Concrete contractor in Chickasaw, AL - slabs set right on older lots
Quickset Mobile Concrete Company builds and repairs driveways, patios, walks and slab foundations in Chickasaw, AL, from our base in Mobile, with the dirt dug out and packed before any concrete goes down.
Concrete work in Chickasaw's older neighborhoods
For a concrete contractor in Mobile, AL like us, Chickasaw is right next door, with Mobile on its east side, Prichard wrapped around its south and west, and Saraland just to the north. It started out as shipyard housing, and a lot of those first homes are still lived in, many of them in the Shipyard Village historic district near Chickasaw Creek. Most of our calls here come from homeowners, with some small business lots and the working waterfront by the port on the east side. The houses tend to run older, closer together and on smaller lots than the newer subdivisions out in the county.
On lots that old, the original slab was usually poured on whatever dirt was there, and years of settling show up as sunken corners and cracked driveways, so I start every job by finding out what's underneath. If you're building on a lot that was split off a bigger parcel, the city usually won't issue a building permit until the new plat is approved, so that's one of the first things I ask about.
What we pour and fix in Chickasaw
Concrete driveway building
Many Chickasaw driveways are narrow strips beside older houses. We dig out the soft dirt, pack a base and pour a slab that sheds water toward the street.
Concrete patio construction
Backyards behind the homes here are often small and flat, so a patio has to slope away from the house or rain sits against your foundation.
Stamped concrete services
Stamped concrete, pressed to look like brick or stone, suits the older streets here, and we seal it so the pattern holds up through wet summers.
Concrete sidewalk building
Roots and settling leave older walks with trip edges, so we pull the bad sections, fix the ground under them and pour new walk level with the rest.
Garage floor concrete
Plenty of older garages here have floors sunk at the door. We break them out and pour new ones sloped so water runs out, not back in.
Decorative concrete
Colored concrete, exposed stone and borders help a new patio or walk look at home beside one of the city's older houses instead of out of place.
Concrete retaining walls
Lots that drop toward low ground or a neighbor's yard can lose soil every heavy rain. A concrete wall with drainage behind it holds the ground in place.
Concrete floor installation
For small shops, sheds and additions around Chickasaw, we pour interior floors on a packed base with rebar, steel bars that hold the slab together if it cracks.
Concrete pool decks
Pool decks bake in the Gulf Coast sun and stay wet, so we give them a broom finish, a light brushed texture that grips bare feet.
Concrete steps construction
Front steps on older houses here tend to crack and pull away from the porch. We form and pour new ones on solid footing so they stay put.
Slab foundation building
New houses and additions on older lots here get a slab foundation built up from the subgrade, the packed soil the whole house sits on.
Foundation installation
Raised floors are common on older homes in Chickasaw, and when an addition needs to match, we set the forms and pour the foundation under it.
Concrete parking lot building
Small businesses along the main roads need lots that handle trucks and drain fast. We pour them thicker than a driveway, with joints planned for the traffic.
Concrete footings
Carports and porch additions on Chickasaw's smaller lots need footings, the wide pads under posts and walls, dug down to firm ground instead of loose fill.
Foundation raising
Settling in an older house shows up as sloped floors and sticking doors, so we raise the low side and deal with the water that let it drop.
Concrete cutting
Older houses here often need a trench cut through the slab for plumbing, or one bad section removed. We saw clean, straight lines so the patch blends in.
What signs mean your Chickasaw concrete needs attention?
Our heavy Gulf Coast rains find every weak spot, and on older slabs around Chickasaw, small cracks and low corners usually point to washed-out ground underneath.
- Cracks that keep getting wider
- One slab dropped below the next
- Water pooling after it rains
- Slab tipping toward the house
- Chipping or flaking on top
- Steps pulling away from the porch
If you spot one of these, call or send the form and I'll come look at what's going on underneath before anyone talks about tearing it out.
Should you repair the slab or replace it?
On a Chickasaw home it comes down to what's under the old slab. Tear-out, base work and size move the price and the schedule, and your written estimate shows which you need.
When a repair will do
If the cracks are hairline and the slab is still level, the ground under it is probably fine. We can cut out a bad section, raise a sunken piece or seal the cracks, and you keep the rest of the slab you already paid for.
When it's time to replace
When the slab is broken in many pieces, sinking across its width or draining toward your house, the problem is underneath. We tear it out, remove the soft dirt, pack a new base and pour again, because patching a slab on bad ground just buys time.
What Chickasaw's older lots ask of concrete
I write your estimate at your house, I run the crew on pour day, and you get a slab built right from the ground up, not just finished pretty on top.
Base before finish
If a budget gets tight, I'd rather trim the finish than the base, because a pretty top on bad ground cracks anyway.
Water checked before we form
I walk the yard to see where rain runs, then set the slab to drain away from your house.
Joints cut where cracks belong
We cut control joints, shallow grooves that give the slab a place to crack, early enough that cracks follow them.
Fully licensed and insured
Alabama requires a license from the state home builders board on paid home jobs over $10,000, so ask bidders for theirs.
Permits checked first
Before work starts we check with the office that covers your address and handle the permit paperwork if your job needs one.
Get your Chickasaw slab looked at
We take calls at (251) 219-6382 every day until 9 PM, so you can ring us from the driveway while you're looking at the crack.
Other cities we work in
Pick your city below, or if yours isn't listed, call (251) 219-6382 and ask, because we work across Mobile County, Baldwin County and into Mississippi.