Sterling Auburn ConcreteSterling Auburn Concrete

Concrete Contractor in Portland, ME - slabs that sit flat on tight city lots

Sterling Auburn Concrete is a concrete contractor based in Auburn, ME, building driveways, patios, steps, garage floors and foundations in Portland for homeowners and builders, with most of our time spent on what's under the slab.

Request a quote(207) 707-4423
Textured concrete pool deck with broad steps bordering a blue swimming pool.
  • Licensed and fully insured.
  • Free on-site estimates.
  • Replies within 1 business day.

About Portland, ME

Portland works differently from the open lots we see around Auburn, where we're based. Much of the city is older houses set close together, in neighborhoods like the East End and the streets around them, with short driveways, front steps that land right on the sidewalk and backyards you reach through a side gate with a wheelbarrow.

Farther out, toward Westbrook, the lots open up and we see more garages, patios and newer driveways. Either way, an old city has old ground, with fill, roots and somebody's earlier work buried in the yard, so I dig and look before I decide how deep the base goes.

Services in Portland, ME

  • Concrete driveway building

    Short city driveways often run up to the house, so a slab that tips the wrong way sends water at your foundation. We dig out, pack the base and pitch it away.

  • Concrete steps construction

    Front steps on older Portland houses often settle and pull away from the house. We break out the old ones, pour on a proper footing and set each rise even.

  • Garage floor concrete

    Old detached garages here often have thin floors that have cracked and sunk. We tear out what's there, rebuild the base and pour a floor that drains toward the door.

  • Concrete pool decks

    On a tight yard, a pool deck usually sits close to the house or fence, so splash water needs a way out. Our concrete pool decks get their drainage worked out first.

  • Concrete footings

    Porches, decks and additions on older houses here need footings on solid ground, not the loose fill around the old foundation. We dig until we hit it.

  • Concrete cutting

    On a tight lot, cutting out the bad section of a slab is often cleaner than tearing out the whole thing. We saw straight lines so the new pour sits flush.

What shapes a concrete job in Portland before we pour

Permits and inspections in Portland go through the city's permitting and inspections office, which enforces the building codes, so whether your driveway, steps or slab need a permit is the city's call. Before we book a job there, we check with that office on what it needs, and when a permit is called for we handle the application, so your pour date waits on the city's answer and not on you filling out forms. We're licensed and fully insured, and I'm the one who comes out, writes the estimate and runs the crew on pour day.

Portland streets are tighter than what we see in Falmouth or back home in Auburn, with cars parked on both sides and driveways squeezed between houses. Getting a concrete truck close to the forms takes planning, and when it can't reach, it's a pump or a lot of wheelbarrow trips. So the price here moves with access, how much old concrete and soft fill has to come out, how deep the base goes, the size and thickness of the slab, the steel inside it and the finish you pick. The schedule moves with the city's answer, the base work and the cure, and the written estimate I give you after seeing the job is where your own figure comes from.

Portland, ME properties and local conditions

A lot of the old driveways and walks we tear out in Portland were poured on dirt that was raked level instead of dug out and packed, so they've sunk at the edges and tipped back toward the house, and the water pools right by the foundation. We dig down to firm ground, pack the base in layers and pitch the new slab away from your house. That base is the part you'll never see once we pour, which is exactly why it's the first thing people want to trim. Spend less on the finish if you have to, because a fancy surface on a bad base just cracks in a nicer pattern.

If you're building new, the city's code list includes a standard for radon control in new low-rise homes, and that can change what goes under a new slab. When you're planning a slab foundation, we find out what the city wants before the base goes in, so nobody's digging up a finished pad.

Get a free on-site estimate for your Portland concrete job

We reply within one business day, and I come out to Portland myself to look at the job, measure it and ask how you'll use it. You get a written estimate, free and with no obligation, and you decide from there.

How it goes when you call us about a Portland job

  1. Call and set a visit

    You call (207) 707-4423 or send the form, and we set a time for me to come out to your place. It helps if you're there, since I'll ask how you use the driveway or patio.

  2. I measure and write it up

    I look at the job, measure it and check where the water runs and what the old slab sits on. You get a written estimate, so you know the number before anything gets torn out.

  3. Permit check, then pour date

    Once you're ready, we check what the city needs for your job and set a pour date around its answer and the work. Our crew digs out and packs the base before any concrete shows up.

  4. Pour, cure and walk it

    I lead the crew on pour day, and we finish the surface, cut the joints and let it cure properly before it takes any weight. Then we walk it with you before we pack up.

Frequently asked questions

Which office handles permits and inspections in Portland, ME?

Portland's Permitting and Inspections Department handles permits and inspections for the city. It enforces the building, electrical and plumbing codes, and you can call it at 207-874-8703 if you want to ask about your own project. It's the office we check with before we book your job.

Which building code applies to my home in Portland, Maine?

Portland uses the Maine Uniform Building and Energy Code, the state's building and energy rules, and for houses its residential part is the International Residential Code, the model code for homes. You can look it up on the city's list of adopted building codes. That's the code we work to on Portland jobs.

Does Portland use a stretch energy code?

Yes, Portland adopted the state's stretch energy code by a public vote, so energy rules in the city can go beyond the base state energy code. It matters most when you're building new, such as a slab foundation for a house or an addition, so it's one more thing we ask the permit office about before we plan the base.

How much does a concrete driveway cost in Portland, ME?

A Portland driveway is priced after I've seen it, because access and tear-out change the cost more here than anything else. A short driveway the truck can back up to costs less than a longer one squeezed between houses, where the concrete comes in by pump or wheelbarrow and the old slab goes out the same way. If you need to bring the number down, trim the finish or the size, not the base.

How long does a new concrete driveway take before I can drive on it?

You can walk on a new driveway well before you can drive on it, because concrete keeps gaining strength during curing, the wait while it hardens after the pour. I'll tell you the wait for your slab before we pour so you can plan where the car goes, which on a Portland street usually means finding a spot nearby for a while. Driving on it early is how a good slab gets a bad start.

What is the best way to keep a new concrete slab from cracking?

Start with a packed base, cut the control joints on time and finish the pour before midday heat gets to it. Concrete shrinks as it cures, so control joints, shallow cuts across the slab, give it a straight place to crack instead of a random one, and a rushed pour in the heat can leave a weak, dusty top. No slab is crack-proof, but the cracks on ours are meant to land in the joints.

Service areas

Explore the services

Auburn, ME

Call about your Portland concrete job

The sooner I see the slab, the sooner we know what's under it and can line up a pour date that suits your street.

Request a quote(207) 707-4423
(207) 707-4423Request a quote