Concrete Contractor in Alamo, CA - Driveways and Patios Built on a Solid Base
Walnut Creek Concrete Works builds concrete driveways, patios, steps, retaining walls and foundations for homes in Alamo, CA. We're based next door in Walnut Creek, and I come out to look at every Alamo job myself.
- Fully licensed and insured.
- Free in-person estimates.
- We reply within 1 business day.
Alamo homes, lots and what they ask of concrete
Alamo sits between our home base in Walnut Creek and Danville, and most of what we see here is homes, not storefronts. It's mostly single-family houses on bigger lots around a small downtown, and it gets more rural the farther you get from the main roads. Driveways tend to run longer, backyards often hold a pool or a patio that gets real use, and plenty of lots aren't flat.
Alamo is unincorporated, so there's no city hall and Contra Costa County provides the local services. The bigger thing for us is the lot itself, because a long driveway or a sloped yard means more digging, more base and more thought about where the water goes before anything gets poured.
Concrete work we do for Alamo homes
Concrete driveway building
Alamo driveways often run long and climb from the street, so we dig out to firm ground, pack the base and plan the slope before the pour.
Concrete patio construction
Backyards here get used for real, so we build patios that stay flat under furniture and grills, with the slab falling away from the house, not toward it.
Stamped concrete services
When you want a patio or walkway that looks like stone or brick to match an Alamo home, stamped concrete gets the look over the same solid base.
Concrete sidewalk building
On Alamo lots, we pour walks from the driveway to the front door with a broom finish, a light texture that gives shoes grip when wet.
Garage floor concrete
A cracked or sunken garage floor in an Alamo house usually means a weak base underneath, so we break it out, fix what's below and pour fresh.
Decorative concrete
Colored or textured concrete suits the courtyards and entries we see on larger Alamo lots, giving you one solid surface instead of pieces that shift.
Concrete retaining walls
Sloped Alamo yards often need a wall to hold soil back, and we build ours with drainage behind it so water pressure doesn't push it over.
Concrete floor installation
For a workshop, studio or storage building on an Alamo property, we pour an interior slab that's flat, has a moisture barrier underneath and is ready for flooring.
Concrete pool decks
Many Alamo backyards have a pool, and the deck around it needs a slip-resistant surface and a slope that sends splash water to drains, not under the slab.
Concrete steps construction
Alamo homes set above the street need steps with even risers, so we form each one to the same height and set them on a packed base.
Slab foundation building
For a new house, guest house or addition on an Alamo lot, we pour the slab foundation to the engineer's drawings and check the steel and base first.
Foundation installation
Sloped Alamo lots often call for a stepped or perimeter foundation instead of a flat slab, so we dig and form to what the plans show.
Concrete parking lot building
For commercial lots, shared driveways and larger private parking areas around Alamo, we pour thicker slabs built for steady traffic and sloped to shed water to drains.
Concrete footings
Decks, sheds, walls and posts on Alamo properties need footings, the concrete base below ground that carries the weight, dug to the depth the plans call for.
Foundation raising
When an Alamo house has settled and doors stick or floors slope, we lift it back toward level and give it solid support underneath.
Concrete cutting
When you're adding a doorway, a drain line or widening a driveway in Alamo, we saw-cut the old concrete cleanly so the rest of the slab stays intact.
Get a free written estimate for your Alamo concrete job
We get back to you within one business day, then I come out, look at the site and give you a written estimate for each part of the job. It's free, and there's no obligation.
- Based in
- Walnut Creek, CA 94596
- Hours
- Mon–Fri: 7 AM–11 PM, Sat–Sun: 6 AM–10 PM
What working in Alamo means for permits and price
Alamo is unincorporated, so building and grading permits come from Contra Costa County, and the county says almost every project in its unincorporated area needs one. A job that needs a permit doesn't go on our calendar until the county has signed off, and that's usually what sets the start date. County permits only go to licensed contractors, property owners or their authorized agent, so check any contractor's state license with the Contractors State License Board and ask whether they carry the county's own business license too. We're fully licensed and insured, and if your job needs a permit, I tell you at the estimate and we handle the application with the county.
