Blog Post

TIPS FOR MATCHING A CONCRETE PATIO TO YOUR HOUSE'S STYLE

  • By Southport Concrete Corp.
  • 20 Jul, 2018
A patio is an addition that adds value to both your house and your lifestyle. However, you don't want it to be a simple, utilitarian space. You want it to complement the rest of your house.
Perhaps you've already settled on concrete for the flooring because it's a good way to stay in budget and end up with a resilient, low-maintenance surface. Concrete is also a customizable material. Utilize that quality to make your patio match the rest of your house.
Know Your Home's Style

Typically, your house will be one of two general styles — traditional or contemporary. From that point, specific styles in those categories feature their own conventions.

Contemporary homes feature modern styles, including mid-century modern and industrial modern. Coastal and ranch homes fall into this category.

Traditional homes include any of the historical styles such as Queen Anne, Colonial, Tudor and Victorian. Other regional styles, such as Southwestern or Mediterranean, also fall in this category. Typically, rustic homes are more traditional.

When you're planning your patio, you'll want to adhere to the conventions of the house's style. For instance, Queen Anne homes are known for ornate detailing, which can come through in the use of pattern and color in a concrete patio. Conversely, modern styles tend to feature clean lines and a simple palette. You could leave a square concrete slab natural-colored for this style.
Start With the Color Palette

There are several ways to color concrete. The two most popular are dyeing and staining. With concrete dyes, the miniscule pigments penetrate the surface of the slab, resulting in bold coloration. With stains, the chemicals react with those in the slab. The result is natural-toned coloration with gradients.

You'll want the main body of your patio to complement or match the façade of your house. You can also utilize a border that not only emphasizes the shape of the patio but also matches or complements the trim of the house.
Pay Attention to Material Choices

Just as a house's style might dictate a color palette and detailing, the style can also drive material selection. The stamping and either staining or dyeing process can make concrete resemble another material. Therefore, you can have your concrete patio match materials found in your house.

For instance, the Concrete Network describes a house with a concrete patio that resembles the stone façade of the house. The project required a concrete overlay over an existing concrete slab, but you can achieve the same effect on a new slab with the stamping and coloring process.

Matching a material to a design style works even if your house doesn't feature that material. For example, mission-style houses are often done in adobe. Tile and warm-colored flagstone complement the style. You could have your concrete patio made over to resemble one of those materials.
Consider Some Creative Options

Because you have so many ways to customize concrete, you also have many design options to make your patio unique to your home.

For example, you can engrave concrete, which is popular for borders. You can add to the beauty of an old-world patio by having a contrasting border engraved with designs found elsewhere, like in wrought iron fencing or a stained-glass window.

Concrete pavers are another option. If you have a modern style house, you could have the contractors install big, square pavers with gravel or contrasting concrete grout in between. That way you emphasize the geometry of your patio material complementary to the modern style.

For a coastal style home, consider a pebble aggregate surface. The pebbles are reminiscent of the shore. As a bonus, the textured surface gives you traction even when it's wet.

Your new concrete patio will be a benefit to your outdoor living. When you match it to your house's style, it also adds value to your home. Consult the concrete experts at Southport Concrete Corp. for advice when you're ready for your new patio.
By Southport Concrete Corp. 20 Jul, 2018
When completing any construction project that involves a foundation, the use of concrete pilings is essential. These columns that have been pre-cast and cured before installation provide needed support and reinforcement to the foundations used by your home or business. They have many qualities that make them beneficial to a variety of projects:

  • Cost effective: When anything is manufactured on a massive scale, your costs decrease substantially from having something custom poured.
  • Superior quality: Being pre-cast, pilings are checked for every sort of defect before being installed, giving them an additional safety advantage.
  • Underwater usage: There are several instances in which the pouring of concrete in certain types of subsoil or other environments won’t set. The use of formed piles easily takes care of that issue.
  • Convenience: With a wide selection of piles all ready to go, you are able to select what you need and install them at your convenience.
  • Adaptability: Trying to pour the exact shape you need is a thing of the past with concrete pilings available in square, round, octagonal and other shapes.
  • Incredible strength: Because of the nature of the piles, the reinforcement used inside is more likely to stay put without getting disturbed or moving its place. They also have high bending and lateral resistance to hold their strength in adverse conditions.
  • Eco friendly: With no leftover materials to clean up at the installation site, piles are the most environmentally friendly option when supporting your foundation and in other applications, such as retaining walls, embankments and cofferdams.
By Southport Concrete Corp. 20 Jul, 2018
Southport Concrete Corp is a leading builder of seawalls  in the Southport area. A seawall is a barrier that prevents waves from inundating property and land. These concrete walls are ideal for areas that are susceptible to hurricanes and frequent flooding. During storms, the sea level, as well as lake and river levels, can rise dangerously high and threaten communities and natural areas. The wall stops the water in its tracks and keeps communities from sustaining millions of dollars' worth of damages. Despite their name, our walls can be built near any large body of water, and our company can construct the following types:

