Name: Holloway Paving
Address: 2208 29 St SW Unit 3, Calgary, AB, T3E 2K2
Telephone: 403-975-3030

Planning on installing a new outdoor patio or revamping your existing one? You’ve probably been considering a few different materials. From brick and flagstone to wood and tile, there’s an abundance of different patio construction materials available to the everyday homeowner and, while each has its own benefits, concrete offers most of these and more. Here are our top 5 reasons to choose concrete for your patio.

Low Maintenance

Your outdoor patio should be an area to relax and have fun, not one associated with lots of hard work. When properly installed, concrete is a long-lasting and low maintenance material, requiring much less attention than other materials. Unlike wood, which requires regular treatment and staining, all you have to do for a concrete patio is keep it free from dirt and debris. This could be as simple as sweeping it once or twice a month. If you feel it’s necessary, concrete can also be power washed to get rid of any stubborn dirt or stains. You’ll also want to get your concrete patio resealed by a professional concrete company every few years, but this pales in comparison to the amount of maintenance and cleaning wood or other patio materials require.

Durable

Concrete is renowned for its durability. Unlike wood, which is susceptible to warping and rotting, or paving stone patios, which can be damaged by weeds sprouting between the stones, concrete actually becomes stronger as it ages. Concrete is also the best patio material for withstanding the weight of large groups of people and outdoor furniture, as well as the unpredictable Canadian weather. This durability and dependability ensure that with proper maintenance, a concrete patio can look good for decades without any major repairs and saves you money in the long run. If you’re looking for the most durable and hard-wearing material for your patio, you simply can’t beat concrete.

Safe & Fire Resistant

In addition to being low maintenance and durable, a concrete patio is also extremely fire-resistant. Due to its composition, heat travels extremely slowly through concrete, and it won’t break down unless exposed to thousands of degrees — far hotter than your typical barbecue or fire. Naturally, this makes concrete a great patio material to use if you plan on hosting barbeques out on your patio on warm summer nights. You could even have bonfires right on your patio without affecting its structural integrity. What’s more, concrete doesn’t attract nearly as much dust, pollen, or pollutant as other materials, making it one of the safest materials to use for your patio.

Cost-Effective

Choosing concrete for your patio is a cost-effective way to enjoy the great outdoors without having to worry about costly purchase, installation, labor, maintenance, or repair costs. Thanks to its versatility, concrete can be stamped, stenciled, or shaped into virtually any design or pattern conceivable, meaning there’s no need to shell out the big bucks to end up with an aesthetically pleasing result. In other words, a professional concrete company will be able to replicate finishes such as stone, lumber, or even marble using concrete at a fraction of the cost of those materials.

Environmentally Friendly

Especially when using recycled materials as the sub-base or green concrete, concrete is one of the most environmentally friendly materials you can build a patio out of. For instance, installing a concrete patio over a wood one saves the lumber and gets rid of the need to regularly stain or paint your deck with solvent-based stains and sealers. From its raw materials to its demolition, a concrete patio takes up less energy than other materials, produces far less waste, and is 100% recyclable.

Concrete Patio Construction in Calgary

Holloway Paving has been serving the Calgary community with high-quality concrete construction and repair services for over two decades. Our hands-on skills, knowledge, and expertise have been passed down from generation to generation, guaranteeing high-quality work and long-term results for all our clients. If you’re in the Calgary area and looking to build a new concrete patio or replace an existing one, call us at 403-975-3030 or fill out our online form today for a free quote on any of our services.

Looks

The first thing you’ll notice when you’re pulling up to any driveway is the way it looks, so we might as well start from there. Also known as “blacktop,” asphalt is, for the most part, black. Asphalt needs to be rolled and compressed during installation, which leaves little room for patterns, textures, or stamping.

Concrete, on the other hand, comes in a wide range of colors and is an overall stronger material. This lends well to homeowners looking to spice up their driveway with a textured finish or match it to their home’s color scheme. Looks may be subjective, but as far as customizability and finishing possibilities go concrete is the clear winner.

Cost

An asphalt driveway is still considerably cheaper than a concrete driveway. Of course, the overall cost of your new driveway depends on factors like where you live, the difficulty of the job, and the size of your driveway; but, in general, an asphalt driveway costs less than a concrete driveway. Moreover, asphalt’s lower cost makes it a cheaper material to install, repair, and maintain — which brings us to our next point.

Maintenance

Unless it cracks, concrete usually lasts longer than asphalt and is a more durable material. Asphalt is softer and requires more maintenance, including resealing every couple of years. Despite this, it’s easier and cheaper to repair and patch an asphalt driveway than it is to repair a concrete one. While it’s possible to patch cracked concrete, any major cracks or damage usually mean that the entire driveway will eventually need to repoured, whereas it’s much easier to apply a new asphalt topcoat over an existing one.

In any case, a well-maintained and professionally installed driveway should last you a couple of decades. Nevertheless, if you’re looking for a driveway material that’s easy and cheap to maintain and repair, then asphalt is the way to go.

Both concrete and asphalt are great materials for your driveway and ultimately, the final decision rests with you. Whichever material you end up choosing, be sure to consult and hire a professional paving contractor to ensure you’ve made the right choice. Reach out to us today to find out more about the differences between concrete and asphalt driveways and the pros and cons of each.