Decorative concrete in Antioch CA - a stone or brick look that holds up outside
Tired of a plain gray patio, walk or driveway? We pour, color and seal concrete that looks like stone, brick or slate.
- Licensed and fully insured.
- Free on-site estimates.
- Replies within 1 business day.
What is decorative concrete, and is it worth it for your patio?
Decorative concrete is concrete poured where it will stay, then colored, stamped, stained or textured so it looks like slate, brick or stone. In Antioch we use it for patios, walks, driveways and steps that need to look good and stand up to everyday use.
Most people who call us have a plain slab they're tired of, or a yard project where they want the look of stone without laying stone. An industry guide on decorative concrete calls it a durable, economical alternative to other materials, and I agree as long as the ground under it is done right. The price moves with the size, how many colors and patterns you want, how much digging and grading the base needs and how easily we can get the truck to it. The schedule mostly turns on whether the work reaches the street, which brings in the city, and on the weather for sealing day. If you're set on a pressed pattern, our stamped concrete services page covers that in more detail, and either way the written estimate gives you your own number.
How can you tell your patio or walk needs decorative work?
Faded, patchy color
Color that's washed out where people walk usually means the sealer has worn through and the surface is taking the traffic directly. Leave it and dirt and water work into the top, so bringing the color back takes more than a clean and reseal would have.
Flaking or dusty top
A top that chips, flakes or leaves powder on your shoes is usually a weak surface from how it was poured or finished. It keeps spreading, and a new coat won't stick well until that loose layer is dealt with.
Cracks, sinking or puddles
Sections that drop, crack across the pattern or hold water toward the house usually point to a base that wasn't packed or a slab that wasn't sloped away. Water getting underneath makes the settling worse, and no finish fixes a slab that's still moving.
How we do decorative concrete
We start by going over the look you want, the color method and the sealer together, because each one changes how the surface wears and how much upkeep you're signing up for. Then I check the layout and which way the water will run, and we dig out and pack the subgrade, which is the ground the slab sits on, instead of raking dirt level and pouring over it. That base is the part nobody sees and the first thing people want to trim from the budget, and I won't trim it, because a nice pattern on a slab that settles just turns into a nice-looking crack. After that we set forms, add rebar where the job calls for it so the steel holds the slab together, pour, color and stamp or texture the top, cut the joints and seal it, following the color or sealer maker's instructions, weather included, on sealing day.
Decorative work often ties into other pours. If a patio has to step down a slope, we build concrete retaining walls first so the slab has level, held ground to sit on. When you want the same colored, sealed finish inside a shop or an addition, that's concrete floor installation, and we can plan it alongside the outdoor work.
Stamped and colored new slab
This suits a patio, walk or driveway where you want a laid-stone or brick look, because the pattern is pressed into the fresh concrete and colored as it's finished. It's the most involved option, with the most choices in pattern and color.
Stained or textured new slab
This suits people who want color and grip without a pattern, like a stained or textured surface on a new walk or patio. It usually costs less than stamping and is simpler to reseal later.
Overlay or stain on an old slab
This suits a slab that's still flat and solid but plain or worn, since a decorative overlay or stain adds color without tearing anything out. If the old slab is cracked through or sinking, I'll tell you, because a coating won't hold a moving slab together.
Get a written price for your decorative concrete
We reply within one business day, then I come out, measure and send a written price, free and with no pressure to book. Tell us the rough square feet, the look you want and whether it reaches the curb.
Call (925) 503-1201- Based in
- Antioch, CA 94509
- Hours
- Mon–Sun: 6 AM–11 PM
What happens when you call us about decorative concrete in Antioch?
Here's how a decorative job runs from your first call to the final walk-through, so you know who you're dealing with at each point.
Call or send the form
You reach us at (925) 503-1201 or through the form, and we set a time for me to come out. If you have a photo of a pattern or color you like, keep it handy.
I walk and measure the site
I come out myself, look at the site and what's around it, work out how we'll get concrete to it, then send you a written estimate. It lays out the base work, the finish, the color method and the sealer, so you can see where your money goes and compare it with other quotes.
