Patio cover project: what you need to know (Houston, Austin: HOA, landscaping)

[behtypa]

Originally Posted by ethanw

I am interested in this store if you can please. The garage tile also sound like an interesting concept and I am looking at epoxy right now. But tile may work very well, right? Thanks

My concern is just like yours: that tile may break under the car's weight. I have spoken with 2 tile guys and they said that if the thinset is laid properly and with no air pockets, it should be fine. Now I am only worried about the tile edges. It should be alright. And I have extra tiles.

[behtypa]

Originally Posted by ethanw

I am interested in this store if you can please. The garage tile also sound like an interesting concept and I am looking at epoxy right now. But tile may work very well, right? Thanks

I have just PMed you their details. Not sure if moderators allow that here.

[MasonParkMom]

Originally Posted by behtypa

Quick update on my patio project:
15x30ft stamped concrete slab is installed yesterday. The framing will begin tomorrow.

So far I am super happy with my contractor. He knows what he is doing. And he gave me a price 40% (!!!) less than 5 more companies I have bids from. Ain't that tells you what fat overhead prominent contractors put in their pocket? I am glad I did not overpay that much.

If anyone of you is planning to do a covered patio (or trellis, gazebo, etc.) - feel free to PM me. I will give you my contractors info. You are gonna like his prices (and quality too).

Can you please PM me the person you used?? Thank you!

[behtypa]

Since quite a few people have asked me about my patio project, I will add a few things you guys need to keep in mind when designing your patio cover:

What type of columns can be used?

Options (sorted by price, low to high):
- painted treated-wood post (4x4, 6x6, 8x8)
- all-aluminum post (the patio would probably be all aluminum too)
- painted treated-wood post on top (2/3 of length), wrapped in flagstone (or brick) at bottom (1/3 of length)
- flagstone (or brick) all-the way
- classical roman (corinthian) columns, made of wood (plantation style) (4x4 wood post in center)
- classical roman (corinthian) columns, made of concrete, etc. (4x4 wood post in center)


1/3 brick/stone or brick/stone all-the-way is a most common choice.

If you chose brick, and you want it to match your house, bear in mind that it may be difficult to find it around brick yards (there are about 20 of them in Houston metro), IF your house is older than 10 years. This is because brick manufacturers tend to change their brick styles every 5-10 years.

If this is your case, prepare to drive around many yards with a few bricks samples from your house (I have checked about 12 of them). You may not find a 100% match, but even 70% match is OK for a patio, since columns are not too close to the walls to see the difference.

You may ask your contractor to do that for you, but I doubt he will spend all day looking for the best match. He can find a similar color at best, and not texture or pattern. Just remember that.

Your life becomes much easier if instead you want a stone on your columns. Because it does not have to match and can be anything.

[ethanw]

Thanks much partner. So you're thinking about putting porcelain tiles in your garage? Is your tile guy good? How much would he charge per SQF?

Originally Posted by behtypa

I have just PMed you their details. Not sure if moderators allow that here.

[behtypa]

Originally Posted by ethanw

Thanks much partner. So you're thinking about putting porcelain tiles in your garage? Is your tile guy good? How much would he charge per SQF?

Not sure about the price per sq ft, since my contractor is paying him. I wanted to hire him directly, but he says he work only through his company. :-) So I will check his price again when ready.

[Mustang1]

So is the project finished?

[behtypa]

Originally Posted by Mustang1

So is the project finished?

I have called my contractor who will be installing mosquito screens. The hold up is because of them. If they will install screens next week, the patio will be ready a few days later.

[behtypa]

Things you can save on when building a patio:

Consider a patio project as a few separate works:
- concrete slab
- structural (columns, joists, ceiling)
- roofing
- gutters
- electrical

Your contractor may agree to let someone else do a specific job. For example, you can save significantly on a concrete slab. A 15x15 stamped slab can cost you as little as $1500 and as much as $4000. In addition to the price, the reason you may want someone else do that is quality concern.

The second thing you may convince your contractor to out-contract is roofing and gutters.

Even if you don't let someone outside do that for you, it can be a good leverage to bargain down the overall price a little bit. Keep that in mind. Just show your patio guy a few other quotes for concrete slab, etc. and he may agree to give you a better price.

In general, contractors place a 100% overhead on top of the actual cost. If it costs them $4000 to build it, they will charge you around $8000. Some greedy (or overly advertised) contractors may charge $12,000 and up. Stay away from them.

The self-cost / prime cost should not be a mystery for you. You can figure this out. It is easy. Go to Home Depot (of the website) and calculate materials. Then add $100 per day per person for each work
3 people x 3 days for average slab
2 people x 3 days for structural
2 people x 2 days for average roofing
1 person x 1 day for basic electrical
and so on

Now you have an idea how much your contractor would spend. And how much he is profiting from you.

[Gasshopper]

Originally Posted by behtypa

Thanks for the lead to Eagles you gave me a month ago. They were my favorite to the last moment. In fact, they are in the top 3 from 7 estimates I have received. Their initial quote for 15x16ft patio was 10K, the highest was 15K. I have chosen a contractor that quoted 8K (actually, 6K with upgrades).

Nice patio! Seems like you got a great price for the work they did. I need a patio cover of the same dimensions and would appreciate if you could share your quote details and contractor info (6-8K). Thanks for any help you can provide. I recently relocated to south Katy and got a few quotes a couple of months ago and they were all outrageous. Or it may have been because cause it was a new house or because we were foreigners. Thanks in advance for any help you can provide.