Concrete Contractor in Los Ranchos de Albuquerque - Driveways and Patios on a Solid Base
Elite Rio Rancho Concrete Construction is a concrete contractor in Rio Rancho, NM that pours driveways, patios, walks and slabs in Los Ranchos de Albuquerque. We dig out and pack the base first, so the slab sits on solid ground.
- Fully licensed and insured.
- Free quotes on site.
- We reply within 1 business day.
Los Ranchos homes, lots and the ground under them
Los Ranchos de Albuquerque is a small, mostly residential village on the Rio Grande, with the North Valley around it and Corrales across the river. It still feels like farm country, with fields, open space and watered yards mixed in among the homes. The houses run from older adobe and territorial-style places to newer custom homes. Most sit on bigger lots than you see across the rest of the valley, and plenty sit at the end of a long drive.
On our jobs here, that means longer pours, old slabs that went down on raked dirt, and ground near fields and irrigated yards that stays soft. So the dig and the base usually get more of our attention than the finish does.
Concrete services for Los Ranchos homes and lots
Concrete driveway building
Many drives here are long and still gravel. We dig out the soft ground, pack a base and pour a slab that sheds water away from the house.
Concrete patio construction
Big backyards here leave room for a real patio. We set the slope so sprinkler water and rain run toward the yard, not back against your wall.
Stamped concrete services
Stamped concrete gives the portals and courtyards common on homes here the look of flagstone or brick, poured as one slab over a packed base.
Concrete sidewalk building
A walk from the drive to the front door, or out to a casita or shop, gets the same dug-out, packed base we put under a driveway.
Garage floor concrete
Older garages and detached shops here often have cracked or sunken floors. We break out the old slab, fix what's under it and pour new.
Decorative concrete
Color and textured finishes can pick up the earth tones of the adobe and stucco homes around the Village, on entries, courtyards and walks.
Concrete retaining walls
Lots that step down toward the valley or along a ditch sometimes need a wall to hold back the dirt. We build them on footings with steel inside.
Concrete floor installation
Barns, workshops and casitas on the bigger lots here need floors that take weight. We set the base and forms so the slab comes out flat.
Concrete pool decks
A pool deck here takes hard summer sun and splashing water, so we slope it away from the pool and give it a finish that isn't slick underfoot.
Concrete steps construction
Front and back steps on older homes here often crack and pull away from the house. We pour new ones with even rises that are easy to walk.
Slab foundation building
For a guest house, garage or addition on a bigger lot, we pour the slab foundation on ground we've dug out and packed, with the steel set right.
Foundation installation
Builders and owners adding a home or outbuilding here call us for the foundation, from the dig and forms to the pour, before framing starts.
Concrete parking lot building
Small businesses and shared drives in the Village need concrete that takes steady traffic. We build it thicker where trucks turn and plan where the water goes.
Concrete footings
Walls, posts, additions and covered porches all sit on footings, the buried base that carries the weight. We dig them to solid ground before we pour.
Foundation raising
On soft valley ground a slab can drop at one corner. We find out why first, then tell you straight whether raising it makes sense.
Concrete cutting
Cutting lets us take out a broken section, open a slab for a line or widen a drive without tearing out everything around it.
Get a free on-site concrete estimate in Los Ranchos
We reply within one business day. Then I come out myself, measure, walk the job with you and go over what it needs, and the estimate is free with no pressure and no obligation.
(505) 271-3053- Based in
- Rio Rancho, NM 87124
- Hours
- Mon–Fri: 6 AM–10 PM, Sat–Sun: 8 AM–10 PM
Permits, licenses and pricing on a Los Ranchos job
Inside Village limits, permits come from the Village of Los Ranchos de Albuquerque, and the Village office takes applications in person with two complete sets of plans because it doesn't take online submittals right now, so I build that drop-off into the schedule. Before you hire anyone, ask for their New Mexico contractor license and their Village business registration, which every business needs before working inside Village limits. We're fully licensed and insured, and when a job needs a permit, we take care of the application and the inspections.
