Old driveway cracked, sinking or holding water? We dig out, pack the base and pour a new slab that sheds water toward the street.
Concrete driveway building in Murrieta, CA means our crew digs out and packs the ground, sets forms, then pours and finishes a new concrete slab. The slab carries your cars and slopes so water runs toward the street instead of toward your garage.
What you'll pay comes down mostly to size, thickness and what's there now. A bigger slab takes more concrete, a thicker one for a truck or trailer takes more again, and steel inside the slab adds material and labor. Tearing out and hauling off an old driveway is its own cost. So is anything fancier than a broom finish, the light brushed texture that gives tires grip when it's wet.
The schedule turns on the same few things. An old driveway has to come out before we can dig, and if the job needs a permit, nothing gets poured until it's in hand. After the pour, the slab has to cure. That's the stretch where it hardens and gains strength before it can take a car's weight, so you'll be parking elsewhere for a while. Your written estimate gives you the figure for your own driveway.
Most of what makes a driveway last happens before anyone sees the finished surface. These are the parts we watch closest, and they're the questions worth asking on any bid you get.
Planning for passenger cars often starts around a 4-inch slab. One concrete industry association figures that going to 5 inches adds about 20% to the concrete cost and nearly 50% to what the slab can carry, so it can be worth it for a truck, RV or trailer. On any bid, ask what thickness it assumes.
Control joints are the grooves cut across the slab. Concrete is going to try to crack, and the joints make those cracks run along lines we chose. If the joints are cut late or skipped, the cracks pick their own spots. We also plan around midday heat, because concrete poured in the hottest part of the day can end up with a weak, dusty top later.
The subgrade is the ground the slab sits on, and it matters more than anything you see on day one. A base that's only raked level settles with the dirt and takes the concrete down with it, so we dig it out and pack it. Where the soil swells when it gets wet, industry guides call for crushed rock underneath, deeper the more the soil moves.
A driveway should slope toward the street and away from your house and garage, so rain and hose water run off instead of standing on the slab. A slab that falls toward the house sends water to your foundation every storm, so we set the slope in the forms before any concrete arrives.
Here's how a driveway goes with us, from the first call to the walk around the finished slab, so you know who you'll see and when.
Call (951) 477-4538 or fill out the form with your address and a rough idea of the driveway. We get back to you and set a time for me to come out to the house.
I measure the job, look at where the water will go and ask how you plan to use the driveway. Then you get a written estimate built on those measurements, not on a guess.
Our crew handles the prep, the forms and the pour, and takes out the old driveway first if there is one. Keep cars and bikes clear on pour day so the trucks can reach the forms.
I walk the finished work with you and show you where the joints are and why they're there. We also go back over how long to keep cars off the slab before your first drive.
Before I put a price on a driveway, I ask what you'll park on it and whether an old one has to come out first, because both change the plan. A commuter car and a work truck pulling a trailer need different slabs, and an old driveway means demolition and hauling before we can dig. We also tell you up front how long to park somewhere else before your first drive, so you can line that up.
When a budget gets tight, the base is usually the first thing people want to cut, since nobody sees it once the concrete is down. I'd cut almost anything else first. A nice finish on a base that wasn't dug out and packed settles and cracks with the dirt underneath, and concrete is hard to undo once it sets. Put the money underneath, and decoration can wait.
A new driveway is often a good time to look at the rest of the yard. If you've wanted a slab out back, we also do concrete patio construction. If a plain gray surface looks too plain from the street, stamped concrete can add a pattern and color to the whole driveway or just its borders.
The brushed texture gives tires and shoes grip when the slab is wet, and it's the simplest finish to do well. It's the one I'd pick when the budget has to cover a proper base first.
A pattern or color across the whole driveway changes the look from the street, but it adds labor and cost. Stamping just the borders and keeping the middle plain gets much of the look for less.
Send the form and we'll reply within one business day to set up a free estimate at your property, with no obligation. I come out and measure the driveway, and then you get the estimate in writing.
(951) 477-4538The city's Public Works and Engineering Division issues permits for grading, streets, storm drains and work in the public right of way. Its list names that work and not driveway building, so it doesn't settle whether your driveway needs a permit. That's the office to ask. When a job needs a permit, we handle the application and meet the inspector on site. If we aren't sure, we check with that office before we start.
The city also keeps standard drawings for curbs, driveways and alleys. When you're hiring, know that California requires a license from the Contractors State License Board for any job that needs a building permit, uses other workers or comes to $1,000 or more in labor and materials. The board's concrete class covers pavement and flat work like driveways.
Most of our driveway calls come from Murrieta homeowners and small property owners. A lot of them start with an old slab that's cracked, sinking at one corner or holding water by the garage. We do the same work across the cities nearby, including Temecula and Menifee, and we prep the base the same way there.
I come out for the estimate and measure the job myself, so the person pricing your driveway is the one who answers for it. Our own crew does the work. I check the forms before we pour, since the slope and the edges are locked in once the concrete goes down. I'd rather measure twice and explain why than leave you guessing.
I first mixed concrete patching barn floors on our family farm, then learned the trade on other people's crews before starting this business in 2020. We've been at it 6 years. We're licensed and insured. Your satisfaction, guaranteed. If you're comparing bids, call (951) 477-4538 or send us the form and I'll come measure yours.
A backyard slab for a table and grill is easier to plan alongside a driveway, because the layout, drainage and truck access get worked out once.
If you want the driveway to read like stone or brick from the street, a stamped pattern or border gives a poured slab that look.
We're based in Murrieta and build driveways across the cities around it, including Temecula, Menifee and Fallbrook. If your city isn't named on this site, give us a call and ask.
In Riverside, a concrete driveway without reinforcement usually runs about $7 to $13 per square foot, not counting demolition of an old one. That's the area's going rate, not our price. Thickness, steel, tear-out and finish all move your number, so the firm price for your driveway comes from the written estimate after I measure it.
Most likely in places, because all concrete tends to crack and a completely crack-free slab isn't possible. Rebar, the steel set inside the slab, won't prevent cracks, but it helps hold them together so they stay tight. Weigh it as crack control when you compare bids. The control joints we cut decide where most cracks run.
Give it at least a week of curing before you drive on it, and plan to park somewhere else for that time. The slab is still hardening and gaining strength that week, and a car's weight on it too soon can damage it. We'll tell you how long before the pour, so it's no surprise.
No more than $1,000 or 10 percent of the contract price, whichever is less. The state license board says that limit applies to all home improvement projects. Any payments after the down payment have to be listed in the contract and tied to work already done or materials delivered to your home.
Have the rough size of the driveway, the vehicles it'll carry and whether an old driveway has to come out, since those three set the thickness, the steel and the tear-out. It also helps to notice where water stands after rain now. Then call (951) 477-4538 or send the form.
We take calls at (951) 477-4538 any day from 8 AM to 9 PM, so you can talk your driveway through after work or on a weekend.