We handle permits and pour
Once you say go, we sort out anything the city or county needs, then set forms, pour and finish. You'll have the dates before the truck is booked so you can plan around losing the patio or driveway for a bit.
Walk the finished job together
I walk the finished job with you before we leave, so anything you're not happy with gets talked through while we're still there. We'll also tell you when it's ready to use and how to keep it clean.
Why Antioch homeowners call Excel Antioch Concrete Company for decorative work
The owner prices and pours it
I come out myself to look at the job and give the estimate, and my crew and I do the work. The person who talked through the look with you is the one standing there when it's poured.
Licensed and insured for Antioch work
Antioch requires every contractor and subcontractor on a job to carry a current state license and a city business license. We're licensed and fully insured, so you're not taking a chance on who's working at your house.
Raised on concrete, running since 2023
I learned this work on my dad's jobs from the time I could push a wheelbarrow, and started this business in Antioch in 2023. You get someone who's finished a lot of slabs and will tell you straight about cracks and cost.
Color and pattern get the attention, but the ground under them decides how the job holds up, so that's where I start. Ask for your estimate and I'll come take a look.
Decorative driveways, walks and patios in Antioch
Antioch's building permit list treats most residential flatwork as exempt, which covers a lot of backyard patios, but we still confirm before we start. Driveways and front walks are different, because the public right-of-way takes in sidewalks, streets and easements, and the city's Engineering Division issues encroachment permits for work there, driveway changes included, only to the property owner next to it or a state-licensed contractor. So before any job, we check with the city or county office that handles your address, and if a permit is needed we apply for it as your contractor or help you file it yourself.
Most of the decorative work we do around here is backyard patios and front walks on houses where the original slab was plain gray and the owners want it to match a remodel or a new yard. Side yards are often narrow, so I plan how the concrete gets to the back before I price it. We see the same kinds of yards on jobs in Brentwood and Discovery Bay.
Questions about decorative concrete in Antioch
Call (925) 503-1201Stamped concrete patios in the Bay Area usually cost about $10 to $20 per square foot, and that's the going range in the area, not our price. Reinforced stamped patios run higher per square foot than unreinforced ones, so check which kind each quote is pricing before you compare them. I'll measure your job and give you our number in writing.
Only on a very small job, because California lets an unlicensed person take work up to $1,000, and only when it needs no permit and they have no employees. A licensed landscaping contractor can also take on concrete that's part of a larger yard project, so a patio inside a full landscape job can go to one company.
A common way is color hardener, which one maker describes as a dry-shake powder spread on fresh concrete, often before stamping, that colors the top and makes it denser. If you want a second color, another maker says a powder release gives strong contrast between the base color and the release color. We'll tell you which we'd use on your slab and why.
For a natural look with little or no smell, a water-based sealer is a good fit, though one maker notes it has a hard time soaking into a tight, dense surface. That's why I look at how smooth and dense your finish is before we pick a sealer together.
Keep it clean, because one sealer maker says frequent removal of loose dirt significantly lengthens a sealed coating's life. In practice that means sweeping or rinsing it regularly instead of letting grit grind into the finish, and resealing when it starts to wear thin.
It will probably crack somewhere, because concrete does, and I'd rather tell you that now. What we control is where, by cutting control joints, grooves that give the slab a planned place to crack, early enough that the cracks follow them, and by setting it on a packed base so it doesn't settle. On a stamped surface we line the joints up with the pattern so they blend in.
Related concrete work for your yard and home
Concrete retaining walls
If your patio sits on a slope or the yard needs leveling first, a poured wall holds the soil back so the new slab has flat, stable ground.
Concrete floor installation
Want the same colored, sealed look indoors? A new interior slab for a shop, studio or addition can be colored and sealed to match outside.
Service areas for decorative concrete around Antioch
Excel Antioch Concrete Company is based in Antioch, CA, and works in the cities around it. The 12 cities below each have their own page, from Concord out to Rio Vista, and we work in plenty of places in between.
Antioch, CA
Book a site visit for decorative concrete
Picking a color and sealer is easier standing on the actual spot, where we can see the light, the house and where the water goes.