Cracked, sunken slabs you trip over out front? We dig out, pack the base and pour a new walk, then keep it moist while it cures.
Concrete sidewalk building in Lake Charles means we take out a cracked or sunken walk, or lay out a new path, then dig out and pack the ground, pour and finish fresh concrete, and look after it through the days it spends curing afterward.
Most calls start with a walk that's heaved, broken into pieces you trip over, or holds water by the front step. The price mostly follows the length and width of the walk, how much old concrete comes out and how much digging the ground needs. The schedule turns on rain, summer heat, the curing days after the pour and the permit check we do with the city or parish office before work starts. When I come out, I measure the route and write up what's included, so you're looking at your own figure before you decide. If the walk ends at your front stoop, new concrete steps can be planned along with it.
I come out to look at the walk and write the estimate myself, so the person who measured your route is the same one there on pour day. Our own crew does the work, and I'm on site while it's going on.
I learned on new subdivisions where the lots were bare dirt, and in 2021 I started this business for homes with fences, flower beds and families walking by. We settle who hauls the old pieces and where you'll park before we start.
We're licensed and fully insured, and I'm glad to go over it with you at the estimate before you sign anything. When you're ready to plan your walk, call (337) 549-5674 or send the form on this page.
Send your address, the route you have in mind and a rough length, and we'll reply within one business day. I'll come out for a free on-site estimate, look over the ground, measure and write up what's included, with no obligation to book.
The city's Permit Center is where owners get development permits, and Calcasieu Parish requires permits before any type of construction begins. We don't assume a walk is exempt, so we check with the office that covers your address before we start, and if a permit's needed, we handle the paperwork or walk you through it. If you'd rather ask yourself, the Permit Center takes questions about building on your property at 337-491-1294.
A lot of the walks we replace around here have heaved or dropped as the ground under them moved, which is the soil problem covered in the questions below. We're based in Lake Charles and do the same work in the cities around it across Southwest Louisiana, including Sulphur and Moss Bluff, and over the line in Orange, TX. If your city isn't listed on the site, ask us.
The cost of a new sidewalk comes down mostly to its length and width, whether an old walk has to be broken out and hauled off, and how much digging and fill the ground needs. Curves, steps, a decorative finish and tight access past fences and beds add to it, while a straight, plain broom-finished walk on good ground costs the least. I measure and write up your price at the estimate, so you're working from your own number.
Curing starts as soon as the concrete is placed and finished, and national trade guidance says it typically runs 3 to 7 days. Concrete left to dry out over that time can lose as much as half its potential strength compared with concrete kept moist, so plan the project around those days, not just the pour. That's why we keep the walk moist and show you how to help, as described above.
Expansive soil is a big cause here, because ground that swells and shrinks settles unevenly and can crack sidewalks, driveways and foundations. One statewide study found the coastal parts of Louisiana carry the highest risk, with property losses concentrated in the far southwest of the state, though every developed area has some. Because of how south Louisiana soils affect foundation settlement, the parish strongly recommends consulting a geotechnical engineer, a soils specialist, about testing, so if you're worried about your ground, ask me at the estimate whether a soils test makes sense before the pour.
For home improvement work worth at least $7,500 but less than $50,000, the state licensing board requires a Home Improvement Registration, and the board counts work on an existing home or the structures next to it as home improvement. The value includes labor, materials, rentals and every other direct or indirect cost of the job, not the price of the concrete alone. Registrants can't do structural work, so it's fair to ask any contractor which state credential they hold before you sign.
On hot or dry days, when cracks can open while the concrete is still soft, trade guidance calls for dampening the ground, the forms and the steel before the pour, without letting water pond. It's general guidance for concrete work, not a city rule, and it's a fair thing to ask any crew about, including ours. I'll tell you how we'll handle the heat for your pour date when we set it.
