Santa Clara concrete on clay and lava rock
Santa Clara mixes old homes along the main street with newer ones up on the hills. The ground under them is some of the trickiest in the county.
Santa Clara
Santa Clara is a quiet town on the west side of St. George, with an old main street lined with big shade trees and newer neighborhoods climbing the hills on both sides. Yards here are cared for. People add a back patio, redo the front walk, or run a mow strip around the lawn. Each one is a small pour. Finding a crew that takes small pours is the slow part.
Bigger outfits are set up for whole yards and new builds, and a lone patio is work they frequently turn down. We take the single piece, and we would rather have it than a subdivision. Our pour days are set by town, so a Santa Clara patio rides on the same truck as a couple of jobs in Ivins or St. George. Text a photo with rough measurements. On hillside lots we will most likely want to see the ground in person before saying much.
Pouring in Santa Clara
- Clay hills
- Parts of Santa Clara sit on clay that swells when wet and shrinks when dry. On a slope, wet clay can also creep. For a slab, the rule is to keep water away from it. We slope concrete to drain and suggest keeping sprinklers off the edges.
- Lava rock
- Old lava flows run through this side of the county, and black basalt shows up in Santa Clara yards. Digging through it takes longer than digging sand. If your landscaper hit rock, mention it when you text so we plan the right tools.
- Mature trees on the old street
- Homes along the historic main street have large trees and long established roots. New walks there need room around trunks and joints placed where movement is likely. We also keep the forms shallow near roots to avoid cutting the ones a tree depends on.
Common jobs in Santa Clara
- 1
Patios
Shade trees and garden yards make outdoor living a habit here, and patios get extended to fit a table.
- 2
Sidewalks and paths
Older homes near the main street have walks that roots and time have lifted out of level.
- 3
Curbing and mow strips
Santa Clara yards keep more lawn and garden than most desert towns, and a mow strip keeps the edges sharp.
- 4
Tear out and replace
Clay movement cracks and tilts slabs, and the lasting fix is a new panel on a rebuilt base.
Text a photo from Santa Clara.
435·220·5536Text us a photo of the spot and rough measurements. We will tell you what we can from the photo, or come out and take a look. Rather type it out? Use the form.
Santa Clara: straight answers
My patio cracked and one side dropped. Can it be fixed?
When one side of a slab has dropped, the ground under it moved, and patching the crack will not hold. We break out the slab, dig out the bad soil, compact a gravel base and pour new concrete sloped so water drains away from it.
Does clay soil mean I should not pour concrete?
No. It means the prep matters. A compacted gravel base, proper slope and control joints help a slab ride out small movement. The biggest thing an owner can do is keep irrigation water from soaking the ground along the slab edges.
Do I need permission for a new patio or walk in Santa Clara?
Your city or HOA may have rules, particularly in hillside neighborhoods and along the historic street. Check with them before you schedule. We are glad to give you the size and location details in writing if they ask for them.
Everywhere we pour
St. George area
- St. George
- Washington
- Santa Clara
- Ivins