Concrete patio construction in Novato CA - a slab that sends rain away from your house

It should slope down and away from the house, because building guidance says a patio within 10 feet of the foundation needs to fall away from it. Without that slope, water pools at the foundation and can cause leaks, structural damage and pests, so ask whoever you hire how they'll grade the slab.

Pick concrete if you want a smooth slab that's easy to sweep and has no joints to weed, and pick pavers if easy repair matters more. Pavers lift and reset without a trace after the ground settles, while concrete cracks where ground moves unevenly and the repair shows. Pavers need the same base work underneath.

Plan on about a week before normal use, since one contractor's guide puts it at 7 days, so keep furniture off the new slab that first week. The same guide says a poured patio typically takes two to three days on site.

A residential concrete patio of 200 to 400 square feet in San Francisco usually costs about $1,500 to $5,300 in total. That's the market price there, not ours, and your Novato number comes from the estimate I give after seeing the yard.

Yes, once the job runs over $1,000, because California lets unlicensed workers take only minor jobs up to that amount, and only when no permit is needed and they hire no one. The state licenses concrete contractors to form, pour and finish flatwork like patios, and you can look any contractor up with the state licensing board's License Check.

They're aimed at bigger jobs, since Marin's stormwater program lists its site design steps for single-family projects that create or replace 2,500 square feet or more of hard surface. The steps include limiting soil compaction, sending runoff to landscaping and using pervious pavement, which lets water soak through. That guidance dates from 2020, so treat it as a starting point.