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Highland Concrete
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Concrete floor installation in Highland IN - a slab built for the flooring on top

Planning a basement, shop or addition floor and worried about moisture or cracks? We build a slab that suits the flooring going on it.

Request an estimate(219) 533-1721
Wide gray concrete steps and a patterned paver walkway lead to a porch with a red door, bordered by flowering shrubs.

What goes into a new concrete floor in Highland?

Concrete floor installation in Highland means building a slab on a packed, well-drained base that gives it even support and stays stable while the work goes on around it, then pouring and finishing it so your basement, shop or addition has a solid floor for whatever goes on top.

Most floor calls I get are for a basement, a shop, an addition or a garage floor, and the worry is usually whether the flooring on top will hold up and whether the slab will crack. The price moves with the size of the floor, how much digging and packing the base needs, how hard the space is to reach and the finish you want. The schedule turns on the weather and on curing, the wait while the slab hardens enough to use. We're based in Highland and work in the cities around it on both sides of the Indiana and Illinois line, and my estimate after the visit puts in writing what your price includes.

Why Highland owners call us for concrete floors

You can count on a straight answer about what your floor needs and a crew that does the hidden work first. Your satisfaction, guaranteed.

  • I see every job myself

    I look at your space myself and stay on site with our crew through the prep, the pour and the finish.

  • Pouring slabs since 2017

    I learned the trade under an old-school finisher before starting this business in 2017, and that's 9 years of floors since.

  • Licensed and insured

    Lake County's Planning Commission handles county contractor licenses, so it's fair to ask any crew you're considering whether they hold one.

  • The base gets the budget

    If money's tight, I'd cut a fancy finish before I'd cut the base, because the base decides whether the floor stays flat.

  • Talk your floor through

    Call (219) 533-1721 or use the estimate form, and I'll tell you plainly if a plan won't hold up.

The concrete floors we build

I start every floor by asking how you'll use the room and what goes on top, the same questions I ask before we build concrete steps or concrete pool decks.

  • Floors going under carpet, tile or wood

    We plan the base and the vapor barrier, a plastic sheet laid under the concrete, around the flooring you've picked, then work to keep that sheet free of holes through the whole pour. One barrier maker's guide says even small holes let a lot more moisture through and can hold up your flooring, so it's worth asking any crew how they protect it.

  • Bare concrete floors

    In a shop, storage room or utility space where the concrete is the floor, the finish matters more than what's above it. A smooth troweled top sweeps clean, and a broom finish, fine grooves dragged across the surface, gives better footing where the floor gets wet.

  • Basements and tight spaces

    These are the jobs other crews often pass on, where the concrete comes in through a narrow door or a side yard where water sits. We work out how the concrete gets in and where the water goes before any base goes down.

What happens when you call about a concrete floor in Highland?

We plan the floor around how you'll use the room, when you want to put the flooring down and what the weather allows, and you hear from me at each step.

  1. Call or send the form

    Call (219) 533-1721 or fill out the form with your floor size and planned flooring, and we'll set up a time for me to come out.

  2. I look at the space

    I check the ground, the drainage and how we'll get concrete in, and I ask how you'll use the room and what's going on top.

  3. Your written estimate

    You get a written estimate that spells out what the price includes, from the base and barrier to the slab thickness and the finish.

  4. Pour, finish and care

    I'm on site with our crew from the base prep to the final finish, and before we leave I go over how to care for the new floor.

Questions about a step? Call and talk it through.

(219) 533-1721

Questions about concrete floors

How much does a concrete floor cost in Highland, IN?

A concrete slab in the Chicago area usually runs about $7 to $14 per square foot, not counting staining or stamping, going by a Chicago pricing guide. That's the going rate around here, not our price, and where your floor lands depends on its size, the base work, access and the finish. My estimate after the visit gives you your own number and what's in it.

Will my new concrete floor crack?

Yes, a little, because even a well designed, well built concrete floor shows some cracking and curling, a slight warping of the slab, and the experts call that normal. Control joints, lines sawn partway into the slab, give those shrinkage cracks a planned place to form, and the trade guidance stresses cutting them at the right time. I'll walk you through this before we start, so you know what you're looking at when the floor's done.

Do I need a moisture barrier under a concrete floor?

Yes, if carpet, tile or wood is going on top, because trade guidance says the slab needs protection from ground moisture. Water vapor rising through the slab can make glues and coatings fail, so flooring may peel, warp or stain, and mold and odors can follow. Flooring gets the most protection with the barrier sheet right against the slab, and the minor cracking that layout can bring is a smaller risk than a failed floor.

How long after pouring a concrete floor can we walk on it?

You can usually walk on a new slab within 48 hours, even though concrete takes 28 to 30 days to fully cure. Waiting about a week before heavier loads is the safe plan, so schedule moving furniture, tools or appliances back in around that.

How long does a new concrete slab need to dry before flooring goes down?

Long enough to pass a moisture test, and the slab should be properly cured and allowed to dry before that test is done. If it gets wet again during construction, it takes a long time to dry back out, so it's worth keeping water off it until the flooring goes in.

Do I need rebar in my concrete floor?

Not always, and I'll tell you if yours doesn't, because a reinforced slab costs more per square foot than a plain pad, going by that same Chicago guide. Rebar is steel set inside the slab that helps hold it together where it cracks, so it usually earns its cost under heavier loads more than under a family room floor.

Concrete floor installation in Highland through the seasons

Our winters shape when a floor gets poured around Highland. National concrete guidance calls for cold weather practice when the air drops, or is expected to drop, below 40°F while the fresh concrete still needs protecting, and concrete poured then still gains its strength and durability when it's properly mixed, placed and protected. A Michigan concrete group's guide adds that concrete should go only on ground that's unfrozen and at least 40°F, and crews can thaw it with ground heaters or blankets. For a floor in an unheated space, we watch the forecast and the ground before we set a date, and that date can move.

Most floors we pour here go into basements, garages, additions and small shops, and plenty sit in tight spots where water has nowhere good to go. We see the same kinds of jobs in Munster and across the line in Lansing, and we plan the base and drainage the same way there.

Plan your Highland concrete floor with us

Pour dates move with the weather here, so reach out early by phone or form and we'll walk your floor and put the plan in writing.

Request an estimate(219) 533-1721