Decorative concrete in Walnut Creek CA - color and pattern on a solid base
Plain gray slab or a tired, faded patio? We add color and pattern on ground that's built to hold it.
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Should I resurface my old slab or pour new decorative concrete?
Decorative concrete is a patio, walk or driveway slab finished with color or a stamped pattern, either poured new or laid as a thin overlay on a slab you already have, and here in Walnut Creek choosing between those two is usually the first thing I help a homeowner work out.
Most people call because they're tired of looking at a plain gray patio, or they've got an old slab they'd rather dress up than tear out, and some already know they want stamped concrete with a pattern pressed in. The price moves with the size of the area, whether we overlay or pour new, how much digging and base work the ground needs, and the color method, colors and pattern you pick, while the schedule mostly turns on the prep and on whether the job needs a city sign-off. I can't give you a fair number over the phone, so your figure goes in a written estimate once I've seen the slab.
What our decorative concrete work includes
If you're hoping to dress up the slab you already have, I check first whether it's sound enough for an overlay, a thin decorative layer bonded to the old surface, and when it isn't I'll tell you a new pour is the better spend. On a new pour our crew digs out and packs the subgrade, the ground the slab sits on, sets the thickness for what the slab has to carry, places reinforcement sized to the job and works out where the water will run before any color goes on, because a stamped finish hides none of the mistakes under it. That base is invisible on day one and it's usually the first thing people want to trim from the budget, but it's the last place I'd save, since a beautiful pattern on settling dirt is still a slab on settling dirt. Then we pour, lay down the color you picked and press the pattern while the concrete is still workable.
Decorative work often sits right next to other concrete. A colored patio on a sloped lot usually needs concrete retaining walls to hold the yard above or below it, and walls that have to handle water are some of my favorite puzzles. If you'd like the same look carried indoors, or a fresh slab for a room or a basement, we take that on through our concrete floor installation work.
What changes a decorative concrete job in Walnut Creek
Walnut Creek's list of work that needs no building permit covers walks and driveways, which I go into in the questions below, but it doesn't settle a decorative patio or overlay, so the city's building department is the place to ask, and we check that early. Anything that reaches the public right of way, like a new driveway approach, a sidewalk, a curb or a gutter, needs an encroachment permit from the city, and so does staging that calls for traffic or pedestrian control on the street. Heavy site prep has a step of its own too, since the city requires a site development permit for any grading over 50 cubic yards. When a permit is needed, we can handle the application and the paperwork for you.
A lot of the decorative calls we get around here are older patios and walks people want to dress up, and backyards that slope, where a patio has to sit level and still shed water away from the house. We see the same kinds of jobs in Lafayette and Danville, and it's the slope and the water we work out before we ever talk patterns.
- Call (925) 448-9528
- Mon–Sun: 8 AM–9 PM
- Walnut Creek, CA 94596
What happens when you call Alliance Walnut Creek Concrete Company in Walnut Creek?
Call or send the form
You call (925) 448-9528 or send the form with a short note about the area you want to dress up. We set a time for me to come out and see it.
I come out and look
I walk the site myself, check the ground and any old slab, and ask a lot of questions about how you'll use the space. The written estimate lays out the base work, the color method, the pattern and the price, so you can see where the money goes before you decide.
Sort permits, then pour
Once you're ready, we sort out any paperwork and the marking or scanning, then our crew preps the ground, pours and finishes with me on site for the parts that matter most. Walnut Creek needs an after-hours permit for construction on Saturdays and City Holidays, so that shapes which days we can pour.
Walk the finished job together
When it's done, I walk the job with you and point out anything worth keeping an eye on. I also go over how to look after it, from everyday cleaning to when it'll need resealing.
Why Walnut Creek homeowners call Alliance Walnut Creek Concrete Company for decorative concrete
I look at every job myself
I come out to size up the site, and our own crew does the prep, the pour and the finish while I'm on hand for the parts that matter most. The person who looked at your old slab is the same one checking the base before any color goes on.
In business since 2013
I ran a landscape supply yard, then learned the trade beside a seasoned finisher before starting this business in 2013. We're best known for awkward jobs like sloped backyards and cuts through old slabs, which is a lot of what decorative work turns out to be.
Licensed and insured in California
Concrete work in California falls under the state licensing board's concrete classification, which covers forming, pouring, placing and finishing flatwork and other concrete. We're licensed and insured, and that's worth asking any contractor about before they pour at your house.
The slab you have now usually tells me more than any photo, so ask for an estimate or call (925) 448-9528 and I'll come take a look.
Request an estimateGet a written estimate for your decorative concrete
We reply within one business day, and I'm usually the one who calls back to set up a free visit. I walk the job, ask what you have in mind and put it all in writing, with no pressure and no obligation.
- Licensed and insured.
- Phone
- (925) 448-9528
- Location
- Walnut Creek, CA 94596
- Hours
- Mon–Sun: 8 AM–9 PM
Questions about decorative concrete in Walnut Creek
How do I know if my old patio can be resurfaced with decorative concrete?
It can be resurfaced if the slab is structurally sound and able to bond with a new layer. An overlay renews the surface but leaves heaving, settling and cracks that run clean through right where they were, and treating those as fixed is the most expensive mistake on this kind of work. I'll check yours at the estimate and tell you straight which way I'd go.
What is the best way to color decorative concrete?
For hard wear or more than one color, color hardener is usually the better pick, because it goes on the surface, forms a denser top and lets one load of standard concrete carry two or more colors. Integral color is mixed in at the ready-mix plant, which is simpler, but its shade leans on the mix, so even color is harder to hold across a big job. The catch with hardener is that it takes more time and skill, and if it's put on poorly it can come loose later with weather and wear, so who applies it matters as much as which one you choose.
How much does stamped concrete cost in Walnut Creek?
A San Francisco cost guide puts stamped, reinforced concrete patios at about $12 to $20 per square foot, and that's the market's figure for the area, not our price. Base work, the color method, the number of colors and the pattern all move where a job lands, so your Walnut Creek price comes from the written estimate after I've seen the site.
Do I need a permit for a stamped walkway or driveway in Walnut Creek?
Usually not a building permit, since the city lists walks and driveways 30 inches tall or less, not built over a basement or another story, as needing none. The exception is work that reaches the public sidewalk, curb or driveway approach, which needs the encroachment permit I described above, and I'll tell you at the estimate if yours does.
Will a new stamped concrete patio crack like my old one?
Any slab can crack, so the goal is to decide where. We cut control joints, planned cuts that give the slab a chosen place to crack, and on stamped work they usually go in the pattern's grout lines so they follow the design. The other half is the packed base I covered above, since most cracks in odd places start with ground that was never dug out and compacted.
How often does stamped concrete need to be resealed?
Stamped concrete is resealed every 2 to 3 years, in two thin, even coats. A heavy flood coat can bubble, turn white and leave the slab slick when it's wet, so thin coats keep a patio or walk safer underfoot.
Concrete work that often goes with it
Concrete retaining walls
When a patio sits on a sloped yard, a wall holds the soil above or below it and keeps runoff from washing under the new slab.
Concrete floor installation
When you need a floor for a basement, a room addition or a workshop, we pour it level on a well-prepared base and finish it for the space.
Send us photos of your slab
Tell us the size of the area, share a few photos of the slab you have now and mention whether the work reaches the sidewalk or driveway approach, so I show up already thinking about your job.
Request an estimateCall (925) 448-9528