beading, stains start soaking in or the color loses its depth.
Who handles concrete permits in Pasadena?
Pasadena Public Works handles permits for all work in the public right of way, and the city's Permit Center takes permit applications and fees. To get a permit, a contractor has to show a valid contractor license and a current City of Pasadena business license, so that's worth asking about when you hire. When your job needs one, we sort out who's pulling it before we start, put that in writing and handle the paperwork on the ones we pull. On a hillside lot, the city lists single-family hillside properties among the projects that need an LID Plan, with controls that cut stormwater pollution after construction, so check the city's Low Impact Development page before work starts.
Do I need a licensed contractor for stamped concrete in California?
In California, anyone who builds or alters a structure needs a Contractors State License Board license when labor and materials total $1,000 or more, and we're licensed and fully insured. In Pasadena you can also get a permit and do the work yourself, but if you then hire unlicensed workers, you have to provide workers' compensation insurance for them. The city highly recommends hiring a licensed contractor.
Related concrete work around Pasadena
Concrete sidewalk building
If the walk from your driveway to the door is cracked or tipping, rebuilding it with your new slab lets the grades and drainage work together.
Garage floor concrete
A garage slab takes hot tires, oil and dropped tools, so it needs a hard, plain surface on a solid base more than it needs a pattern.
Get a price on your stamped slab
Call (626) 345-7318 or send the form with the rough size in square feet, what the area's for and a few photos, so I show up ready to talk pattern and color.
Mon–Fri: 8 AM–11 PM, Sat–Sun: 6 AM–10 PM