Concrete Contractor in La Habra, CA - Driveways and Patios Built on a Solid Base
Classic Whittier Concrete pours and repairs driveways, patios, walkways, steps and slabs for La Habra homes and business properties, including the sloped driveways and tight side yards other people call tricky.
- Licensed and insured.
- Free on-site estimates.
- Expect a reply within 1 business day.
La Habra homes, from postwar blocks to hillsides
La Habra sits right next door to Whittier, and on our jobs here it's a real mix. There are blocks of single-story postwar houses with long front driveways, newer homes on hillside lots toward the north end of town, and shops and offices along Whittier Boulevard and Imperial Highway whose parking lots and walkways take a beating every day. Most of the calls sound like the ones we get from South Whittier or the sloped streets of Hacienda Heights. A driveway is cracked across, a patio tips toward the house, or the front steps have pulled away from the porch.
That mix shapes how we plan. On the older blocks, most jobs start with breaking out a slab someone poured decades ago. Up on the sloped lots, getting a truck and a crew to the work and keeping water off the new concrete take as much thought as the pour.
Concrete work we do on La Habra properties
Concrete driveway building
Replacing the long front driveways on La Habra's postwar houses when an old, thin slab has cracked across or lifted near a street tree.
Concrete patio construction
New backyard patios for La Habra homes, sloped so rain runs off into the yard instead of pooling against the back wall or the slider.
Stamped concrete services
Stamped concrete that looks like stone or brick, for a front walk or patio on a ranch house where you want more than a plain gray slab.
Concrete sidewalk building
Walkways from the driveway to the front door and down narrow side yards, poured to sit flush with the ground so nobody catches a toe.
Garage floor concrete
Garage floors in older La Habra houses that are stained, cracked or sinking at the door, broken out and poured fresh over a packed base.
Decorative concrete
Color, exposed stone and borders for entries and patios when you want concrete that suits the house, with the same base work under it as any slab.
Concrete retaining walls
Retaining walls for the sloped lots toward the north side of town, built to hold the hill back and let water drain out from behind them.
Concrete floor installation
Interior slabs for workshops, studios and business spaces around La Habra, poured flat and level so the flooring that goes over them sits right.
Concrete pool decks
Decks around backyard pools on La Habra lots, with a finish that grips wet feet and a slope that carries splash water off toward the drains.
Concrete steps construction
Front and back steps on raised porches that have pulled away from the house or settled out of level, rebuilt with every step the same height.
Slab foundation building
Slab foundations for garages, backyard buildings and additions on La Habra lots, formed and poured with steel to the plans the job calls for.
Foundation installation
Foundations for new structures on hillside and flat lots alike, from digging and forming through the pour, with the plans and inspections the job needs.
Concrete parking lot building
Parking lots and drive aisles for the shops and offices along La Habra's main streets, built thick enough for daily cars and delivery trucks.
Concrete footings
Footings, the concrete feet under a wall, post or patio cover, dug and poured to the size the plans for your La Habra project call for.
Foundation raising
Lifting and leveling slabs and foundations that have settled on older La Habra properties, after we find out why they sank so the cause gets fixed too.
Concrete cutting
Saw-cutting old concrete to open a doorway, run a pipe trench or take out one cracked section of driveway without breaking up the rest.
Get a free on-site estimate for your La Habra concrete job
Send the form or call, and we'll reply within one business day to set a time. I come out to look at the job myself, and the estimate is free, with no pressure and no obligation.
- Based in
- Whittier, CA 90602
- Hours
- Mon–Fri: 6 AM–11 PM, Sat–Sun: 8 AM–9 PM
What working in La Habra means for your job
In La Habra, building permits come from the city's Building and Safety Division, which reviews plans, issues the permit once they're approved and inspects the work. A job that needs one waits on that review before we can pour. I check which office covers your address and whether your job needs a permit before I quote it, and when it does, we apply for it and I'm there for the inspections. We're licensed and insured, and if you have questions about a contractor's city business license, you can call the city's Business License line at 562-383-4065.
