Concrete floor installation in McAllen TX - a level floor ready for what goes on top
Floor cracked and uneven, or a new room waiting on a slab? We prep the ground, pour and cure a floor you can build on.
- Licensed and insured.
- Free estimates at your property.
- We respond within 1 business day.
What does it take to put in a new concrete floor in McAllen?
Concrete floor installation in McAllen, TX is the work of preparing the ground, placing a concrete slab, finishing its surface and curing it until it hardens, so you end up with a flat, solid floor ready for tile, wood, carpet or a bare sealed finish.
Most of the floor calls we get are for an addition, a shop, a garage turned into a room, or an old slab that's cracked and damp and has to go. The price moves with the size in square feet, the thickness, whether it needs steel, what's going on top, and how hard it is to get the concrete in, like a tight doorway or an old floor we have to take out first with concrete cutting. The schedule turns on the weather on pour day, any city inspections and the cure, which decides when you get the room back. Your estimate turns all of that into a figure for your floor.
How can you tell an old concrete floor needs to be redone?
Cracks across the room
A crack that runs across the floor or keeps getting wider usually means the ground underneath moved, or the slab never had joints to crack along. Left alone, it can push up through tile or split a new covering laid over it.
Damp spots and a musty smell
Dark patches, loose floor glue or a room that smells musty usually mean moisture is coming up through the slab, often because nothing was put under it to stop it. Anything you lay on it in the meantime is at risk.
One side sits lower
Furniture that rocks or a floor that runs downhill to one wall usually means the base under the slab was raked level instead of packed, and it settled. It tends to keep going, and tile laid over it cracks along the low spots.
Dust and chipping on top
A surface that sheds powder or chips when you drag something across it usually has a weak top layer, often from a rushed pour in the heat of the day. Coatings and glue don't hold well to it, so it's a poor base for a new finish.
How we handle concrete floor installation
If tile, wood, carpet or a coating is going on top, I bring up the vapor retarder at the first visit, because that plastic layer under the slab holds back ground moisture and has to be planned before anything else. We dig out to firm ground and pack the subgrade, the dirt the slab sits on, so the floor doesn't settle with it later, then check where water runs around the space and set the forms. The retarder goes down next and we keep it from getting torn before the pour, then we set rebar, the steel inside the slab that holds it together if it cracks. We pour before the midday heat, finish the surface and cut control joints, shallow grooves that give the concrete a straight place to crack instead of a random one. Then it cures, the slow hardening that goes best when the surface isn't allowed to dry out too fast, and I give you a plain answer on when you can walk on it and when the heavy things can come back in. If the budget gets tight, I'd cut back on the finish before the base, because you can redo a surface but you can't fix the ground under a slab without tearing it out.
A floor often isn't the only concrete on the list. If the new room opens onto the pool, we can pour the concrete pool deck outside it to match, and if the finished floor sits higher than the yard, we can build concrete steps up to the door.
Floor going under tile, wood or carpet
This suits an addition or a converted room, because it gets the vapor retarder and a smooth, flat trowel finish. Your covering lies flat and has the moisture layer under it.
Bare floor for a shop or storage building
This suits a space where the concrete is the floor and has to carry weight, so it usually gets rebar and a sealed surface. A broom finish, fine brushed lines that give your shoes grip, helps where the floor gets wet.
Colored or patterned surface
If you want the concrete to be the finished look, we can stain or stamp it, which suits a living space or a showroom where the floor is on display. It's extra work on top of the slab, so it's priced separately on your estimate.
Get a written estimate for your new concrete floor
Send the floor's size in square feet, what's going on top and when you'd like it done. We get back to you within one business day to set up a free estimate at your property, with no obligation.
- Based in
- McAllen, TX 78501
- Hours
- Mon–Sun: 7 AM–11 PM
What happens when you call us about a floor in McAllen?
Here's how a floor job runs from your first call to the walk-through, and who you'll be dealing with along the way.
Call or send the form
Tell us the size, what's going on top and your timing, and I'll set a time to come out. At the visit I look at the job, ask a lot of questions and take my own measurements.
Get a written estimate
You get a written estimate that lays out the base work, the slab, any steel and the finish, so you can see what you're paying for. If something can't be known until the old floor comes up, I say so there instead of guessing.
