Concrete Contractor in New Bedford, MA - Slabs Built on a Solid Base

The state says it turns on the specifics of your project, and it points you to your local building official for the answer. When a residential job does need a permit, the permit has to show the contractor's active registration number, so it's worth knowing who's pulling it. Part of every estimate I write is figuring out which offices your job goes through, and we handle the paperwork we're able to file and tell you early about anything that needs your signature.

Yes, if the job is on an existing, owner-occupied home with one to four units, Massachusetts requires Home Improvement Contractor registration, HIC for short. Driveways are on the state's list of work that doesn't need it, and the law doesn't reach new construction, buildings over four units, or investment, vacation and second homes, though that list covers the registration only. For HIC work estimated at $1,000 or more, you and the contractor need a written contract with the terms the law requires. We're licensed and insured, and I'm glad to go over which rules your job falls under.

The Massachusetts State Building Code covers it, and the code comes in two volumes. One- and two-family houses and townhouses of three stories or less, along with their accessory structures like a detached garage, fall under the residential volume, and every other building falls under the base volume. That's why I ask what kind of building it is on the first visit.

The price comes down to the size, how much old concrete we tear out and haul away, how much base the ground needs, how tight the access is and the finish you pick. A plain broom finish costs less than stamped or colored work, and if the budget's tight I'd rather you go plainer on top than cut the base, because nobody sees the base on day one but it decides whether the slab stays flat. Your estimate lays each of those out so you can see where the money goes.

You can usually walk on a new slab within days, but parking on it takes longer, because curing, the slow hardening that gives concrete its strength, keeps going well after the surface looks done. The exact wait turns on the mix and the weather, so I'll give you your dates when we schedule the pour. On a narrow street it helps to plan where you'll park in the meantime, and we'll talk that through with you.

For projects that need a licensed construction supervisor, you can look the license up on the state's construction supervisor licensing page. Locally, a business working under a name other than its legal name files a business certificate with the city clerk's office, and that certificate runs four years from the date it's issued. Ask me on the visit about anything you'd like to check.