From the first text to a year after the pour — exactly what to expect from Lee Design, in writing.
Thanks for taking the time to look. Whether you hire us or not, the information on this page is yours.
Below, you'll find exactly how Lee Design works — start to finish. The timeline. The pour day. What we handle and what's on you. The price (which doesn't change once we agree on it). And what our warranty covers after the truck pulls away.
I put this page together because most homeowners I meet have had a bad experience with a contractor before — surprise charges, a vanishing crew after the deposit, a yard left torn up. We do things differently. This is the clearest way to show you that, in writing, before we ever talk.
If anything here is unclear, call or text me directly — not an office, not a call center.
Free on-site visit or phone walkthrough. No pressure.
Get Your Free Quote → or Call (615) 685-5941From the first text to a year after we leave — this is the path. The timeline below reflects a typical project; we confirm your exact dates in writing and update you if anything shifts.
You call, text, or fill out the website form. I reply within minutes — usually under 5.
Free 15-minute on-site visit (or phone walkthrough). You get a written quote with three quality tiers and four finish options.
Signed quote, signed contract, 1/3 deposit. You get an exact pour date the day you sign — already on your contract.
We come back to verify dimensions and order exact materials. Quick re-confirmation of your pour date.
Crew arrives around 8:30 a.m. Pour 11:30 a.m.–1 p.m. Final payment due when complete — typically next day.
We seal the slab and walk the project with you.
12 months of workmanship coverage — long enough to live through summer heat, fall rain, winter freeze, and spring thaw.
The first step is a 2-minute call or text. I reply within minutes during business hours.
The number we give you is the number you pay. Same scope, same finish, same reinforcement. No surprise add-ons after we start.
What's on the quote is what we build, for the price on the quote.
Want to add a step or expand the patio? We write a change order, you sign it, and you see the new number BEFORE we lift a finger.
Standard prep, grading, downspout reroutes, yard repair — already in the quote. In the rare case of a major unforeseen issue (buried foundation, rock ledge, etc.), we stop and review it with you first. You approve any added cost in writing before we keep going.
Quote in 24 hours. 1/3 deposit secures your spot. Balance only after you walk the finished patio.
Get My Free Quote → or Text photos to (615) 685-5941Six items that come standard on every pour — not as add-ons, not as upsells. Already in the number we give you.
Compacted #57 stone to 95% Proctor.
If existing downspout crosses pour zone.
Sloped away from house, flush edges.
Plywood under wheelbarrow paths.
Placed to manage where cracks happen.
First sealer applied before walkthrough.
If you've already signed, bookmark this section — we'll text you a link the night before pour day too.
Locked gate at 8 a.m. with no one home is the #1 delay. We'll wait 30 min before calling — but truck loads have a 90-minute window from the plant.
Crew arrives. We verify forms and prep the base.
Base finishing — gravel set and compacted, reinforcement laid in.
Ready-mix truck arrives. Pour begins. Takes 1–2 hours for a standard patio.
We apply your finish — the same one you picked at quote.
Site cleanup. We clean up any dirt and plant grass in disturbed areas before we leave.
We come back to pull forms and place your control joints.
We watch the forecast. Over 40% rain, under 40°F, or over 95°F = we reschedule. You'll get a text by 7 a.m. — never silence.
No walking on the slab. None. Not even to peek.
Light foot traffic only. No bikes, no toys.
Light patio furniture OK (chairs, small side table).
Add heavier items — but no grills over 60 lb, no planters.
Full strength. Grills, hot tubs, vehicles (driveways) all OK.
We come back and apply your first sealer.
Don't hose down the slab. Don't cover with plastic. Don't let the dog or kids on for the first 24 hrs. Don't park on it for 28 days.
Most pour dates land within 2 weeks of signing. We'll text you the day-by-day plan after we measure.
Salt is concrete's worst enemy. Use sand for traction. After your first winter, stick to calcium magnesium acetate (CMA) — it's the safest deicer.
Mild dish soap and water for stains. Never use acid, bleach, or pressure-washer tips smaller than 25°.
A good sealer makes your slab water- and stain-resistant. Most homeowners reseal themselves with a $40 jug from Home Depot.
