Cracked, tipped or sunken walk tripping people up? We dig it out, pack the ground and pour a new sidewalk that stays even.
Concrete sidewalk building in East Los Angeles means breaking out the old walk if there is one, packing the ground under it, then forming, pouring and finishing a new one, so you get a path to your door that stays level and sheds water.
Most calls start with a walk somebody trips on. One slab has sunk, another has lifted, a crack is wide enough to catch a heel, or water sits in a low spot after the sprinklers run. Usually the concrete itself isn't the problem. The ground under it settled unevenly, a tree root pushed it up, or nobody planned where the water would go.
The price moves with the size of the walk, whether old concrete has to be broken out and hauled off, how much digging the base needs and how hard the spot is to reach. Curves and steps add to it. The schedule turns on the same things plus curing, the wait while new concrete gains strength before you use it. Your written quote spells out what's included.
A sidewalk is flatwork, the flat concrete like walks, patios and driveways, and the state licensing board counts forming, pouring and finishing it as a concrete contractor's work. Flatwork that stays flat is what we're best known for. On a walk, that comes down to what's under it, which is why so much of my quote covers the ground and not the surface.
Three things on top of the base decide whether a sidewalk stays in one piece. You can't see most of them once the concrete is dry, so ask every contractor who quotes you about them.
Before we set a form, we check where the water runs off your roof, yard and sprinklers. A walk should shed water off to the side and away from the house. It shouldn't hold a puddle or send water toward your foundation. Getting that wrong is one of the usual reasons a new walk starts looking old fast.
Concrete shrinks as it dries, and it's going to crack somewhere. Control joints are grooves cut across the walk so the crack runs down the groove and not across the middle of a slab. They have to go in on time, because when they're cut late or skipped, the walk picks its own crack lines.
An outdoor walk should get a broom finish, a light texture dragged across the wet surface, because a slick troweled top can be dangerous when it's wet. Sprinklers, a garden hose or the first rain make that matter fast. If you want something dressier at the front door, there are textured options that still grip.
I handle the estimate and the final walk-through, and our crew lead runs everything in between. Here's how a sidewalk job usually goes from the first call to cleanup.
Call (213) 338-1030 or use the form and tell us roughly how long the walk is and where it runs. We get back to you to set up a time for me to come look.
I walk the job, measure, ask how you'll use the walk and find out which office handles your address. Then you get a written quote that spells out what's included, from tear-out to finish.
Our crew lead runs the job with our own crew, from breaking out the old walk and packing the base to setting forms, pouring, finishing and cleaning up. We keep the area blocked off so nobody steps in wet concrete.
I walk the finished sidewalk with you before we pack up, so you can point out anything that isn't right while the crew is still there. After that, the job is letting it cure.
A walk lasts as long as the ground under it. So we dig out the soft dirt and pack the base evenly from end to end, because one loose stretch settles faster than the rest and the slab cracks right over it. Even packing matters as much as how hard it's packed. That's the part you never see once it's poured, and it's where we spend the time.
When a budget gets tight, the base is usually the first thing cut, since nobody can tell on day one. I won't do that. I'd rather lose a job by quoting the prep right than win it by skipping steps and leaving you with a walk that sinks. If something has to give, take the plain finish and keep the base.
We start curing as soon as the finishing is done. On a sunny, warm, windy day out here the surface dries fast, and in warm weather new concrete needs wet curing or a curing compound to hold its moisture in while it gains strength. A top that dries out too early turns weak and dusty, so we avoid pouring in the worst of the midday heat.
We'll also point out any big tree close enough to lift the walk later. A common rule of thumb keeps about two sidewalk widths between a large tree and the edge of the walk, because cutting roots out after the fact can hurt the tree. If yours is closer than that, we'll talk about routing the walk around it before anything gets poured.
A sidewalk job often turns up other work. If the walk runs to a garage whose floor is cracked or sunk too, garage floor concrete can go on the same quote so the levels line up. If you'd like color or a pattern instead of plain gray, that's decorative concrete, and I'll price both versions side by side.
If most of the walk is sound and one or two slabs have sunk or lifted, we can cut those out and pour new ones. It costs less, but the new concrete won't match the old color exactly.
When the walk is cracked end to end or the base failed along its length, patching just chases the problem. Starting over gets you one even base, fresh joints and one color.
Send the form and we get back to you within one business day to set up a visit. I come out, measure and give you a written quote that spells out what's included. The estimate is free at your property, with no obligation to go ahead.
(213) 338-1030East Los Angeles goes through the county, so permits here come from LA County Public Works, and the county tells owners to ask their local office what the project requires. For this area that's the county's East Los Angeles Building and Safety office. Whether a walk on your lot needs a permit isn't something I'll guess at, so we check with that office before we set a date.
When your job does need a permit, we take care of it and the inspections that go with it, which check that the work matches what was permitted. If your property sits outside the county's jurisdiction, another office may handle it. Most cities around us run their own permit counters, and that includes places we work all the time, like Montebello and Monterey Park.
Around here we see a lot of front walks running from the street or driveway to the porch, and side walks back to the yard, many poured a long time ago. The usual trouble is a slab lifted by a tree that's grown since, or one that's sunk where a downspout empties. We build it the same way whichever side of a city line you're on.
I worked concrete every summer through school, hauling forms and finishing next to guys who'd been doing it for decades. I started this business in 2013, so that's 13 years now, and I still do the estimates myself. The person who measured your walk and wrote your quote is the one you talk to when you have a question.
We're fully licensed and insured. Our crew lead runs the work on site with our own crew, from the first shovel to cleanup. Our work is backed by our satisfaction guarantee. If your walk is tripping people up, call (213) 338-1030 or send us a message and I'll come take a look.
A cracked or sunken garage slab next to a fresh walk shows every flaw, and planning both together keeps the heights and finishes lined up where they meet.
If plain gray isn't what you want at your front door, colored, patterned or textured concrete gives the entry some character over the same solid base.
We're based in East Los Angeles and build walks in the cities around it, like Montebello, Downey and Monterey Park, plus plenty of others nearby. If your city isn't listed below, call and ask.
A concrete sidewalk in Los Angeles usually costs about $5.50 to $11 per square foot. Where yours lands depends on tearing out the old walk, how much base work it needs, how easy it is to reach and any curves or steps. I measure on site and give you a written quote that spells out what's included.
Research puts the average service life of a concrete sidewalk at 20 to 40 years, and how well it was built is the biggest reason one lasts longer than another. That's why the base, the joints and the curing matter as much as the price. A walk poured on loose dirt is unlikely to see the long end of that range.
Only on a very small job, and only under strict conditions. California's limit for unlicensed minor work is $1,000, and it applies only when the job needs no permit and the person employs nobody on it. If the walk needs a permit or they bring a helper, it's outside that exemption and takes a licensed contractor.
Clear the path and the ground along both sides of it, and move pots, furniture and anything stored nearby. Tell us where sprinkler lines, valves or yard lights run so we don't break them when we dig. It also helps to plan another way to your door while we work and while the concrete cures.
We'll tell you the day we finish, because it depends on the weather and how the concrete is curing. Until then, keep people, pets and bikes off it, since the top is still gaining strength and footprints or scuffs set in for good. Once we give the go-ahead, ease into heavy use.
Have your address, the rough length and width of the walk and a photo of any big tree nearby when you call or use the form, so I show up knowing what to look at.
