Stamped patios, pool decks, walkways, and driveway borders in slate, flagstone, cobble, and wood-plank patterns, colored and sealed to still look right after years of Texas sun.
Stamped concrete gives you the look of stone, brick, or wood as one continuous slab. It works best where people sit, walk, and swim, and where you'll actually see it every day.
The most common stamped job we pour. It can be a new patio or a replacement for a plain builder slab, often under a new cover or around an outdoor kitchen.
Cooler-colored, textured patterns with an anti-slip sealer, poured with a smooth radius at the coping and drainage that sends water away from the pool.
Front walks and entry landings that match the patio or the stone on the house, so the front door gets the same attention as the backyard.
A stamped border or apron on a broom-finished driveway adds curb appeal without the price of stamping the whole drive.
Stamping comes with a short time window once the concrete is placed. Most bad stamped jobs come from a crew that missed it.
Same prep as any slab on clay: soft soil out, select fill in, compacted, formed, and reinforced, with the slope set away from the house or pool.
Color is either mixed through the whole slab or broadcast onto the surface as a color hardener. Broadcast color gives a harder, more intense surface, and integral color hides chips and scratches.
A release agent adds the secondary color and keeps the mats from sticking. Then the crew stamps while the concrete is firm enough to hold the pattern and soft enough to take it.
Control joints get cut into the grout lines of the pattern, the release is washed off, and the slab cures.
A sealer goes on once the slab has cured enough. It brings out the color and protects the surface. On pool decks, it also gets the anti-slip additive.
Every pattern can be done in different colors. These are the ones people in College Station ask for most.
| Pattern | Looks like | Works well for |
|---|---|---|
| Ashlar slate | Cut stone in mixed rectangles | Patios, pool decks, entries |
| Random stone or flagstone | Irregular natural stone | Patios, garden paths |
| Cobblestone or running bond | Brick or pavers | Borders, aprons, walks |
| Wood plank | Weathered boards | Patios, areas next to wood decks |
| Seamless texture | Stone texture with no grout lines | Pool decks, anywhere a pattern feels busy |
Texas sun fades color and wears sealer down. Plan on a reseal every two to three years. We do resealing too, on our work and anyone else's.
A good stamping crew lays out the pattern so the control joints fall in grout lines. A saw cut across the middle of a stone is a sign nobody planned the layout.
Darker colors fade faster and get hot underfoot. For pool decks and uncovered patios, lighter tans and grays hold up better and stay more comfortable in August.
A crack shows more on a stamped slab than on a plain one. The prep underneath matters even more when you're paying for the finish on top.
If the color has gone chalky or the surface looks dull and gray, it probably needs cleaning and resealing, not replacing. That's a one-day job in most cases, and it costs far less than a new slab.
See staining and sealing for how resealing works, or patios and porches if you're still deciding between stamped and a plain finish.
Want to see more patterns first? The Concrete Network's stamped concrete guide has photos of the most common patterns and color combinations, so you can come to the estimate with an idea of what you like.
Stamped concrete can get slick when it is wet, especially right after sealing. For pool decks and steps, we mix a fine anti-slip additive into the sealer, and we choose textured patterns that give feet something to grip.
It costs more than a broom finish because of the color, the release, the stamping crew, and the sealer, and the gap depends on the pattern and how many colors you want. It usually still comes in below natural stone or pavers for the same area. We will price both finishes side by side if you want to compare.
Any concrete can crack, and clay soil makes proper base prep even more important. On stamped work, we hide control joints in the pattern's grout lines so that when the slab cracks where the joint tells it to, you don't see it.
Not directly. Stamping happens while the concrete is still plastic. A sound existing slab can be stained and sealed, or covered with a stamped overlay, but if it has settled or cracked badly, replacing it is the better option.
Every two to three years in full Texas sun, sometimes sooner on a pool deck. Resealing brings the color back and protects the surface. It costs a lot less than letting the finish wear out.
Pavers can be lifted and relaid when the ground moves, and stamped concrete is one continuous slab with no joints for weeds or ants. On expansive clay, both need a good base, and stamped concrete needs regular sealing. We only do concrete, so if pavers suit your yard better, we will tell you.
College Station and Bryan, including Pebble Creek, Castlegate, Miramont, and Traditions, plus the communities around them. See the service areas page.
Tell us the area, the pattern if you have one in mind, and whether it's near a pool. Or call (979) 977-1480.
We answer estimate requests the same day during the week. Nothing gets shared with anyone else.