  • Curved
  • Vertical
  • Mound
By Southport Concrete Corp. 20 Jul, 2018
You have a lot of options when it comes to building materials in Southport, but there are some that are more high-quality than others. At Southport Concrete Corp., we offer ready-mix concrete. As a product that is made in a factory, it offers the highest quality possible, as it is regulated under specific conditions. Being carefully monitored while it is mixed, it allows maximum economy at every turn. It is a convenience for contractors because it can be delivered to most jobsites. If a truck can get there, the ready mix can get there. It can also be poured directly from the truck into handling equipment or formwork, minimizing loss and mistakes.
By Southport Concrete Corp. 20 Jul, 2018

Although the terms cement and concrete are often used interchangeably, cement is actually an ingredient in concrete.

Concrete is basically a mixture of paste and aggregates. The aggregates are crushed stone or sand and gravel; the paste is made of water and Portland cement. Concrete material happens to get stronger as it gets older. Portland cement is not the name of a particular brand of cement; it’s the generic term for the type of cement utilized in almost all concrete (ex: stainless is a type of steel and sterling is a type of silver).

Pervious concrete, also known as "green concrete," is a choice that helps combat building code issues with storm water run-off.

Cement is composed of 10 to 15 percent of the concrete mix, by volume. Then through a process called hydration, the cement and water harden and bring together the aggregates into a rocklike form. This developing and hardening process continues for years, again meaning that concrete gets stronger as it gets older.

By Southport Concrete Corp. 20 Jul, 2018
There are many residences that need to use a septic tank. If you find yourself in such an area, consider what Southport Concrete Corp. can do for you. We can cast septic systems  for you, and we have been operating in Southport for almost 20 years. We can inspect your location to design a septic system that is perfect for your expected needs, bringing you long-term plumbing solutions.
By Southport Concrete Corp. 20 Jul, 2018
Concrete driveways are durable and attractive, and they provide a solid, reliable parking surface for vehicles. However, maximizing the lifespan and appearance of your concrete driveway depends upon making the right choices both before the concrete is poured and for many years after that, too.

Below, we’ve listed some important things to keep in mind in order to prevent premature concrete driveway failure.
By Southport Concrete Corp. 20 Jul, 2018
Concrete is an ideal construction material for countless numbers of applications due to the substance’s strength, reasonable cost, and ease of installation. Paving surfaces is one of the many uses for this flexible medium. However, concrete is prone to crack, and it is normal for even the best-laid concrete surface to develop hairline crevices.

While these tiny cracks are often insignificant, they are unsightly and detract from the overall appearance of the paved surface. You can preventing these cracks by installing contraction joints; below is more information about these important features and their installation.
By Southport Concrete Corp. 20 Jul, 2018
If you're hoping to replace your tired old countertops with something more modern and durable, you've likely considered popular options like quartz, granite, marble, or solid surface. However, many homeowners do not realize that concrete makes an excellent countertop and has plenty of advantages.

Just like any other countertop surface, there are specific advantages that concrete offers. How do you know if concrete is the right choice for your new or remodeled kitchen?
By Southport Concrete Corp. 20 Jul, 2018
Concrete is one of the most versatile construction materials currently available. You'll find concrete used for everything from seawalls to countertops.

But not all concrete is exactly the same. When you choose concrete for a building project, you may have several options for the mixture contents and the laying process.

In this blog, we compare two common laying processes: precast concrete and onsite ready-mix pouring.
By Southport Concrete Corp. 20 Jul, 2018
Though concrete is incredibly strong and resilient, untreated concrete can be stained in some circumstances. This is primarily due to the internal crystalline structure of concrete at the microscopic level.

Concrete consists of tiny cement particles locked together with sand and other crushed materials. In between these particles lie tiny air gaps that can be filled with just about any liquid that comes their way. That includes water, paint, oil, and other fluids dropped on the surface of unsealed concrete.

As a consequence, you can’t merely wipe concrete stains away. Instead, you have to treat the stains with the right methods, chemicals, and tools.

Below is a brief guide to removing two common but tough stains that affect concrete.
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