Frequently Asked Questions

Using HomeGuide's national figures, expect roughly $6 to $15 a square foot installed. On that guide a 20-by-20 two-car driveway lands around $2,400 to $6,000, and a 24-by-24 around $3,500 to $8,600. Tearing out an old driveway first adds about $2 to $6 a square foot. Once we measure, your written estimate replaces those ranges with a real number.

Hourly billing is rare for residential flatwork. Concrete, gravel and forms make up a big part of the cost, so jobs are quoted as a total or per square foot. For reference, HomeGuide lists driveway labor alone at about $3 to $7 a square foot. Our quotes give one total for the whole job, in writing.

Most flatwork is poured from spring, once the frost is out of the ground, through fall. Concrete must not be placed on frozen ground and needs protection from freezing while it cures, so late-fall pours need blankets and close attention to the forecast. Getting an estimate in late winter or early spring is the easiest way to get a date that suits you.

Sidewalks do: the City of Sioux Falls requires a permit before a sidewalk is repaired, replaced or installed. It also says repairs to a driveway approach, the part in the public right-of-way, must be done by a bonded, insured contractor registered with the City. For a driveway, patio or slab on private property, we check what your project needs before we start, and outside Sioux Falls we check with that town or county.

Yes. Wikipedia notes that Dell Rapids, just north of Sioux Falls, has quartzite quarries operated by L.G. Everist, and several ready-mix suppliers serve the Sioux Falls area. For a homeowner, the practical point is that concrete for a driveway or patio is ordered from a local plant and delivered by truck, timed to the pour.

Use as little de-icer as you can, and never on concrete less than a year old. Research done for the South Dakota DOT found sodium chloride causes severe scaling in freeze-thaw conditions and magnesium chloride is worse. Shovel early, use sand for grip, and keep a good penetrating sealer on the surface.

HomeGuide lists about 30 to 40 years for a concrete driveway. In Sioux Falls, the base, the air-entrained mix, the joints, the cure and how much salt the slab sees decide where in that range yours ends up.

HomeGuide's driveway guide calls for a minimum of 4 inches under ordinary cars, 5 to 6 inches where heavy vehicles park and 6 to 8 inches at the edges. We match thickness to what will actually sit there, pickups, campers and trailers included.

Cars can usually go on after about a week, depending on temperature and the mix. Heavy trucks should wait longer. We give you dates for your slab.

Yes, when the failed panels are bounded by joints and the rest is sound. We cut along the joints, replace those sections and pin them to the old slab with dowels or tie bars. Expect a color difference at first, since new concrete starts out lighter.

The City of Sioux Falls says the driveway approach, the part in the public right-of-way, may only be repaired by a bonded, insured contractor registered with the City, and its sidewalk permit covers that work. For the part on your own lot, we check what your project needs before we start.

It is worth doing once the concrete has cured. A penetrating sealer slows the water and salt soaking into the surface. HomeGuide lists sealing at about $1 to $3 a square foot; plan to repeat it every few years.

HomeGuide's national range is about $4 to $12 per square foot for plain concrete. A 12-by-12 patio runs about $600 to $1,700 and a 16-by-16 about $1,000 to $3,100. Stamped or colored finishes cost more.

With regular care, HomeGuide gives a properly installed patio a 30 to 50 year life. Here, drainage, sealing and keeping de-icers off it matter most.

It can if that section is designed for it, usually thicker and reinforced. Tell us at the estimate so we build that pad into the plan rather than adding it later.

Both work. Concrete is a single slab with fewer joints for weeds and is usually less per square foot; pavers can be lifted and reset if the ground moves. We pour concrete, and we will tell you if your site suits it.

It can, if the slab underneath is built right and the sealer is kept up. The weak points are a worn sealer and de-icing salt. Re-seal every few years and keep salt off it.

A glossy sealer can be slick when wet or frosty. Textured patterns help, and we can add an anti-slip grit to the sealer for walks and steps.

HomeGuide's patio guide puts plain concrete at about $4 to $12 per square foot and stamped at about $9 to $30. Pattern complexity, number of colors and borders move the price.

Stamping happens while concrete is fresh. An existing slab would need a stamped overlay, which only works on sound concrete. If your patio is cracked or sunken, replacing it is usually the better choice.

The property owner. The City of Sioux Falls says homeowners and property owners are responsible for sidewalk repair costs, and renters should pass a notice on to their landlord.

It means a City inspector marked that panel for repair. You should also get a letter and door hanger with a due date. Call us with the date and we will price the work.

The City says you are enrolled in its own repair option: its contractor does the work and you are invoiced, and unpaid balances are added to the next year's property taxes.

Sometimes, but the City does not recommend grinding when tree roots caused the lift, since the roots keep growing. Replacement, mudjacking or lifting are the accepted fixes for vertical separation.

HomeGuide puts remove-and-replace at about $10 to $25 or more per square foot. A 4-by-5-foot panel, for example, is 20 square feet, so a handful of panels is a fairly small job; we price yours after measuring.

Four inches is common for cars and light use. Heavier trucks, lifts, trailers or equipment call for 5 to 6 inches and more reinforcement. We size it to what you will park and store.

HomeGuide lists shed foundations at about $600 to $4,800 for 100 to 400 square feet. Site access, grading and thickness move the price.

Usually a few days for light framing, depending on temperature, with full strength coming over the following weeks. We give your builder a date.

For a garage, shop or any building you heat or store sensitive items in, a vapor barrier is a good idea. For an open shed it is often skipped.

That is scaling. It usually comes from freeze-thaw combined with de-icing salt, often on concrete that was not air-entrained or was finished with extra water. Light scaling can be resurfaced; widespread scaling usually means replacement.

HomeGuide puts mudjacking at about $4 to $9 per square foot and replacement at about $6 to $15. Leveling is the better deal when the slab is still in one piece.

Narrow, stable cracks can be filled to keep water out. Wide, moving or offset cracks usually mean the base or slab has failed, and replacing that section lasts longer.

Spring through fall, once the ground has thawed. Fall is a good time to seal cracks so water cannot get in and freeze over the winter.