We're based in Rio Rancho and work across the valley, and in Los Ranchos the price usually turns on three things: how long the drive or slab is, how much soft ground has to come out and be replaced with packed base, and the finish you pick. The schedule turns on the permit, the weather and the curing wait, and when I walk your job I'll go over what it needs and what it'll cost. If a job means early starts or saw cutting loud enough to bother the neighbors, the Village has a temporary noise permit for construction, and we'll sort out whether we need one.
Valley weather and ground that work against concrete
Summer heat and winter cold both work on a slab here. July highs average about 95°F and December lows about 21°F, going by a weather station about 3 miles from the Village. Heat dries the top of a fresh pour before it sets, which leaves a weak, dusty surface, so in summer we pour early in the day. Concrete also shrinks as it cures and moves with those swings, which is why we cut control joints, shallow saw cuts that give the slab a straight place to crack, as soon as it can take the saw.
The other thing we see is the ground. Near fields, ditches and watered yards the dirt stays soft, and a lot of older slabs here were poured on raked dirt with no packed base, so they sink at the edges, crack and hold puddles against the house. We dig out to firm subgrade, the ground the slab actually sits on, pack a base over it and slope the new slab away from the house. If the budget's tight, I'd rather you skip the stamped finish than skimp on the base, because you can dress up a slab later but you can't fix what's under it without tearing it out.
What to expect on a Los Ranchos concrete job
Here's what happens from your first call to the final walk-through, and who you'll be dealing with at each step.
Call or send us the form
Tell us what you want poured and where the property is, and we'll set a time for me to come out. It helps if you're home for the visit so we can talk it through on site.
I come out and measure
I look at the ground, the drainage and any old concrete, measure, and talk through what you want. You'll know what the job needs and what it costs before you decide anything.
We permit, prep and pour
If your job needs a permit, we handle it first, and the paperwork can add time before we dig. Then our crew digs out, packs the base, sets forms and pours, and I'm usually on site running the job.
Let it cure, then walk it
Curing is the wait while the concrete hardens enough to take weight, and you can usually walk on it well before you can drive on it. Before we pack up, we walk the finished job with you and tell you when it's ready for each.
Questions about concrete work in Los Ranchos
(505) 271-3053Driveways and patios aren't named on their own on the Village's permit list, so we ask the Village about each job here instead of guessing. The list covers building, demolition, excavation and barricade, fence, pool and re-roof permits, among others, and which one applies to concrete work depends on what's being built. When a job needs one, we take care of the application and the inspections.
Yes. The Village requires a business registration before anyone does business inside Village limits, and Village Hall charges $35 to apply as a contractor that isn't located in Los Ranchos. It's a fair question to ask any contractor you're considering, us included.
Ask for their state contractor license and check it with the Construction Industries Division, which licenses construction contractors in New Mexico. The division licenses businesses that employ or are owned by a person it has certified for that kind of work, and on unlicensed jobs it can stop the project and file a criminal charge. That could leave your slab half done, so the check is worth it.
Look through your deed and any covenant papers that came with the house, because some residential properties here have neighborhood covenants and the Village doesn't enforce them, so it's on you to check before we pour. For zoning, the Village's Planning and Zoning Department can tell you how your property is zoned at 505-344-6582.
I price each driveway from what I measure on site, because here the length of the drive, the ground under it and any old concrete that has to come out swing the cost more than anything. Long drives mean more forming and more concrete, soft ground near fields or watered yards means more digging and base, and a tight spot for the concrete truck adds time. A plain broom finish, a light brushed texture that gives tires and shoes some grip, costs less than stamped or colored concrete.
Most of the cracked, sunken driveways we see here were poured on raked dirt instead of a dug-out, packed base, so the slab settled as the soft ground under it moved. Late or skipped control joints let the slab crack wherever it wanted, and a slope toward the house holds water that makes it worse. Concrete still cracks some as it shrinks, so on a new slab we add rebar, steel bars that hold the slab together, where the job calls for it and cut the joints on time so any cracks land where we chose.
Other areas we serve
Rio Rancho, NM
Plan your Los Ranchos concrete project
Call (505) 271-3053 or send the form, and I'll tell you straight what your job needs, even if the answer is that you don't need us.