Concrete contractor in Davis, CA - driveways and patios built right underneath
Custom Vacaville Concrete Company builds driveways, patios, walks, steps, footings and foundation work for homes in Davis, CA. We're based in Vacaville, and I come out to look at your job myself before my crew digs.
- Fully licensed and insured.
- Free estimates at your property.
- We reply within 1 business day.
Concrete work for Davis homes, from driveways to footings
The short answer: Custom Vacaville Concrete Company is a concrete contractor serving Davis homeowners. We replace cracked and sinking driveways, pour patios, walks and steps, and set footings and foundation work. Most of our effort goes into the part you never see, which is the dug-out, packed ground the slab sits on.
A lot of houses in Davis sit close to public green space, because the city keeps a long run of parks and greenbelts between its neighborhoods. On our jobs here that usually means a back fence on a greenbelt path, a side yard that's tight for equipment, and neighbors walking past the forms all day, so we plan the truck route and protect the lawn before the first shovel goes in.
We do the same flatwork in Dixon and Woodland, and a Davis job comes down to the same thing it does there. A slab is only as good as what's under it, so we work out how the truck gets in, where the water goes and how much digging the yard needs before we ever talk about the finish.
What Davis summers and yards do to concrete
Summer is the hard part here, because Davis gets hot, and a slab poured in the middle of a hot afternoon dries on top before it sets right. That leaves a weak, dusty surface that starts chipping a few years later. In the warm months we pour early in the day and keep the new concrete damp while it cures, which is the wait while it gains strength, so the top stays hard.
Pooling water is the other thing we see. When a patio falls toward the house or a walk dams up runoff from the yard, water sits right where it does damage, so we check where yours runs before we set a single form.
Concrete services we offer Davis homeowners
Concrete driveway building
When your driveway is cracked or sinking, we tear it out, dig down to firm ground, pack the base and pour a slab sized for your cars.
Concrete patio construction
A backyard patio for a table and grill, sloped so rain runs to the yard instead of your back door, with the joints planned before the pour.
Stamped concrete services
Stamped concrete gives a patio or walk the look of stone or brick in a single pour, and we build the base under it just like plain slabs.
Concrete sidewalk building
A new front walk when the old one has heaved into a trip edge, with a broom finish, a brushed texture that grips when it's wet.
Garage floor concrete
A new garage slab when the old one is cracked, stained through or sinking at the door, built to carry your cars and a loaded workbench.
Decorative concrete
Color, exposed stone or a smooth troweled finish for a patio or entry you look at every day, picked at the estimate so the price is clear.
Concrete retaining walls
A poured wall to hold a raised bed or a grade change in the yard, with a footing and drainage behind it so water doesn't push it over.
Concrete floor installation
Concrete floors for a shop, studio or addition, set on a packed base and finished smooth or left ready for whatever floor goes on top.
Concrete pool decks
A pool deck that sheds splash water away from the pool and the house, with a texture bare feet can grip when the deck is wet.
Concrete steps construction
Front or back steps when the old ones have cracked, settled or pulled away from the porch, formed so every step is the same height.
Slab foundation building
A slab foundation for a new garage, shed, studio or addition, with the ground packed and the rebar, steel bars that tie the slab together, set right.
Foundation installation
Foundation work for additions and outbuildings, dug and formed to your plans, so the framing starts on something level and square.
Concrete parking lot building
Concrete parking areas for small lots and shared drives, with more base and thickness where trucks turn and a plan for where the rain drains.
Concrete footings
Footings for a patio cover, deck, fence or wall, the concrete pads that spread the weight into firm ground so posts don't sink or lean.
Foundation raising
When part of a slab or footing has settled, we find out why it sank before we lift it, because lifting without fixing the cause rarely holds.
Concrete cutting
Clean saw cuts through an old slab for a new drain line, a doorway or a section we're replacing, so we don't break up concrete that's still sound.
Get a free written estimate for your Davis concrete job
Send the form or call, and we'll get back to you within one business day to set a time. I come out to Davis myself, walk the site with you and ask what the concrete has to carry. Then you get a free written estimate that spells out what's included, with no obligation to book.
