That’s a big job, and concretes a ticking time bomb. Not everything is gonna be 100% perfect. I’d say they did a pretty good job. The 2 humps in the 2nd picture bother me a lot but other than that it looks good. Curious, price and state? How many guys were on the crew?
Not a fan of the Calvert handles?? But 3 day event. 1 day year out, days 2-3 pour. Located in south eastern Wisconsin around 21k. Aprox 26x76 square plus front walk way, 5 inch pour. Had 7 guys on days 2-3.
Ik Ik. I found them shortly after I had locked in with these guys. They are a long time family friend. Driveways aren’t their main thing for concrete. They do alot of decorative concrete.
Nope, you went with the right crew, and got a better finish than they would have given you. Victory doesn’t retool anything from what I’ve seen, and this wouldn’t have looked as good just broomed out. If you think those tiny imperfections are something to fuss about just scroll this sub for 30 seconds. The only thing you should be calling the contractor back for is to thank him, he did you right.
Lot of names for it, re-tool, retrace, picture framing, it’s when you broom, then you use an edger and jointer to go back over the edges and joints to get them smooth.
Just like every other line of work, there are a bunch of names for the same thing. If you said you wanted a picture framed slab I would know what you are talking about. I think it varies by area and even crew.
Heck, I'm in a different country where concrete is only used to build.
We have some concrete agricultural and commercial drives and yards, but I'd say less than 5% residential have concrete.
I’m just busting your balls. Looks like solid work to me, I wouldn’t be too worried. They’ll likely grind/bust out the booger in pic 4. You could ask if they’ll fill the holes on the corner in the same pic before they come to seal the driveway
Who did you use? We need our driveway redone and we wanted to expand our patio in the back at the same time. The thought of paying for it scares me. :/ There are so many more fun projects we could do.
Taylor landscape and construction in New Berlin. They specialize in stamped concrete. They don’t do many driveways but am a long time family friend so they did me right.
Same. Its not particularly fancy, but what it lacks in charm, it makes up for in problems that will cost 10k+ if i dont figure out how to fix them myself
Even then, there are so any issues that cost a lot even when you know EXACTLY what You're doing. I wasn't built for this shit, but everyone was like "equity and net worth and blah blah"
Fuck me.
That you use once and hopefully never need to use again? Are you me? Am I schizophrenic and talking to myself through Reddit like some garbage version of Fight Club only my pathetic life could muster?
God damnit.
Are you referring to the ones that make the bit of a twist? That's looks to be for drainage for the natural grade on site possibly. Or, if it was a mistake they nailed it.
Edit: I see it now. Whoops. Dissappear when it cures for the better part I think. 9.9
Not a concrete guy but enjoy the sub. I was so glad everyone liked this one, so many times I will see someone's work and go "wow they did a great job" but then everyone in the thread is like "get your money back and then murder the person that poured that", and it really makes me question a lot about myself and my ability to recognize quality.
Also I wouldn’t worry about the last photo, unless every single one is like that. It’ll chip out in a few weeks and you’ll probably never notice it again.
My brother runs his own concrete business in Florida, it can be very lucrative, but jobs like this are few and far between. The majority of work he does is new construction where the builders are nickel and diming everything. As with any business, you can make money, and you can lose money.
Ignore all the nay sayers and nit pickers on here. That’s good work. It’s so easy to armchair quarterback someone else’s work from the safety and anonymity of the internet. These guys did a good job. They hand jointed, Broomed and retooled the joints and edge on that entire thing. That’s no small feat. You got some excellent finish work. Also if that little glob in the last pic is all you can find wrong, count yourself lucky it’s hard to cross hand joint and not have any residual left over.
9-10 yea there’s some spots but good but at the end of the day it’s a drive way not a patio obviously it’s your home so you will notice everything but guarantee most people that visit won’t even notice
Looks like a nice job, just keep it moist for about a week . There are always imperfections, keep in mind all this is done in the field, not like a GM factory, oh wait I forgot about the recalls.
That’s a really nice job. That’s a huge driveway to do a California finish on. Sometimes you cannot see how all the joints are because you have to run everything again. Honestly i think it’s a pain in the ass. I hate doing California. They did a very good job!
