Concrete Gone Wrong Part 2

We left off with the concrete truck in our front yard. We were so excited about finally getting our patio floor expanded. The guys starting laying the concrete and smoothing it all out. Here are some pics of their progress..

After this step they started stamping while the concrete was still wet and then came back the next day to stain. After the contractors finished the job on day 2 we were happy with the results! Until....the concrete dried. On day 3 we found that there were some sections that were not covered with protectant sealant. Here you can see the sections that were not covered.

We called the contractor back to seal those sections and then they went on their way. I must note that our experience with this particular contractor was not stellar. Once the project was started unfortunately there were moments of miscommunication between us and the contractor. We found he was not completely honest about certain elements of the job. So by the end we were happy for them to be on their way once they came back to seal the unfinished sections. We were jumping for joy that the job was finally finished and there would not be anymore awkward moments with the conctractor. Here's the clean version..

Until......a couple of weeks later we got some rain. The palapa is pretty waterproof in the middle except for the outer edges where it comes down. The outer edges of the concrete got some water which was not unexpected but what the water did was unexpected! Here's what we found after the rain stopped.

The rain was peeling the stain off the concrete! We thought "Unbelievable...what else can go wrong?" At this point we were so done with the contractor that we decided not to call them back. We were gonna rock the rustic old concrete look and just live with it.

If anything, this taught us to do our research on contractors and look up reviews or at the very least get recommendations. Oh! And Do It Yourself when all else fails!! I'd rather have awkward moments with my husband than a complete stranger! LOL.





Patio Retreat Part 1

The last time I blogged about our outdoor backyard retreat I unveiled the palapa that we built. That was hard work but the next step after palapa construction was to decide on flooring. We went back and forth on what kind of flooring to do but ended up deciding to do  concrete in the end. My DIY self really wanted to tackle the concrete job ourselves like we did the palapa. So in order to convince Johnny I had to do my due diligence and research. I came up with the supplies needed and the cost with doing it ourselves vs. hiring a local contractor. Once I finished all my homework I was ready to plead my case. It went a little something like this....

Jaime: So...this is what we would need....about 90+bags of concrete and.....

Johnny: LOL..... That's all you had to say....call the contractor! I'm not gonna deal with 90+ bags of concrete!

Being that there wasn't a huge difference in cost anyway I agreed feeling defeated and we started to call for bids from local concrete contractors. After the bidding process we chose a guy who also would stamp and stain for a reasonable price.

The morning the contractors came to start the project I couldn't help but watch them lay the supporting beams and lay out the grid for our space. I had read up on all the project entailed so it was fun getting to watch and several times commented to Johnny "We so could have done that....Look how easy that looks!" Until this thing rolled up to our driveway and Johnny came up next to me while I watched through the window wide eyed....and shot back with...."You were saying?"

 

To say the least, I am glad we  Johnny decided to hire the job out. You told me so Johnny....there it is in writing!! Enjoy it!

Stay tuned for Part 2 to see our finished flooring!