We're a concrete contractor based in Whittier, CA, and Whittier Boulevard runs straight from our side of the line into La Habra, so getting a crew and a concrete truck here is routine. The price of a job here moves mostly with what's already on the ground and how hard it is to reach. The schedule turns on the weather, any permit review and the cure before you use the slab, and my written estimate puts a figure on your job.
Why La Habra driveways and patios wear out
The most common thing we find under a failing La Habra driveway is a bad base, or no base at all. On a lot of older houses the original slab went down on dirt that was raked level instead of dug out and packed, and after decades of tree roots and sprinkler water working underneath, the dirt settles and the concrete cracks and sinks with it. We dig down to firm ground, pack a proper base and set rebar, the steel grid that holds a slab together if it does crack, before we pour. Nobody sees the base on day one, which is why it's the first thing people want to cut from the budget. It's the one part I won't skimp on, because it decides how long the surface holds up.
The other driver is water. A slab that falls toward the house sends rain and sprinkler runoff against the foundation and into the garage, so before we set forms I check where your water runs now and slope the new concrete to carry it away.
How a concrete job runs when you call us in La Habra
Here's how a La Habra job goes from your first call to the final walk-through, so you know what's coming and when you'll want to be home.
Call or send the form
Tell us what you have in mind, and we'll get back to you to set a time for me to come out. A few photos of the slab help if you have them.
I come out and look
I walk the job with you, ask what the slab is for and where the water goes now, and check which office covers your address. You get a written estimate that shows what goes into the price, so you can see where your money goes before you decide.
We handle any permit first
When your job needs a permit, we apply for it, and the city says its first plan review takes about two weeks before it sends a list of any corrections. That's why we set the pour date once the permit is in hand.
We pour, then walk it
We plan the pour around the weather, and our own crew forms, pours and finishes with me on site, within the city's construction hours of 7 a.m. to 8 p.m., Monday through Saturday, with no work on Sundays or city-observed federal holidays. When it's done we walk the finished job with you and go over how long to stay off it.
Questions about concrete work in La Habra
Do I need a permit for a concrete driveway or patio in La Habra?
The city's permit list doesn't settle it, because its guide, written mainly for businesses, names additions, demolitions, new interior walls, drop ceilings, and plumbing, electrical and heating and cooling work, not driveways or patios. For work on the outside of a property, the city says to contact the Planning Division, which confirms the job won't break its zoning rules. For permit questions, you can call the Building Division at 562-383-4116.
How do I apply for a building permit in La Habra?
The owner, contractor or designer submits plans to the Building and Safety Division through the city's online portal, as laid out in its permit process. A plan check fee is due when you submit, and the first review comes back with a list of any corrections to make. The review time is in our steps above.
How much does a new concrete driveway cost in La Habra?
Your price comes down to the size of the slab, what has to come out first, how much base work the ground needs and the finish you choose, and I write it up for you after I see the job. Breaking out and hauling an old driveway, a steep slope or a side yard too narrow for equipment all add labor. A plain broom finish, the light texture that keeps shoes and tires from slipping, costs less than stamped or colored concrete.
How long does a new concrete driveway take before I can drive on it?
You can walk on new concrete well before you can drive on it, and I give you both days for your slab on pour day, because they depend on the mix and the weather. Curing, the slow hardening that keeps going for weeks after the pour, is what gives the surface its strength. Parking on it too early is one of the main reasons a new driveway chips at the edges.
Will a new concrete driveway in La Habra crack like my old one?
It may get a hairline crack or two, because some cracking is normal in concrete, but we decide where it's most likely to happen. We cut control joints, shallow grooves that give the slab a straight place to crack, on time and where they belong, and the packed base and steel underneath help keep the sections from shifting apart.
Can you replace just part of my driveway in La Habra?
Often yes, when the damage is in one section and the rest of the slab is sound. We saw-cut a clean line, break out the bad part, fix the base under it and tie the new concrete into the old with steel. The patch won't match the old color exactly, and if the whole slab is settling, a patch only buys time, so I'll tell you which one you have when I see it.
Tell us about your La Habra concrete job
Send a photo of the cracked slab or the wet spot through the form, or call (562) 358-3032, and I'll come out already knowing what to look for.