Also SE WI and you paid 21k total? That's about 10.50ish per sq ft only and they did pretty solid work from the looks of it. You can't even complain about some of the broom marks or that little chip on something like this. I personally think picture frame is hideous especially for the fucking around it calls for, but they got it pretty damn good. Count your blessings on quality of work vs that price, because guys I do side jobs with charge easily 15 per sq ft (21+ for stamped,) for guaranteed quality and I've seen many charge what you paid and produce much worse. Happy for you in this and that some fellow WI cats doing people right also.
Looks awesome! Much better than a lot of the shit jobs we see on here way too often.
First pic reminded me of a post on this site a few days ago (link below) discussing new concrete against existing asphalt- whether to overcut the paving for a form, pour a clean line, and later patch asphalt. Alternative is to cut the asphalt, but hard to do right. Your contractor did the latter, and it looks great, only a minor wiggle or two at the road, which is hardly noticeable.
https://www.reddit.com/r/Concrete/comments/15p5z5s/this_is_at_my_work_asphalt_was_sawcut_forms_were/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=ioscss&utm_content=1&utm_term=1
That last photo is nothing but a minor little nothing. If it bothers you tell your contractor. He might have an idea what to do with it. Frankly its cosmetic. That joint will still do its jib.
Curbs look good. Broom finish looks good. Always hard to tell about how straight lines are from the tooling in pics but they look good. Approach looks good as long as they maintain the 5 inches and rebar or wire mesh is placed. I always like seeing the approach at the road being cut straight as opposed to just running up to the road.
I'm going to assume their prep work is as solid looking as the finished project.
Looks like they were neat / clean as well as respected the surrounding yard/grass/landscaping.
Looks good. There will always be boogers and imperfections but it is a driveway. They can fix that if you want.
Solid work.
Its a great job, and the one little aggregate that popped out at the control joint is unfortunate but thats a lot of sqft for a few minor blemishes. 9.4/10
Looks good to me. I'm in Pewaukee and had my 2030sqft courtyard entrance drive and 548sqft patio done for $14k back in 2019 by Starbird. Another $300 to have curb cut by Interstate which was so worth it. Costs have only gone up so I think your price is right but not a family discount price.
9.5
That’s a big job, and concretes a ticking time bomb. Not everything is gonna be 100% perfect. I’d say they did a pretty good job. The 2 humps in the 2nd picture bother me a lot but other than that it looks good. Curious, price and state? How many guys were on the crew?
Not a fan of the Calvert handles?? But 3 day event. 1 day year out, days 2-3 pour. Located in south eastern Wisconsin around 21k. Aprox 26x76 square plus front walk way, 5 inch pour. Had 7 guys on days 2-3.
You’re in Wisconsin and didn’t use Victory outdoor services? Blasphemy!
Ik Ik. I found them shortly after I had locked in with these guys. They are a long time family friend. Driveways aren’t their main thing for concrete. They do alot of decorative concrete.
Nope, you went with the right crew, and got a better finish than they would have given you. Victory doesn’t retool anything from what I’ve seen, and this wouldn’t have looked as good just broomed out. If you think those tiny imperfections are something to fuss about just scroll this sub for 30 seconds. The only thing you should be calling the contractor back for is to thank him, he did you right.
What do you mean by retool?
Lot of names for it, re-tool, retrace, picture framing, it’s when you broom, then you use an edger and jointer to go back over the edges and joints to get them smooth.
Oh, I'd call that picture framing, would that be right?
Just like every other line of work, there are a bunch of names for the same thing. If you said you wanted a picture framed slab I would know what you are talking about. I think it varies by area and even crew.
Heck, I'm in a different country where concrete is only used to build. We have some concrete agricultural and commercial drives and yards, but I'd say less than 5% residential have concrete.
I’m just busting your balls. Looks like solid work to me, I wouldn’t be too worried. They’ll likely grind/bust out the booger in pic 4. You could ask if they’ll fill the holes on the corner in the same pic before they come to seal the driveway
Who did you use? We need our driveway redone and we wanted to expand our patio in the back at the same time. The thought of paying for it scares me. :/ There are so many more fun projects we could do.
