Some flaws in new concrete are normal and some are poor work. This page helps you tell them apart, and says what to do when a contractor will not put things right.
Why is my new concrete already cracking, and is the contractor responsible?
Hairline cracks in new concrete in the first weeks are usually shrinkage. Concrete gets smaller as it dries, and in Baton Rouge heat it dries fast. A few fine cracks, especially ones that follow the joints, are expected. Is the contractor responsible for a crack that shows up weeks later? It turns on the cause. Wide cracks, cracks with a height difference, and random cracks on a slab with no joints point to workmanship: joints cut late, a base left soft, or too much water in the mix. Your written contract and warranty decide what you can claim, so photograph the crack with a coin for scale and send it to the contractor in writing.
Why does my new concrete have dark and light patches?
Dark and light patches come from uneven drying. Parts that stayed wet longer cure darker. Shade from a tree, a tarp left on one area, two truckloads that differed slightly, or finishing done at different times all leave a mark. In our humidity a new slab can stay blotchy for weeks. Most of it evens out over the first months. Blotches from a hardener or color applied unevenly do not fade and need a stain or tinted sealer to blend.
What happens if it rains on fresh concrete?
If it rains on fresh concrete before the surface has set, the rain washes cement paste off the top and leaves it weak, sandy and pitted. In Baton Rouge, summer storms build quickly in the afternoon, so this is a real risk. A crew should watch the radar, pour early and have plastic sheeting on site. Light rain a few hours after finishing does little harm. Heavy rain during finishing can ruin the surface, and that slab may need grinding and resurfacing or replacement.
My new slab has footprints, rough spots and a wavy finish with low spots. Is that acceptable?
No. Footprints, trowel gouges and birdbaths that hold water are finishing faults. A broom finish should look even, and the slab should drain. Before you complain, hose the slab and photograph where water stands and how deep. Shallow marks can be ground out. Low spots can sometimes be filled with a bonded topping, though the patch will show. A slab that holds water against the house should be corrected, not lived with.
Are control joints really necessary? My contractor says he will saw-cut them a week later.
Control joints are necessary. Concrete will crack as it shrinks, and joints make it crack in a straight line at the bottom of a groove instead of across the middle. Waiting a week is far too late. Saw cut joints need to go in as soon as the slab can take the saw without raveling, which in hot weather means the same day or early the next. After a week of Baton Rouge heat the slab has already chosen where to crack.
My slab was poured without rebar or mesh and I only found out afterwards. What now?
First check your contract. If it specified steel and the slab was poured without rebar or mesh, the contractor did not deliver what you paid for, and you should say so in writing right away. If the contract was silent, your position is weaker. Steel does not stop cracks. It holds them tight and keeps the pieces level. On swelling clay that matters a great deal, so a slab with no steel here is more likely to end up with stepped cracks.
The contractor will not come back to fix the problems. What can I do?
Put it in writing. Send a dated letter or email with photos, a list of the defects and a reasonable deadline. If the contractor still will not come back, you have several routes. The Louisiana State Licensing Board for Contractors takes complaints about contractors it licenses or registers. The Consumer Protection Section of the Louisiana Attorney General's office takes consumer complaints. Small claims court or a lawyer can pursue the money. Hold on to the contract, proof of payment, photos and every message. This is general information, not legal advice.
My new stamped concrete is slippery. Can that be fixed?
Yes. Slippery stamped concrete is nearly always a sealer problem. A thick glossy coat fills the texture and turns slick as soon as it is wet, which here is most afternoons in summer. The next coat can carry a fine grip additive, or the gloss sealer can be stripped and replaced with a matte one. Shaded stamped concrete also grows a film that makes it slick, and that needs washing.
Why is my stamped concrete fading, cloudy or peeling?
Cloudy sealer means moisture is caught under it. That happens when sealer goes on too thick, on a damp slab, or on a humid day, and when ground moisture keeps rising through the concrete. Fading is the sun wearing the sealer and surface color. Peeling comes from too many coats stacked up over the years. The cure is to strip or chemically re-melt the old sealer and apply one thin coat of a product that lets vapor out.
The surface started flaking within the first year. Why?
Flaking in the first year is a surface that was weak from the day it was poured. In colder states the first winter of freezing and salt exposes it. Here it is usually exposed by rain, pressure washing or tires. The causes are water worked into the top during finishing, rain on the pour, or no curing in hot wind and sun. It is a workmanship matter. Raise it with the contractor in writing while the slab is still new.
My concrete was poured in extreme heat and now it looks bad. Was that the cause?
Quite possibly. Concrete poured in high heat sets fast, so finishers have less time, and the surface dries before the body of the slab. The signs are a web of fine cracks, rough or torn finish, cold joints between loads and weak, dusty patches. Summer pours are normal in Baton Rouge, but they call for an early start, a mix suited to heat, enough crew and wet curing or a curing compound right after finishing.
The stamped pattern is crooked and uneven and I still owe the final payment. Should I pay?
Hold the final balance until the two of you agree in writing how the defect will be dealt with. Do not just go silent. Tell the contractor what is wrong, with photos, and ask for a proposal. A crooked or shallow stamped pattern cannot be re-stamped once hard. The choices are to accept it with a price reduction, to hide it with stain or an overlay, or to replace the affected sections. Read your contract for what it says about final payment and disputes.
The crew left ruts in my yard, washout by the street and splatter on the house. Who cleans it up?
The contractor should, and a good contract says so. Ruts in a soft lawn are hard to avoid entirely in Baton Rouge, but they should be filled and raked. Truck washout must not be left in the street or sent into a ditch or storm drain. Splatter on brick, siding and doors comes off far more easily in the first day or two than later. List what was left, with photos, before making the last payment.
My new pad is out of level, and the forms were left on and are stuck. What should I do?
Measure before you call. Outdoor slabs are meant to slope a little for drainage, so out of level is only a fault if it differs from what was agreed or sends water the wrong way. A pad for a shed, hot tub or generator that needed to be flat and is not should be corrected by the contractor. Forms are normally stripped within a day or two. Boards left on for weeks swell and grip the concrete. They can be cut and pried off with care, and that is the contractor's job to finish.
The only real price is one written after we have seen your property. The estimate is free. Call (225) 434-4721 or text us a few photos.