Concrete pool decks in Forest Lake MN - a surface that grips wet bare feet
Old deck cracked, sinking or slick when it's wet? We pour a deck that grips bare feet and gives your coping room to move.
What does it take to build a concrete pool deck in Forest Lake?
A concrete pool deck in Forest Lake is the poured slab around your pool, and our job is to give you a surface that grips under wet bare feet, sheds water away from the pool and the house, and holds up through our winters. Once it's poured, plan on a few days of curing, the wait while the concrete hardens, before anyone walks on it.
Maybe your old deck has cracked, pulled away from the pool edge or turns slick the minute someone climbs out. The price mostly moves with the size of the deck, the finish and color you pick, and whether we're tearing out an old slab first, while the schedule turns on the weather, permit checks and that cure time. Before we set a date, we check with the city and any other office the job touches, and if you need a permit, we help you sort it out. Your own figure comes from the estimate, where I walk the job with you and write down what the price covers.
How we build a concrete pool deck
Our work starts with the part you won't see later. We break out and haul away the old deck if there is one, dig down to the subgrade, the ground the slab sits on, and pack a gravel base so the deck doesn't settle with the dirt. We set the forms so water runs away from the pool and the house, lay rebar, the steel that keeps cracks from spreading apart, and pour in the cooler part of the day because midday heat can leave a weak, dusty top. Around a pool, grip for wet bare feet comes first, so I help you pick a finish and color that grips well and stays comfortable, like a broom finish, a light brushed texture that gives your feet something to hold. We cut control joints, shallow grooves that tell the concrete where to crack, while the slab is fresh, and we leave a flexible joint at the pool edge so the deck can move without harming the coping. If the budget gets tight, I'd rather you pick a plainer finish than cut corners on the base, because the base is the one thing you can't fix later without starting over.
Pool projects usually touch other concrete. If there's a drop from the patio door or a slope down to the water, we can build concrete steps that tie into the new deck. If you're adding a pool house or a pad for the pump and heater, that's slab foundation building, and we can plan it right alongside the deck.
Why Forest Lake homeowners call Forest Lake Concrete for pool decks
The estimator works on your crew
I come out to look at your pool, write the estimate and then work on the crew that builds the deck. What we talk through in your yard is what we build, because nobody's passing notes down the line.
Estimates that list what's included
When I walk the job with you, I write down what the price covers, from the tear-out to the joint at the coping, so you know what you're paying for before we start. If anything's unclear, I'd rather spend an extra half hour on questions than leave you guessing.
Fully licensed and insured
We're fully licensed and insured, and you're welcome to ask about it at the estimate. It's worth asking every contractor you talk to, because a deck job that goes wrong next to a pool gets expensive fast.
Erosion control before we dig
In the Comfort Lake-Forest Lake Watershed District, every site has to put up erosion controls like silt fence, whether or not it needs a permit. We get that set up before the digging starts, so loose dirt stays on your lot and your job stays in line with the district.
On a pool deck, the two things that matter most are the grip under wet feet and the base under the slab. Tell us about your deck with its rough size, the finish you have in mind and whether your lot borders a lake, or call (612) 448-0764.
Get a free on-site estimate for your pool deck
We reply within one business day, and the estimate is free, done at your house and comes with no obligation. Once you send this, I'll set a time to come out, walk the deck area with you and write down what the price covers.
Pool deck finishes and textures
Questions before you build a concrete pool deck
What is the safest concrete finish for a pool deck when it's wet?
The best finish is the one that grips well under wet bare feet and still stays comfortable to stand on, and finishes differ a lot on both. Broom, textured, exposed aggregate, coated, overlaid and decorative finishes each vary in grip and in how hot they get, and very dark colors can get uncomfortable in the sun. Bring the looks you like to the estimate and we'll go through them together.
How do I keep a new concrete pool deck from flaking in winter?
Ask for an air-entrained mix, concrete with tiny air bubbles built in, because it resists the damage from freezing, thawing and ice-melt chemicals that causes scaling, the flaking you see on older slabs. Guidance for outdoor concrete also says to use sand instead of deicers during the deck's first winter. Heavy finishing can cut down that protective air near the surface, so guidance only calls for a hard-trowel finish, a dense smooth polish, on an outdoor slab like this when the project specifically allows it.
How much does a concrete pool deck cost in Forest Lake?
A concrete pool deck in the Minneapolis area usually costs about $5 to $9 per square foot, and that's the going rate in the market, not our quote. Where yours lands depends on the size of the deck, the finish and color, and whether an old deck has to come out first. Your own number comes from the estimate, where I write down what it covers.
Who is allowed to build a pool deck in Minnesota?
Minnesota requires a license for a residential contractor who offers a homeowner more than one special skill, and a contractor who provides just one specialty skill falls under the state's contractor registration program instead. Ask anyone you're considering which one they hold before you sign anything.
Do I need a permit to put in a pool deck in Forest Lake?
The watershed district requires a permit when a job moves 50 cubic yards or more of earth or disturbs 5,000 square feet or more, and on a lot bordering a public water, needing a variance from local hard-surface limits brings in stormwater rules too. For anything else, the city helps homeowners figure out the right permits at 651-464-4349. Plan the deck around your fence as well, because the city requires a barrier at least 4 feet tall around any pool 24 inches or deeper, and any self-locking gate has to be self-closing. We'll tell you who we've talked to before we pour.
What causes pool coping to crack next to a concrete deck?
Usually it's the deck itself, because one coping maker says a deck moves with heat, settling and freeze-thaw cycles and can crack the coping, the trim along the pool's rim. That maker's fix is a gap with flexible sealant between the deck and the coping, and it says the gap protects the pool whether the deck is poured concrete or pavers.
Other concrete work around the pool
- Concrete steps construction
If your pool sits below the back door or down a slope, new concrete steps give you a solid, even way down that matches the deck.
- Slab foundation building
Planning a pool house, a changing shed or a pad for the pump and heater? A slab poured on a dug-out, packed base gives it a level floor.