Concrete Contractors in Tucson, AZ

Tucson is our home market, and concrete contractors here pour into conditions that most of the country never deals with. The city counted 542,629 people at the 2020 census, spread across about 241 square miles of alluvial plain ringed by the Santa Catalina, Tortolita, Santa Rita, Rincon and Tucson mountains. Wikipedia's climate table puts the average at 158 days a year at or above 90 degrees and only about 12 nights at or below freezing. Heat, not frost, is what tests a slab here, along with the summer storms that follow it. We pour new driveways, patios, walkways and slabs, and we repair or replace concrete that has cracked, settled or been undercut by water.

Pouring in the heat

Summer highs average 98 to 102 degrees, and the record is 117, set on June 27, 1990. Fresh concrete loses water fast in that air, and a slab that dries out on top before it has gained strength is a slab that crazes, curls at the edges and dusts. In the hot months we schedule pours for early morning, wet the base before placing, keep finishers ahead of the sun and start curing as soon as the surface allows. Those habits matter more in Tucson than almost any finish choice you make.

Monsoon water and slab edges

The monsoon officially starts June 15, and the first storms tend to arrive around July 3. July averages 2.21 inches of rain and August 1.98, much of it in short, hard bursts. Large parts of the city have no storm sewers, so runoff moves across lots and streets until it finds a wash. The wettest single day on record dropped 3.93 inches on July 29, 1958, and July 2021 set the monthly record at 8.06 inches.

That is why we spend so much time on grade. A patio should shed water away from the stem wall. A driveway should carry it to the street, not into the garage. Walk edges next to gravel or decomposed granite need enough depth that a storm does not wash the base out from under them.

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Caliche under the yard

University of Arizona Cooperative Extension describes caliche as soil cemented together by lime, in layers that run from a few inches to several feet thick, and notes that many southern Arizona soils have it. It is hard to dig and it slows water from soaking in. For concrete work that cuts both ways: caliche can be a firm bearing surface, but water that cannot drain through it will sit at the edge of a slab. We dig test spots before we quote, decide whether to remove or work over the layer, and plan drainage around what we find.

Old neighborhoods and new subdivisions

Tucson's housing spans a long timeline. El Presidio traces to the 1775 presidio, Barrio Santa Rosa dates from the 1890s, and the Armory Park district near downtown was first built around 1880, partly as Southern Pacific Railroad company housing. East Tucson was mostly built from the 1950s to the 1970s, and the southeast side, including Rita Ranch and Civano, grew quickly later. On historic blocks we match broom finish and joint spacing to the old work. On the east side we usually find 50- and 60-year-old driveways that have been patched more than once.

Sidewalks and the city right-of-way

The Tucson Department of Transportation lists driveway and sidewalk installs among the work that needs a right-of-way permit, and City Code Chapter 25 says no public sidewalk may be repaired or installed without a written permit. The city also says the owner of the abutting property is responsible for maintaining the sidewalk. If your job reaches the curb, the apron or the public walk, we build the permit into the schedule, and Arizona811 gets called before any digging. Call (520) 619-2611 to set up a visit anywhere in Tucson.