Decorative concrete in Saint Charles MO - a finish you know how to care for
Tired of a plain gray patio or walk? We pour decorative concrete with a color and finish you picked, on a base built for winter.
- Licensed and insured.
- Free on-site estimates.
- We respond within 1 business day.
What is decorative concrete, and what goes into the price?
Decorative concrete is flatwork, the slabs you walk and drive on like patios, walks and driveways, finished with color, texture, stain or an overlay instead of plain gray, and K&L Saint Charles Concrete pours and finishes it for homes in Saint Charles, MO.
Most people who call me have a patio or front walk that's plain, worn or doesn't match the house anymore, and they're torn between stamped concrete, a stain or something simpler. The price moves with the size of the area, how much old concrete has to come out, how much base work the ground needs and which finish and sealer you pick, since a two-color stamped pattern takes more hands and hours than a broom finish, the light brushed texture that gives a slab grip. The schedule turns mostly on weather, because we plan pours around heat and rain, and the concrete has to cure, which is the wait while it hardens, before any sealer goes on. The written estimate I send after my visit gives you your own number.
How we plan and pour decorative concrete
Before anything gets poured, I go over finishes, stains and sealers with you and how each one ages, and I tell you what every option asks of you in upkeep so the look you pick is one you can keep up. Then our crew digs out the old slab and soft dirt down to the subgrade, the firm ground the slab sits on, and packs a gravel base in layers, because a base that's only raked flat settles and takes the nice surface down with it. We set the forms so water runs away from the house, place rebar, the steel inside that holds the slab together if it cracks, pour early in the day so the heat doesn't leave a weak, dusty top, and work in the color and texture while the concrete is still fresh. We cut control joints, shallow grooves that give the slab a straight line to crack along instead of a random spot, and let it cure before the sealer goes on. If the budget gets tight, I'd rather you pick a simpler finish than thin out the base, because the base is what I spent years repairing.
Decorative work often sits beside other jobs. On a sloped yard, concrete retaining walls hold the ground back from a new patio and can carry a matching color or texture, so the two read as one project. Indoors, the same stains and sealers can go on a new slab from our concrete floor installation work.
New concrete with color or stamping
This suits a patio, walk or driveway you're replacing or adding, because the color, texture or stamp goes in while the concrete is fresh and sits on a new base. Finishes can be mixed, like a stamped field with a smooth border, if you want something that isn't straight off a sample board.
Stain or overlay on your slab
A stain or an overlay, a thin new top layer, suits a slab that's still solid and flat but looks plain or worn, since it changes the surface without tearing anything out. It's the wrong fix for concrete that's sinking or badly cracked, because a new surface follows whatever the old slab does.
Decorative concrete in Saint Charles and the public right-of-way
On decorative work in Saint Charles, the first question is whether your job touches public ground. The city's Engineering Department issues permits for driveway and sidewalk work that affects the public sidewalk, street or utilities, and its permit doesn't cover flatwork that stays on private property outside the right-of-way, the strip along the street that belongs to the public. A driveway apron, a front walk that meets the public sidewalk or a wider driveway can cross that line, and the city caps driveways at 29 feet wide in total, so any plan to widen a stamped or colored driveway has to fit under that. Where your address falls under St. Charles County, the county requires anyone working in its right-of-way, a homeowner included, to get a Special Use Permit first. Before we start, we check with the office that covers your address, handle the filing when a permit is needed, keep you posted and tell you if another office has to sign off too.
We're based in Saint Charles and work in cities across St. Charles County and nearby St. Louis County, so if you don't see yours listed, call and ask. A lot of what we see are older plain gray patios and walks that owners want to dress up, and we do the same work in St. Peters and O'Fallon.
Why Saint Charles homeowners call K&L Saint Charles Concrete for decorative work
I'm at every estimate myself
I come out to every estimate, so the person explaining your finish options is the owner, not someone reading off a sheet. You can ask me about drainage, joints or the base while we're standing right on the spot.
Since 2013, after years of repairs
Before I started this business in 2013, I spent years doing upkeep for a property management company, fixing cracked walks, sunken steps and broken driveways on rental after rental. That's where I learned what fails and why, and it's why I explain each step before we pour.
Licensed and insured on your property
We're licensed and insured. That matters on decorative work, where a crew spends real time on your property with saws, forms and a concrete truck in the driveway.
A base built for freeze-thaw
Hot, humid summers and winter freeze-thaw around St. Louis can crack a slab when the base under it wasn't prepared right. That's why I'll show you how deep we dig and what goes back in before we ever talk about color.
On decorative work, the finish you pick has to match the upkeep you'll actually do. Get in touch or call (636) 277-0973, and I'll come walk the site with you.
Request a quoteGet a free on-site estimate for your decorative concrete
Send the form and we'll reply within one business day to set a time for me to come out. The visit and the written estimate are free, and there's no pressure to book.
What happens after you call about decorative concrete in Saint Charles?
Call or send a message
Call (636) 277-0973 or use the form, tell us roughly what you have in mind, and we'll set a time for me to come look at the site.
Walk the site together
I ask how you'll use the space and explain the finish and sealer options before I write anything up. Then you get a written estimate with each part of the job listed separately, so you can see what the base costs next to the color.
We pour, then walk it
Once you say yes, we check what your address needs from the city or county, and our crew lead runs the job from digging to sealing. At the end I walk it with you and go over how to care for the finish you picked.
Frequently asked questions
How much does stamped concrete cost in the St. Louis area?
Stamped concrete in the St. Louis area usually costs about $9 to $16 a square foot, which is the going market rate for stamped work around here, not our price and not a figure for stains or overlays. Where your job falls depends on its size, the base work and the pattern you pick, and the written estimate after my visit gives you your own number.
How do I keep decorative concrete from scaling when I use deicers in Saint Charles?
Ask whether the mix will be air entrained, because air-entraining additives make tiny air bubbles in the concrete that help it handle freezing and thawing and resist scaling, the flaking of the top surface that deicing chemicals cause. If you salt your driveway or patio in winter, that's a fair question for anyone bidding the job, us included.
What is the best sealer for stamped concrete if I want rich color?
A topical film-forming sealer, one that leaves a thin coat on top, is usually the better pick for richer color, because it deepens the color and most penetrating sealers don't. That's why film-forming sealers are the ones used most on stamped concrete.
How often does stamped concrete need to be resealed?
There's no set number of years, so you reseal when the surface stops shedding water and stains or the color has lost its depth. Resealing is the most common upkeep stamped concrete needs, and it's normal wear, not a sign the job went wrong. Our work is backed by our satisfaction guarantee.
How long does new stamped concrete need to cure before it's sealed?
There's no single number, because curing time depends on how the concrete is cured, the temperature, the humidity and the mix. Penetrating sealers generally need fully cured concrete, so the weather after the pour usually decides the sealing date.
Can too much sealer ruin the look of stamped concrete?
Yes, too many coats of a film-forming sealer, or coats put on too soon, can spoil how the surface looks. A good finish comes from measured coats at the right time, so more sealer isn't better.
Other concrete work that often goes with it
Concrete retaining walls
A sloped yard can wash dirt and water onto a new patio, and a retaining wall holds that ground back so the finished surface isn't fighting the hill every time it rains.
Concrete floor installation
If you want a stained or sealed look indoors, in a basement, shop or sunroom, it starts with a new interior slab poured flat and level enough to take that finish.
St Charles, MO
Book your decorative concrete estimate today
Have the rough square footage, a photo or two of the look you like and whether the work touches the public sidewalk or street ready, and we can talk real options on the first visit.