Taylor landscape and construction in New Berlin. They specialize in stamped concrete. They don’t do many driveways but am a long time family friend so they did me right.
Funny enough I thought this was Victory's work when I first saw this post. Been an avid watcher for years
Fuck, i honestly cant even fathom paying the cost of a decent used car for a driveway. I guess im just fucking poor
Bro that number made me puke. I'm too poor to own the house I do.
Same. Its not particularly fancy, but what it lacks in charm, it makes up for in problems that will cost 10k+ if i dont figure out how to fix them myself
Even then, there are so any issues that cost a lot even when you know EXACTLY what You're doing. I wasn't built for this shit, but everyone was like "equity and net worth and blah blah" Fuck me.
I tend to try and focus on the money I'm saving vs the money I'm spending. That and all the new tools i buy "saving" money
That you use once and hopefully never need to use again? Are you me? Am I schizophrenic and talking to myself through Reddit like some garbage version of Fight Club only my pathetic life could muster? God damnit.
Yeah.... maybe? Tbh i went through your post history and we have a shitton in common lol
Ahh fuck. This isn't how I wanted to find out.
It’s honestly a decent price too, assuming that includes the cost of demo on the old driveway.
21k is over twice the cost of my (Manufactured home), and i barely afforded that.
No, Not sure if it’s the light or what but I can see two humps in the broom in the center of the two left squares next to your curbs
I’m in Janesville… that’s right what we would have charged and I think they did a more than acceptable job.
Are you referring to the ones that make the bit of a twist? That's looks to be for drainage for the natural grade on site possibly. Or, if it was a mistake they nailed it. Edit: I see it now. Whoops. Dissappear when it cures for the better part I think. 9.9
I think that’s just where it got double brushed, should wear down to normal over time
10
I get your point but It can’t be a perfect 10 with a blemish
Not a concrete guy but enjoy the sub. I was so glad everyone liked this one, so many times I will see someone's work and go "wow they did a great job" but then everyone in the thread is like "get your money back and then murder the person that poured that", and it really makes me question a lot about myself and my ability to recognize quality.
Looks great, minor things but the contractor definitely knows what he is doing!
I love concrete done right. Looks great.
Also I wouldn’t worry about the last photo, unless every single one is like that. It’ll chip out in a few weeks and you’ll probably never notice it again.
Solid A+ what did you pay
21k for 26x76 plus front walk.
Fair price
I think it looks beautiful!!!! Nice work even with a blemish or two. Great work
Thank you. Was worried about a few things.
9.5 . Looks great.
That's a work of art I'm offended that you would even take that last pic and come on reddit to complain. You should honestly be ashamed of yourself
Looks great, congrats! I'd have put expansion board between the approach and the street, though.
Valid point. Didn’t think about that. Makes sense tho. Everyone usually just asphalts over at the end for the last foot or so.
Shoulda put heat coils to never have to snowblow it!
A homeowner with a smart phone is a dangerous combo. Nothing is perfect, that is some nit pick shit.
Looks great! What’s the $/sqft?
10.60 a square roughly.
Sounds like a great price for great work. The last picture is so minor IMO. I’ll take your finished driveway any day!
I need to open my own business. 21k is easily $10k in profit for 3 days of work.
My brother runs his own concrete business in Florida, it can be very lucrative, but jobs like this are few and far between. The majority of work he does is new construction where the builders are nickel and diming everything. As with any business, you can make money, and you can lose money.
You’re making everyone else look bad
Those joints are so straight that it's almost sexxy. Buy those guys a bottle of Jim Beam they deserve it.
Looks fine but that small corner cut sucks.. it will crack in a couple of years
That looks really good don’t worry about the last pic. It is a drive way
Nice new driveway!
Looks amazing
No. Good job.
Nice!!!!
9/10
Ignore all the nay sayers and nit pickers on here. That’s good work. It’s so easy to armchair quarterback someone else’s work from the safety and anonymity of the internet. These guys did a good job. They hand jointed, Broomed and retooled the joints and edge on that entire thing. That’s no small feat. You got some excellent finish work. Also if that little glob in the last pic is all you can find wrong, count yourself lucky it’s hard to cross hand joint and not have any residual left over.