Working in Davis: what we sort out before we dig
The City of Davis runs its own local government, so it's the city we check with about what the work at your address needs, and when a permit is needed we pull it, keep the papers on site and meet the inspector. If the city wants a permit, its answer decides when we can start, so we bring it up at the estimate instead of on pour day. You can also check two things about any contractor here, a state contractor license and a city business license, which starts on the city's finance page. We're fully licensed and insured, and the FAQ below covers when the state requires a license.
What moves your price is mostly what nobody sees on pour day, like how much old concrete comes out, how deep we dig to reach firm ground, how much base goes back in and how thick the slab and its steel need to be, then the finish on top. The schedule turns on the city's answer, the weather, the curing wait and how easy it is to get a truck to the forms when your back fence faces a greenbelt path. If the budget gets tight, I'll tell you to take a plainer finish before a thinner base, because a fancy top on bad ground still cracks and sinks. We work the same way over in Suisun City, and your written estimate spells out exactly what your job includes.
How it works when you call us in Davis
Here's how a Davis job runs from your first call to the final walk-through, so you know who you'll be talking to and when you need to be home.
- Step 01
Call or send the form
You call (707) 898-1384 or send the form, and we set a time to meet at your house. It helps if you're home for that visit, because I'll have questions only you can answer.
- Step 02
I walk the site with you
I come out myself, look at the ground, the drainage and the access, and ask what the concrete has to carry, from cars to a hot tub. You get a written estimate that spells out what's included, so you know what you're paying for before we start.
- Step 03
We prep, form and pour
If you go ahead, we sort out what the city wants, dig out and pack the base, set the forms and plan the joints. My crew pours and finishes with me running the work, and you don't need to be home on pour day.
- Step 04
Let it cure, then walk it
We leave the slab to cure and tell you when it's ready for feet and when it's ready for a car. Then we walk the finished job together, and you tell me if anything isn't right.
Questions Davis homeowners ask about concrete work
Does my concrete contractor in Davis need a state license?
Yes, if the job needs a building permit, uses any workers beyond the contractor, or adds up to $1,000 or more in labor and materials on the project. That rule comes from the state licensing board and applies in Davis the same as anywhere else in California. Ask me about our license when I come out.
Can a handyman pour a small concrete slab in Davis without a license?
Only if the job passes every part of the state's small-job test, which means no building permit, no employees on the work and less than $1,000 in total costs. A bigger project can't be split into smaller contracts to get under that line, so a patio broken into pieces still counts as one job. If you do the work yourself on your own house, or with your own paid employees, the state's owner exemption may cover you instead.
How much does a new concrete driveway cost in Davis?
I don't quote a Davis driveway by phone, because the price comes down to things I can only judge on site. The big ones are the tear-out, how deep we dig, how much base goes in, the slab's thickness and steel, the finish you pick and whether a truck can reach the forms or we have to wheel concrete in past a side yard. Plain broom-finished concrete costs less than color or stamping, and the written estimate shows you where every part of the price goes.
Will my new concrete driveway in Davis crack like the old one?
Concrete cracks, and I'd rather tell you that now than promise otherwise, so we control where it cracks. We cut control joints, straight grooves that give the slab a weak line to crack along, early enough that the slab doesn't pick its own lines first. Most cracks then fall inside the cuts, where you barely see them, instead of wandering across the middle.
What causes a concrete patio to sink in Davis?
Most sinking slabs were poured on ground that was raked level instead of dug out and packed, so the dirt settled and took the concrete with it. Water running under the edge makes it worse. We dig down to firm subgrade, the ground the slab sits on, pack the base in layers and slope the surface so water runs off instead of under.
How long before I can drive on a new concrete driveway in Davis?
You can usually walk on it after a few days, but keep the car off longer, because concrete keeps gaining strength well after the pour. Driving on it early is how a lot of corner cracks start. I'll give you the dates for your slab when we finish, based on the weather that week.
Call about your Davis concrete job
We pick up seven days a week, early morning into the evening, so call (707) 898-1384 or send the form whenever it suits you, and ask me anything about licensing while you're at it.