Concrete patio construction in Cambridge MA - a slab that drains away from your house
Cracked old slab or water pooling by the back door? We pour a patio that's sloped, jointed and cured to handle Cambridge winters.
- Fully licensed and insured.
- Free on-site estimates.
- Replies within 1 business day.
What goes into building a concrete patio in Cambridge?
Concrete patio construction in Cambridge means we pour an outdoor slab, finish its surface and cure it, setting the slope so rain runs away from your house instead of toward it. Plan on a wait after the pour before you use it, because the slab needs time to cure, and cooler weather makes that wait longer.
Most people who call about a patio have an old slab that's cracked, tipped or holding water by the back door, or a patch of yard they'd finally like to use. The price mostly comes down to the patio's size, whether an old slab has to be broken up and hauled away, how easily we can get concrete into your yard and the finish you pick, since a plain finish costs less than a stamped pattern. The schedule turns on the weather, the cure and whether the city wants a permit, which we check with the building office before we set a date, and your estimate spells out what's included and what isn't so you know what you're paying for.
How do you know your patio needs replacing?
Cracks running across the slab
A hairline crack is normal for concrete, but cracks that widen, wander in several directions or leave edges at different heights usually mean the slab has moved or was never cut with control joints, the grooves that give concrete a planned place to crack. Water gets into open cracks every winter, freezes and pries them wider, so they grow faster than most people expect.
Water pooling by the house
If puddles sit on the patio after rain or water runs toward your back wall, the slab is pitched the wrong way or has settled toward the house. That water ends up against your foundation, and a damp basement is a much bigger repair than a patio.
Flaking or chipping on top
When the top layer peels off in patches and the stones underneath start to show, freezing water is winning, often helped along by salt or a weak finish. Worn spots like that don't patch well, and each winter takes a little more off the surface.
What our concrete patio construction includes
We start by measuring the space and looking at where water runs across your yard, because that decides which way the slab has to fall. Federal building guidance says a patio within 10 feet of the foundation should slope down and away from it, so when yours sits next to the house we set the forms to send water away from your foundation. We talk through the mix and the finish with you before pour day, and in hot weather we pour early, since a slab that bakes at midday can end up with a weak, dusty top. After finishing we cut the control joints before the concrete gets too hard to take them, then the slab cures, a stretch of keeping it moist and protected while it gains strength, and in cooler weather we give it the extra curing time it needs before we clean up and hand it over.
If you want the look of stone or brick in one solid slab, our stamped concrete services press a pattern and color into the patio while it's still workable. A new patio often needs a way to reach it too, and we can pour the walk with our concrete sidewalk building work on the same visit so the two line up.
Broom finish
A broom is dragged across the fresh concrete to leave a fine brushed texture that gives your feet grip when the patio is wet. It's the plainest and most affordable choice, and it suits anyone who wants a patio that's easy to keep clean and safe around a grill or table.
Float finish
The surface is smoothed with a flat hand tool, so it feels a bit softer underfoot than broom but still keeps some grip, which suits a sitting area more than a busy path. One concrete maker's guide advises a broom or float finish outdoors and says steel troweling reduces the air at the surface, which is why a glass-smooth troweled patio isn't a good fit here.
Stamped and colored
A pattern and color go into the slab so it reads like slate, brick or stone, which suits people who want the patio to match the house or garden. It costs more than a plain finish because it takes more hands and more time on pour day.
Get a free estimate for your Cambridge patio
Send the form and we'll get back to you within one business day to set a time. I come out, measure and write up a free estimate that lists what's included and what isn't, with no obligation.
(617) 613-6953- Based in
- Cambridge, MA 02139
- Hours
- Mon–Fri: 7 AM–9 PM, Sat–Sun: 6 AM–9 PM
What happens after you call about a patio in Cambridge?
Here's how a patio job runs from your first call or message to the day you can carry the table outside.
Call or send a message
Reach us at (617) 613-6953 or through the form, and we'll set up a time to come out. It helps to know the patio's rough size and how close it sits to the house.
I measure and write it up
I come out myself, look at where water runs on your lot, measure and ask how you want to use the space. You get an estimate that spells out what's included and what isn't, so you know the price before anything starts.
We plan permits and pour day
Once you're ready, we sort out any permit and pick a pour day around the weather. Cambridge sets weekday and Saturday hours for construction in residential areas, and Sunday or holiday work needs a special permit from the Police Department, so we book the pour inside those hours.