Pour day, with me there
Our crew does the work with me on the job, from digging out to the last joint cut. If you're living or working next to the room, I'll tell you ahead of time what gets blocked off.
Walk the floor together
When we're done, I walk the finished floor with you. I'll go over how to look after it while it cures.
Why McAllen homeowners call Craftsman McAllen Concrete Construction for floors
I come out and stay on site
I'm the one who looks at your job and takes the measurements, and I'm on site with our crew when the floor goes in. The person who planned your base is the one watching it get built.
Learned concrete on a McAllen crew
I learned the trade on a crew here in McAllen, pouring flatwork, the slabs people walk and drive on, and foundations, before starting this business in 2017. We're best known for the jobs with a catch, like an odd slope or an old slab nobody can explain.
Licensed and insured for your property
We're licensed and insured. You're letting a crew work in your house or building, and you should know that before anyone rolls in a wheelbarrow.
Satisfaction guaranteed on every job
That's our promise, in plain words. I'd rather tell you what I don't know yet than guess and leave you living with the result.
If a new floor is on your list, send us the details or call (956) 331-0213, and I'll come out and take a look.
Concrete floors and the work around them in McAllen
The city's Building Permits and Inspections Department issues permits to build or change a building, and its list of work that needs no permit names tiling and carpeting, not a new concrete floor. So whether your floor needs a permit isn't settled until someone asks, and if you're not sure, we'll check with the city office that covers your address. A floor in an addition or a new building can also come with separate permits for wiring, plumbing, or heating and air conditioning, and the city counts a foundation inspection among its most common residential inspections. When your job needs any of that, we help you line it up and plan the pour around the inspections.
We're based in McAllen and work here and in the cities around it. A lot of the floors we pour go into additions, shops and garage conversions on older houses, where we have to figure out the old slab before deciding what stays, and we see the same kinds of jobs in Pharr and Edinburg.
Questions about concrete floors in McAllen
How much does a concrete floor cost in McAllen?
A reinforced concrete slab in McAllen usually costs about $6 to $11 per square foot, which is the going rate in the area, not our quote. Un-reinforced pads run less per square foot, and staining or stamping isn't in that range, so a colored or patterned floor costs more. Our written estimate gives you the figure for your floor.
How long does a new concrete floor take before I can walk on it?
One cost guide says a slab should be walkable within 48 hours, though concrete takes about a month to fully cure. The same guide suggests waiting a week before heavier loads, so plan the move back in, the appliances, shelving and shop tools, around that week.
Why put a vapor retarder under a concrete slab?
It keeps ground moisture from coming up into the room, and one maker of these barriers says a properly installed one reduces or eliminates moisture problems above the slab. That protects your flooring, glue and coatings, and keeps mold out of the indoor air. Even small holes from foot traffic can sharply raise the moisture coming through, so the layer has to stay whole until the pour.
Who issues building permits in McAllen?
The city's building permits and inspections office does, through an online portal, and it takes inspection requests on a phone request line. For a residential permit, the site plan shows your property lines, existing buildings and flatwork like drives and patios, so those measurements are worth having on hand.
What is the best time of day to pour concrete in hot weather?
A national hot weather concreting guide suggests pouring at times of day or night when the weather is favorable, because heat makes fresh concrete set faster and crack more easily. That means your pour date or start time may shift with the forecast. The same guide lists keeping concrete from losing moisture while it's placed and cured, so ask any crew how they'll keep a new floor from drying out too fast.
Is it okay to add water to concrete on a hot day?
No, because water added at the job site lowers the strength of the hardened concrete and makes shrinkage cracks from drying more likely. Hot weather does raise how much water the mix seems to need, which is why the mix gets planned before a warm pour instead of fixed with a hose.
Other concrete work that often comes with a floor
Concrete pool decks
If a new room or patio opens onto the pool, a deck poured to match keeps the step-out level and gives wet feet a surface with grip.
Concrete steps construction
When a new floor ends up above the yard or driveway, poured steps give you a solid way in and out instead of a stack of blocks.
Service areas around McAllen for concrete floors
Craftsman McAllen Concrete Construction is based in McAllen, TX, and the 12 cities below each have their own page, including Mission and Weslaco. We work in other cities around McAllen too, so call if yours isn't on the list.
Tell us about the floor you're planning
Calling before the framing or plumbing goes in gives us room to plan the base and the layer under the slab around the rest of your build.