Concrete contractor in Pasadena - flatwork for older homes and sloped lots
360 Los Angeles Concrete Construction is a concrete contractor working in Pasadena, CA. We pour and replace driveways, patios, walks, steps and garage floors, with the soil, base, slope and joints done right before the finish goes on.
Older houses, long driveways and sloped lots
Pasadena is mostly a city of houses that have stood a long time, from bungalows on narrow streets to bigger homes on deep lots, and a good share of them sit in neighborhoods the city has designated historic. On the west side the ground drops toward the Arroyo Seco, so lots there tend to slope, and up toward the foothills the driveways get steeper. Most of the concrete we're called about is the original or a patch on top of it, like a driveway running back to the garage, a front walk, a set of porch steps or a patio out back.
On a lot of these properties the driveway is a long, narrow strip past the house with plantings and a fence close on both sides, much like what we work around next door in South Pasadena and Glendale. That shapes the job, because tearing out and pouring in a tight space takes more planning and more hand work than an open lot.
Permits, licenses and price on Pasadena jobs
Pasadena issues its own building permits for most construction through its Permit Center, and work that doesn't need a building permit can still need a zoning permit, which checks the job against the city's zoning rules. That's why the permit question gets settled before we set a start date. Any contractor pulling a permit there has to show a current Pasadena business license, and the city's permit staff check the state contractor license with the state licensing board, so those are two things worth asking any contractor about. We're fully licensed and insured, and when your job needs a permit, we work out what it needs and handle the application and the inspections for you.
What moves the price is mostly what's under and around the slab: how much old concrete comes out, how deep we dig to reach firm ground, and how much grading a sloped lot needs. Next come size, thickness, whether it needs rebar, the steel set inside to hold the slab together if it cracks, and the finish. A plain broom finish, a light brushed texture that keeps it from getting slick, costs less than stamped or colored work. The schedule mostly turns on the permit and on curing time before you can use the new concrete, and after I've seen the site, the written estimate gives you your own figure. I've run this business since 2013, and we do the same flatwork, the driveways, patios, walks and floors you use every day, over in Burbank and across the cities around Los Angeles.
Concrete services in Pasadena
- Concrete driveway building
- Concrete patio construction
- Stamped concrete services
- Concrete sidewalk building
- Garage floor concrete
- Decorative concrete
- Concrete retaining walls
- Concrete floor installation
- Concrete pool decks
- Concrete steps construction
- Slab foundation building
- Foundation installation
- Concrete parking lot building
- Concrete footings
- Foundation raising
- Concrete cutting
Old walks and sloped yards change the job
A lot of the concrete on older Pasadena houses has had decades of tree roots pushing under it, so front walks heave, driveway edges lift and slabs crack across the middle. Replacing it right starts with digging down to firm subgrade, the soil the slab rests on, packing a real base on top, and cutting control joints, shallow grooves that give the concrete a straight place to crack instead of a random one. A heaved front walk is our concrete sidewalk building work, and it gets the same base as a driveway.
Sloped lots bring a different problem, which is water. A slab that falls toward the house sends every rain back at the foundation, so we check where the water runs and set the grade to carry it off before we form anything.
Get a free on-site estimate for your Pasadena concrete
We reply within one business day, and the estimate is free with no obligation. I come out to your Pasadena property myself to look at the ground and the drainage, and then you get the plan and the price in writing.
How a concrete job in Pasadena goes from call to cure
Call or send the form
Reach us at (213) 329-1820 or through the form, and tell us the address and roughly what's there now. That's enough for us to set a time for me to come out.
I look over the site
I come out myself to look at the ground, the slope and where the water runs, and I'll ask how you'll use the concrete. It helps if you know where sprinkler lines and any buried pipes run.
Review the written plan
You get the plan and the estimate in writing, covering the removal, the base, the slab and the finish. Nothing gets scheduled until your questions are answered.
We handle the Pasadena permit
If your job needs a permit, we put in the application with the city and book the inspections. The start date gets set once the permit is in hand.
Pour, finish and walk through
The crew I lead forms, pours and finishes the job, and we try to pour early so midday heat doesn't leave a weak, dusty top. Then we walk it with you and go over how to care for it while it cures.
Driveways, patios and walks
Pasadena concrete questions we hear most
Do I need a permit to replace a concrete driveway in Pasadena?
Usually, yes. The city's permit page lists driveways and other paving in residential zones as work that needs a zoning permit, and lower retaining walls fall under it too. Bigger work can also need a building permit, and we sort out which ones your job needs before we set a date.
Does a concrete contractor need a state license to work in Pasadena?
Yes, whenever the job needs a building permit, uses employees, or runs $1,000 or more in labor and materials. Pasadena also requires contractors to carry workers' compensation insurance. Ask for the license number and proof of that insurance before you sign anything.
Why do concrete driveway quotes in Pasadena vary so much?
Mostly because of the base, the dug-out, packed layer under the slab that nobody sees once it's poured. It's the first thing a low bid cuts, and a base that's only raked flat settles with the dirt and takes the new concrete with it. If your budget's tight, I'd rather simplify the finish than skimp underneath, because a surface can be redone later and the base can't.
How long does a new concrete driveway need before I can park on it?
Longer than it needs before you can walk on it, because concrete keeps gaining strength well after it looks hard, and a car on a young slab can crack it. That wait is usually why you're without the driveway longer than the pour itself takes. At the walkthrough we go over when your slab is ready for foot traffic and when it's ready for the car.
What happens when I sell my Pasadena home if old concrete work wasn't permitted?
The city's Occupancy Inspection Program researches the property and inspects the site when you sell, and it reports any illegal construction it finds. Owners with illegal construction may be forced to tear it down. That's one more reason we get the permit up front on work that needs one.
How do I get a permit if I pour the concrete myself in Pasadena?
You can get a permit as the owner without meeting the contractor requirements. If you then hire unlicensed workers, you have to provide their workers' compensation insurance and take on other liabilities, which is why the Permit Center highly recommends a licensed contractor. If you'd rather hand it off, we handle the application and inspections.
Call us about your Pasadena driveway, patio or walk
Call (213) 329-1820 or send the form with a few photos of the old concrete, so I come out already knowing what we're looking at.