Our crew pours with me there
Our crew forms, pours, finishes and cuts the joints with me on site, and we clean up when the work is done. The slab then needs its cure before furniture or a grill goes on it, and we'll tell you when it's ready.
Why Cambridge homeowners call M&K Cambridge Concrete Company for patios
The owner at every estimate
I come out for every estimate and I'm on site with our crew while the work gets done. The person who measured your yard and talked through the slope with you is the one watching the pour.
Fully licensed and insured
We're fully licensed and insured, which is worth asking any patio crew about because Massachusetts doesn't require Home Improvement Contractor registration for people who install ground-level patios. Without that registration to check, a contractor's insurance is one of the few things you can confirm before you hire.
Learned the trade on a crew
I started out setting forms and pushing wheelbarrows before I learned to finish slabs, and I've been running this business since 2023. That's why I pay the most attention to the parts you can't see later, like the grade, the drainage and the joints.
If you'd like me to walk your yard and look at where the water goes, request an estimate or call (617) 613-6953.
Concrete patios, permits and drainage in Cambridge
In Cambridge, the Inspectional Services Department issues building permits, and anyone who builds, alters, repairs or demolishes a structure has to get one before work starts. Whether your patio needs one is something we check with that office for each job, and when a permit applies we take it out ourselves as your contractor and keep it posted at the site. If you own and live in a one- or two-unit home, you can take out the permit yourself, but the city notes you may then be liable for contractors on your property and you give up protection under the Homeowners Improvement Contractor Law, which is why the department encourages having a properly licensed contractor take it out.
The city counts a concrete patio as an impervious surface, one that sheds rain instead of letting it soak into the soil, and for small projects without stormwater requirements it recommends pervious patios, dry wells and rain gardens. On the tight yards we usually work in, we look at where the water off your new slab will end up and talk through whether one of those fits, the same way we do on patio jobs in Somerville and Arlington.
Questions about concrete patios in Cambridge
How much does a concrete patio cost in Cambridge?
There's no fair single price for a patio, because size, access, removing an old slab and the finish all move it, so we price each one after measuring. A yard you can only reach through a narrow side gate takes more labor than one with open access, and a stamped finish adds time over a broom finish. Call (617) 613-6953 and I'll come out and measure.
How long does a new concrete patio need to cure before I can use it?
Concrete industry guidance says to start curing a new slab right after finishing and keep it up for at least 7 days, and longer when temperatures are cooler. That's when the concrete gains its strength, so a patio poured in a cool fall week takes longer to be ready than one poured in summer, and we'll tell you when yours is ready for furniture.
How do I help a new concrete patio last through Massachusetts winters?
Ask for an air-entrained mix, which one admixture maker's guide advises for outdoor concrete because the additive leaves microscopic air pockets that give freezing water room to expand. A slope that keeps water from sitting on the slab helps just as much, so bring both up when we go over the mix and the layout.
Should I seal my new concrete patio?
Sealing is worth considering, and one maker's guide calls penetrating sealers the preferred choice for outdoor concrete that sees freezing, thawing and deicing chemicals. The same guide says they typically give 5 to 10 years of protection when they're properly applied, so plan on resealing down the road.
Can I use deicer on a new concrete patio its first winter?
Not if it was poured late in the year, because concrete industry guidance says concrete that didn't get enough drying time before freezing should get no deicing chemicals its first winter. Use sand or kitty litter for traction over snow and ice instead, and we'll tell you if your pour date puts you in that window.
Will my new concrete patio crack like the old one did?
Some cracking is normal because concrete shrinks as it cures and moves with the seasons, but joints cut on time give those cracks a straight, planned line instead of letting them wander across the slab. Standing water and a rushed cure cause a lot of the damage we see on old patios, which is why we put the slope and the cure ahead of everything else.
Concrete work that pairs with a new patio
Stamped concrete services
If you like the look of slate, brick or stone but want one solid slab, a stamped pattern and color can go right into your patio.
Concrete sidewalk building
A patio is easier to use when a solid walk leads to it from the driveway, gate or back steps, poured to meet it at the same level.
Service areas around Cambridge for concrete patios
M&K Cambridge Concrete Company is based in Cambridge, MA, and we build patios across the cities around it. Our 12 service areas with their own pages include Watertown and Belmont, and they aren't the only places we work.
Cambridge, MA
Get your patio on the pour schedule
Call (617) 613-6953 or use the form with your patio's rough size, how far it sits from the house and when you'd like it done, so I come ready to measure.