Concrete Contractor in Lowell, AR - Driveways and Patios Built on a Solid Base

The City of Lowell takes permit applications by email at risk.reduction@lowellarkansas.gov, and you can download each application from the city's permits page before you send it in. The city's list names grading and building work among others, so ask the city whether your slab needs one. When it does, we take care of the paperwork and book the inspections for you.

Lowell figures a building permit fee from the gross area, times a square-foot construction cost, times a permit fee multiplier. Sewer expansion, Fire/EMS impact and plan review fees are added where they apply. If your job turns out to need a permit, I'll go over that part with you so it isn't a surprise.

In most cases, yes, because Arkansas requires anyone who bids on or manages repairs, removal, renovation or additions to an existing single-family home or its property to hold a license from the state's Residential Contractors Committee, unless they're exempt. Jobs that cost $2,000 or less are exempt, but not when the work is split into separate contracts under $2,000 to get around it. A Limited license covers home improvement projects under $50,000, labor and material included, and an Unlimited license covers any size. We're licensed and fully insured.

A driveway in Lowell is priced on its size, how much old concrete has to come out, how much digging and packing the ground needs, and the finish you choose, so I give you a figure only after I've seen the job. A sloped lot or a driveway that has to drain away from the garage takes more base work, and a stamped finish costs more than a plain broom finish. If you're trimming the budget, I'd rather you cut the finish than the base, because the base is the part you can't fix later without starting over.

Most sinking comes from the base, the dirt under the slab that was raked level instead of dug out and packed, so the concrete settles right along with it. Cracks also show up in odd places when control joints are cut late or skipped, and water running toward the house or under the slab softens the ground even more. I won't tell you concrete never cracks, but when we fix those three things, the new slab won't fail the way the old one did.

You'll be walking on a new patio well before you can park on a new driveway, because the slab keeps curing, hardening slowly as it gains strength, for days after the pour. I tell you when your job is ready for feet and when it's ready for the car. We also skip pouring in midday heat, since a top that dries too fast turns weak and dusty later.