Concrete steps construction in Pembroke Pines FL - steps that match and feel solid

Most people call once the front edges start chipping, a crack runs across a tread, or a gap opens where the steps meet the house. The price mostly comes down to how many steps you have and how wide they are, whether the old ones have to be broken out and hauled away, and whether we pour new steps or set precast. The schedule turns on that same choice, since poured steps need forms and a wait before you walk on them and precast doesn't, and on the weather. If the walk at the bottom is breaking up too, we can look at a new concrete sidewalk at the same visit, and your own figure for the whole job comes from the estimate once I've seen it.

First I check whether the base under your steps is still solid, because worn steps can sometimes be fixed, and that answer comes before we talk about poured or precast. If they've sunk or pulled away from the house, I'll tell you straight that a patch won't do it. When new steps are the answer, our crew breaks out the old ones, digs down to firm ground and packs the subgrade, the layer the steps sit on, so they don't settle with the dirt later. That base is hidden on day one, so it's the first thing people want to cut, and it's the one thing I won't skimp on, because it decides whether your steps stay put. We build forms so every riser comes out the same height, set rebar, the steel that holds the concrete together if it cracks, then pour and give the treads a broom finish, a light texture that gives your feet grip when the steps are wet. After that the steps cure, the wait while the concrete gains strength, before anyone puts full weight on them. If you go precast, we set it on the same kind of packed base.

Steps don't stand on their own when they're part of a bigger build. On a new home or an addition, we plan them with the slab foundation building so the top step lands right at the door. When the house needs a new foundation, the steps get worked out alongside the foundation installation so the two fit together and the joint between them is planned instead of left to chance.

In Pembroke Pines, the city's Engineering Division issues engineering permits for construction on private property, and its list names sidewalks but not concrete steps, so that list alone doesn't settle whether your steps need one. When your job needs a permit, we take care of the application and the paperwork the city asks for as part of the work, and if it's unclear, we check with the city before anything starts.

Heat is the other thing that shapes this job here, because fresh concrete sets faster in hot weather, which makes the finish harder to get right and raises the chance of shrinkage and heat cracks. Industry guidance suggests pouring at a time of day or night when the weather is favorable and keeping the concrete from losing moisture while it cures, so we pick the pour time with the weather in mind. Hot days also tempt a crew to add water at the job site to keep the mix moving, which can leave a weak, dusty top, so ask anyone you hire when they plan to pour and what they do about water. We're based in Pembroke Pines and work across the cities around it in Broward and Miami-Dade, and we deal with the same heat on step jobs in Miramar and Davie.