Concrete Patios in South Bend, IN

Concrete patios give you a level, clean spot to grill, eat and sit outside through the warm months, and they need very little upkeep. South Bend asks two things of a patio: be pleasant through summers with July highs near 83 degrees, and stay put through winters that bring about 64.5 inches of snow. Both depend on planning done before the ready-mix truck arrives.

Start with how you use the yard

Before we talk finishes, we talk about size and placement. A small bistro table needs far less room than a dining table for eight with chairs pushed back. A grill needs clear space and a path back to the kitchen door. Many older South Bend lots are narrow, with a detached garage at the back, so the patio often has to share space with a walk to the garage and a play area. We lay the outline out on the ground so you can see it before anything is dug.

Drainage is the whole game

A patio that holds water turns into a skating rink in winter and a source of cracking over time. Every patio we pour is pitched away from the house, typically about an eighth to a quarter inch per foot, so meltwater and rain run into the lawn. Where a downspout empties near the patio, we plan for it rather than letting it dump onto the slab. On lots where the yard slopes toward the house, we may need to regrade or add a step down.

Signs an old patio should be replaced

• It slopes toward the house or holds puddles after rain
• Sections have sunk or tipped at the edges
• The surface is flaking or pitted across large areas
• Wide cracks with grass or weeds growing through them
• A gap has opened between the patio and the house foundation

How we build a patio

We strip sod and topsoil, excavate to firm ground and place a compacted gravel base. Forms go in at the planned slope. Reinforcement is set on chairs. We pour an air-entrained mix, finish it, and cut or tool control joints in a pattern that fits the shape so shrinkage cracks fall in the joints. Where the patio meets the house, we place an isolation joint so the slab can move independently of the foundation.

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Finish choices

• Broom texture: lowest cost, and the grippiest surface when it is wet or frosty.
• Smooth or fine broom: a cleaner look under a roof or pergola.
• Integral color or stain: warms up plain gray.
• Exposed aggregate: the top paste is rinsed away to reveal the stone, which hides dirt and gives good footing.
• Stamped: pressed with a stone or brick pattern; our stamped concrete page covers it.

HomeGuide's patio guide lists plain concrete at about $4 to $12 a square foot and exposed aggregate at $7 to $18, so the finish choice moves the total noticeably.

Caring for a concrete patio

Sweep off leaves in fall so they do not stain the surface over winter. Shovel with a plastic blade, and skip rock salt on a patio; it is rarely needed on a surface you are not driving on. A penetrating or decorative sealer every few years keeps water out and color fresh. HomeGuide lists a 30 to 50 year life for plain, stained and stamped concrete patios.