After that, you're good. But move planters around every couple weeks the first year — they can leave shadow stains.
If a downspout dumps water onto your slab, redirect it. Repeated water exposure under the edge undermines the base. (We redirected obvious ones during the build.)
Your slab will do things in the first year that look alarming and are totally fine. Here's how to tell normal from a problem.
All concrete loses water as it sets. That shrinkage pulls the slab — small cracks are the concrete relieving stress. The American Concrete Institute says it plainly: it's normal to expect some cracking on every project.
We place control joints right after the pour. Cracks happen IN those joints — by design. That's why your slab has straight lines cut into it. They're not flaws.
Mid-TN gets ~70 freeze-thaw cycles a year. A bad slab fails inside the first winter. A good slab — engineered base, air-entrained mix, proper joints — sails through. That's why our warranty runs 12 months: four full seasons.
Long enough to live through Tennessee summer heat, fall rain, winter freeze, and spring thaw.
When we pour concrete for your home, we stand behind our workmanship for 12 full months from the date we finish your pour. If we built it and it fails from how WE mixed, placed, or finished it — we come back and make it right. No invoice. No paperwork games.
Cracks wider than 1/4 in. caused by how we built the slab.
Scaling, spalling, or pop-outs over 20% of the surface area from our finishing work.
Water failing to drain the way we designed it to — as long as the cause is our installation, not changes made after we left.
If the concrete we install fails to reach the strength stated in your quote, and the slab fails as a result, we cover the repair.
If our base compaction fails and the slab sinks, we re-pour the affected area.
Under 1/4 in. — these are a property of concrete, not a defect. ACI 332 / 360R say so plainly.
Salt, calcium chloride, fertilizer, acids, paint stripper. Use sand during the first winter.
Especially within the first 7 days. Driveways need 28-day cure before driving.
Tree roots, frost heave, sinkholes, earthquakes, floods, severe acts of God.
We seal at day 30. Anything anyone else puts on the slab voids that surface.
Color batch differences, efflorescence, normal weathering over time.
If another contractor cuts, drills, repairs, or alters the slab, the warranty on the altered area is void.
Call or text John within 90 days of noticing the issue.
We come look within 30 days and tell you what we see.
If it's covered, we repair or replace at our discretion.
Concrete failures from workmanship show up in the first year. Bad base, wrong mix, missed joints, improper cure — those problems surface as the slab lives through its first hot summer, its first heavy rain, and its first freeze. Middle Tennessee sees about 70 freeze-thaw cycles every winter — more than enough to test a slab. If it makes it through that first full year, the build is typically sound. So our warranty runs twelve months from pour date — long enough to prove the build, fair to both of us.
A word about hairline cracks. Every slab develops some hairline cracking — typically within the first 60 days. It is normal, expected, and not a workmanship defect. The American Concrete Institute (ACI 332 and ACI 360R) is unambiguous: some amount of cracking should be expected on every project. Our control joints are designed to give cracks somewhere to go — they're features, not flaws.
You've seen the warranty terms. The next step is a written quote you can hold us to.
The most common contractor complaint we hear is silence — phones not answered after the deposit clears. We do the opposite.
You won't get bounced to a call center or 'someone from the office.' I'm John, I'm the owner, and the number you call rings me directly.
Call or text during the day and you'll usually hear back within minutes. After hours, by next morning.
On pour days you get start-of-day, mid-day, and end-of-day photo texts. You don't need to be home for us to keep you in the loop.
From the day you sign through the walkthrough, you'll hear from me every step — confirming dates, flagging weather, scheduling the measure visit.
Crew size shifts by job phase — base prep needs different hands than the pour or the finish. Typically 4–6 people on-site at a time.
Owner-operated. The number rings my phone — not an office.
📞 (615) 685-5941 or Send project details →If you're thinking it, someone else has probably asked. Here are the most common questions we get on the porch.
Here's exactly what happens next.
Call, text, or message us through the website. That single message starts the clock.
We send you the signed quote and contract. A 1/3 deposit reserves your spot on the schedule.
Within 24 hours of your deposit, you'll have a written pour date — usually inside 2 weeks.