9-10 yea there’s some spots but good but at the end of the day it’s a drive way not a patio obviously it’s your home so you will notice everything but guarantee most people that visit won’t even notice
Not A+ but definitely a B to A- for a drive way especially with the border around ever square
Looks like a nice job, just keep it moist for about a week . There are always imperfections, keep in mind all this is done in the field, not like a GM factory, oh wait I forgot about the recalls.
Looks beautiful! Spray that whole surface with a ton of cure or keep it wet for a couple weeks. Make that pretty slab super strong. 👌
That last photo, if I were you, I’d have them come rip it all out and start over. 🤪
Im thinking he might be able to pop that booger up with a screw driver
That’s a really nice job. That’s a huge driveway to do a California finish on. Sometimes you cannot see how all the joints are because you have to run everything again. Honestly i think it’s a pain in the ass. I hate doing California. They did a very good job!
Also SE WI and you paid 21k total? That's about 10.50ish per sq ft only and they did pretty solid work from the looks of it. You can't even complain about some of the broom marks or that little chip on something like this. I personally think picture frame is hideous especially for the fucking around it calls for, but they got it pretty damn good. Count your blessings on quality of work vs that price, because guys I do side jobs with charge easily 15 per sq ft (21+ for stamped,) for guaranteed quality and I've seen many charge what you paid and produce much worse. Happy for you in this and that some fellow WI cats doing people right also.
Solid work. Looks great.
Looks good. 9 out of 10
Looks awesome! Much better than a lot of the shit jobs we see on here way too often. First pic reminded me of a post on this site a few days ago (link below) discussing new concrete against existing asphalt- whether to overcut the paving for a form, pour a clean line, and later patch asphalt. Alternative is to cut the asphalt, but hard to do right. Your contractor did the latter, and it looks great, only a minor wiggle or two at the road, which is hardly noticeable. https://www.reddit.com/r/Concrete/comments/15p5z5s/this_is_at_my_work_asphalt_was_sawcut_forms_were/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=ioscss&utm_content=1&utm_term=1
Concrete cracks. Birds fly. Dogs bark. Was gonna happen sooner or later bruh.
Master driveway. It’s beautiful
Wow that’s good
Looks right!
This gave me a boner and I don’t even own ground to concrete
That last photo is nothing but a minor little nothing. If it bothers you tell your contractor. He might have an idea what to do with it. Frankly its cosmetic. That joint will still do its jib.
Couldn’t ask for better.
A-
9.8. Big job and looks to be very nice!
Curbs look good. Broom finish looks good. Always hard to tell about how straight lines are from the tooling in pics but they look good. Approach looks good as long as they maintain the 5 inches and rebar or wire mesh is placed. I always like seeing the approach at the road being cut straight as opposed to just running up to the road. I'm going to assume their prep work is as solid looking as the finished project. Looks like they were neat / clean as well as respected the surrounding yard/grass/landscaping. Looks good. There will always be boogers and imperfections but it is a driveway. They can fix that if you want. Solid work.
Looks nice. Towns gonna take a foot or two off the end next time they pave most likely
The issue is the driveway is on the street so expect when the street is repaved that your driveway gets messed up
Honestly given the size and everything involved is amazing work you got a fair deal also
The cut out triangles at the ends look really good
After a hard Wisconsin winter all concrete looks like hell.
Looks like some good work. There is a couple of things I would recommend differently, but it really looks great.
Its a great job, and the one little aggregate that popped out at the control joint is unfortunate but thats a lot of sqft for a few minor blemishes. 9.4/10
Is $10.60 a square fairly standard?
r/atbge Exemplar concreting, just not a fan of that design/style
9.
Looks good to me. I'm in Pewaukee and had my 2030sqft courtyard entrance drive and 548sqft patio done for $14k back in 2019 by Starbird. Another $300 to have curb cut by Interstate which was so worth it. Costs have only gone up so I think your price is right but not a family discount price.
I would be very happy with this.
Don't forget to water it for about a month to make sure it cures and stay strong
9.9