First Choice South Whittier Concrete is a concrete contractor based in South Whittier that builds driveways, patios, walks, retaining walls and foundations for homes and small properties in Fullerton, CA, with our own crew pouring every job.
Fullerton gives us a bit of everything. In the older parts of the city we find original driveways and walks that have been patched for decades, often next to big street trees whose roots push the slabs up at the seams. Farther north the lots climb into the hills, so we see more slopes, steps and retaining walls, and more questions about where the rain goes. The newer tracts tend to have wide driveways and backyard patios that owners want to replace or dress up. The streets across the line in Anaheim look a lot alike, and we work them the same way.
For you, that means a lot of the job happens before any concrete shows up. An old slab here often sat on a thin, raked base, and a sloped lot sends water toward whatever sits lowest, so the digging, the packing and the grading usually decide how well the new slab holds up.
A cracked, sinking driveway usually failed underneath, so we dig out and pack the subgrade, the ground the slab sits on, before we pour.
Explore serviceYou want a patio that sheds rain away from the back door, so we set its slope toward the yard before we think about the finish.
Explore serviceStamped concrete presses a stone or brick pattern into fresh concrete, so the crew size and pour timing matter as much as the pattern you pick.
Explore serviceRoot-lifted walks become trip edges, so we cut out the bad sections and pour new ones with a broom finish, a brushed texture that grips underfoot.
Explore serviceA garage floor carries a car's weight every day, so we tie in rebar, steel bars inside the slab that hold the pieces together if it cracks.
Explore serviceColor, exposed stone and saw-cut lines help concrete suit an older house, so we settle the look with you before the pour, while it can still change.
Explore serviceA retaining wall holds back a sloped yard and the water soaking into it, so we plan the footing and the drain behind it before the face.
Explore serviceFor a shop, studio or room addition, we pour an interior floor that's flat and level, with control joints, shallow cuts that tell shrinking concrete where to crack.
Explore servicePool decks stay wet under bare feet, so the plan covers a slip-resistant top and a slope that sends splash water to the drains.
Explore serviceWe rebuild crumbling front steps with every rise the same height, because the one step that's off is the one people trip on.
Explore serviceFor a backyard unit, garage or addition, we pour the slab foundation the plans call for, with the base packed and the steel checked before any concrete arrives.
Explore serviceFoundation installation follows the plans for your building, so we dig the trenches, set the forms and steel, and pour to those plans, not close to them.
Explore serviceA parking lot for a small building carries cars all day, so we plan the thickness, the drainage and the joint layout around how traffic moves through it.
Explore serviceFootings are the buried concrete under posts, walls and patio covers, and we dig them into firm ground so whatever sits on top stays put.
Explore serviceWhen doors stick and a corner has settled, we find out why it dropped before we lift it back toward level, because the cause decides the fix.
Explore serviceWe saw-cut slabs to open a trench for a drain line or take out one bad section, leaving clean edges so new concrete meets the old neatly.
Explore servicePermits in Fullerton come from the city's Building Division, and the city doesn't allow any construction until the permit is issued, which happens after the plans are approved and the fees are paid. On a job that needs one, that review usually sets the start date, so we plan around it instead of promising a day nobody controls. Before you hire anyone, check two things: that the contractor holds a state license, and that they have the business registration certificate the city requires of anyone doing business or a trade in Fullerton, which the city may hold back until it sees proof of that state license.
We're licensed and insured, and when your job calls for a permit we help with the paperwork and plan the work around the city's inspections. The price mostly comes down to things you can't see on day one, like how much old concrete has to come out, how much digging and base work the ground needs and how big and thick the slab is, and then the finish, since stamped or colored work costs more than a plain broom finish. The schedule turns on the permit review, the weather and curing, the days fresh concrete needs to harden before it can take weight. I come out myself to look at the job and write the estimate, and that's where you'll see those pieces for your own project. Our own crew does the work, the same crew you'd find on our jobs in East Los Angeles and Whittier.
Tell us what's going on with your driveway, patio or walk in the form, or call (562) 358-3037. We reply within one business day to set a time, and then I come out myself to look at the job and write the estimate, free and with no obligation.
(562) 358-3037Patios, retaining walls and pools are on the city's list of work that generally needs a permit, so plan on one for those. Driveways and walks aren't named on that list, which means you should ask the Building Division about your address before work starts rather than assume either way. A licensed contractor can apply for the permit, and the city asks contractors for proof of workers' compensation insurance when they do.
New permit applications in Fullerton follow the current California building codes, with the city's own changes for local terrain, weather and ground conditions. An application filed before those codes took effect can stay under the older codes in force when it was submitted, as long as the permit is issued before that application expires. We build to whichever code your permit falls under.
Often, yes, because the city's permit processing guidance says projects needing no more than 30 minutes of plan review can typically be reviewed over the counter. Residential patio covers and free-standing block walls that don't hold back soil are normally handled that way. The city can still ask for a fuller review if the size of the job or what's already on the property calls for it, so we find out early which kind yours gets.
We're based in South Whittier and work across the cities around it, from Norwalk and Downey to West Covina and El Monte. The cities listed here have their own pages, but they aren't the only places we go, so if you don't see yours, call and ask.
We answer seven days a week until 9 PM, so you can call (562) 358-3037 after work or send the form whenever it suits you.
Send us a note about your driveway, patio or walk, and I'll explain what it really needs before we talk about anything else.
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