Pennsylvania Concrete Contractor

Concrete contractors - Concrete may just seem like a plain hard gray material, but there are hundreds of ways to manipulate it into a variety of structural and nonstructural materials.

While many homeowners are up for the challenge themselves, when it comes to the labor, owning the necessary tools and the huge time frame it takes install your own concrete, it actually works out to be much cheaper to hire a professional concrete contractor to do the work for you.

Concrete contractors work with various forms of concrete from the basic concrete sidewalk to concrete structural support columns for a football arena. With so many different ways to use concrete and so many contractors that deal with one specific niche in the field, it’s a good idea to narrow down your choice of concrete contractors by their specific forte’ or specialty.

Many state, regional and local building departments require that a concrete contractor have a license. They must also have the proper builder’s risk/liability insurance and workers compensation. Some areas require a bond be posted as well. This can easily be confirmed by calling your local building department. Always check for proper licensing and insurances before letting any so-called concrete contractor bid on your project.

Without the right licensing, insurance, workers compensation and bonding, your potential concrete contractor will not only defy the necessary building standards, regulations and codes; they also won’t be able to pull the required permits from the building department that may be needed for the job. This could potentially put you in hot water with the building department. And more often than not, it’s the homeowner who gets stuck with the fees by not getting the right permits, while the unlicensed contractor gets away scot-free.

A concrete contractor may have the proper licensing and all of the tools for the job, but that doesn’t mean they can get the job done right. After all, their work will speak for themselves. That’s why it’s very important to get at least 3-5 contactable references that you can personally visit to get a feel for their work. Always follow up with a phone call to the homeowners just to ensure you’re getting the right concrete contractor for the job.