Price here follows the lot more than anything: how big the slab is, how far it sits from where the truck can park on a long driveway, and how much digging, forming and base a slope calls for. The finish you pick moves it too, and your written estimate shows each of those as its own line. After the pour, the schedule turns on curing, the time concrete needs to gain strength before you walk on it and longer before you drive on it, and I'll tell you what that looks like for your slab. We come in from Walnut Creek for these jobs, the same as we do for homeowners in Lafayette and the other cities around it.
Why Alamo properties need careful base and drainage work
Plenty of Alamo lots slope, and water runs downhill into whatever's in its way. A driveway or patio poured without checking where the water goes ends up pooling against the house or washing the dirt out from under one edge, and that's when you see sinking and cracks. We look at the grade first, pitch the slab away from the house and plan where the runoff ends up. On ground steeper than a 10 percent slope, the county can require a drainage plan for 500 square feet or more of construction, so a big patio on a hillside may need one, and I'll raise it at the estimate.
The other thing we see is old slabs poured over dirt that was raked flat instead of dug out and packed, so they settled with the ground. We dig down to the subgrade, the firm soil a slab sits on, pack a base over it, set rebar, the steel that holds the pieces together, and cut control joints early. Those joints are shallow grooves that give concrete a place to crack, because it will crack somewhere, and we'd rather choose where.
What happens after you call us about an Alamo job
Here's how a job runs from your first call to the final walk-through, so you know who you'll talk to and what you'll get at each step.
Call or send a message
Reach us at (925) 532-0140 or through the form, and you'll get me, because I answer my own phone. We set a time for me to come out to your Alamo property.
I look at the site
I walk the lot with you, check the slope, the ground and where the water runs, and ask how you'll use the slab. You get a written estimate that breaks out each part of the job, so you can see where the money goes before you decide.
We line up permits first
If the job needs a permit, an engineer or a designer, we get that in place before we schedule anything. The county's review comes ahead of your start date, so we book the pour once it clears.
We build it and walk it
My crew and I dig out, pack the base, pour, finish and cut the joints, with me on site the whole time. When it's done, we walk it with you and go over how long to stay off it while it cures.
Questions about concrete work in Alamo
How do I check whether my Alamo address is under Contra Costa County for permits?
Look up your address in the county's CCMAP online mapping tool, which you can reach from the county's permit information page, and it'll show which jurisdiction covers it. I check it at the estimate too, so the application goes to the right office the first time.
Do I need a permit for a retaining wall or a new driveway in Alamo?
A retaining wall 3 feet or taller needs a building permit. Driveways and patios aren't named on the county's permit list, which covers things like remodels, additions, decks and pools, so don't assume yours is clear. Some projects also need a drainage plan, for instance when they add 1,000 square feet or more of new hard surface that sheds water, and I'll tell you at the estimate which of these applies to your job.
Does my concrete contractor need a Contra Costa County business license to work in Alamo?
Yes, the county requires a business license, which is an annual tax, for any contractor doing business in its unincorporated area, even one based in another city or licensed there. A contractor based in an incorporated city needs that city's license and the county's, and the county's costs $100 a year plus $10 per employee. Asking to see both is a fair question before anyone starts digging.
How much can a contractor ask for as a down payment in California?
The state licensing board caps a contractor's down payment at $1,000 or 10 percent of the total contract price, whichever is less. The board says that rule covers all home improvement projects, so a driveway, patio or wall falls under it. If someone wants more than that before work starts, stop and check them out.
What causes concrete prices to vary so much between Alamo jobs?
Mostly what's under and around the slab, not the slab itself. Two driveways the same size can price very differently if one needs deep dig-out, a retaining wall or a drainage plan and the other sits on flat, firm ground. When the budget's tight, I'd rather you skip the stamped finish than skimp on the base, because the finish is what you see on day one and the base decides whether it's still flat years from now.
Do I need a drainage plan to pour concrete near a creek in Alamo?
You may, because the county's drainage plan rule also covers work within 100 feet of the top bank of a mapped watercourse. That means design work before the pour, so I ask about creeks and ditches at the estimate and line up an engineer early if one is needed.
Tell us about your Alamo concrete project
Call (925) 532-0140 or use the form, and if there's a wall, a slope or a creek involved, mention it so I can check the county's permit and drainage steps before I come out.