Is it worth hiring a concrete contractor for a small NB patio?

For a patio under 150 square feet, a skilled DIYer can produce a good result -- but for most NB homeowners without concrete experience, hiring a professional is worth the cost for the quality assurance, correct mix specification, and professional finish.

Here is the honest picture: concrete finishing is a skill that professionals develop over years of daily practice. A concrete contractor knows when to start floating, when to edge, how to produce a consistent broom finish, and how to manage the timing on a warm NB summer day when the concrete is setting faster than expected. A first-time DIYer pours a patio once and learns on their most visible outdoor surface. Mistakes -- footprints, tool drag marks, uneven surface, rough edges -- are permanent.

The NB climate adds stakes to getting it right. A patio poured without proper air entrainment will spall and scale within a few years under NB's freeze-thaw cycles. A patio without proper control joints will crack randomly across the surface. A patio on an improperly compacted gravel base will shift and become uneven as frost heaves the soil beneath it in winter. Each of these mistakes costs as much to fix as the original pour -- and some require complete removal and replacement.

Cost comparison for a typical 200 square foot NB patio:

DIY path: gravel ($150-$300), ready-mix concrete ($400-$600 including short-load surcharge), form lumber ($50-$100), sealer ($80-$150), tool rentals ($100-$200), plus your weekend. Total: $780-$1,350 in materials, not counting your labour.

Professional installation: $10-$18 per square foot fully installed, so $2,000-$3,600 for a 200 square foot patio. The professional price includes excavation, gravel base, forms, correct air-entrained mix, professional finishing, control joints, and typically the first sealer application.

The gap is real but the professional delivers a finished product with no learning curve risk, correct mix specification, and typically a better finished surface. For a patio that will be a focal point of your backyard -- where guests will see the finish quality and where you will be looking at it for 20-30 years -- the professional result has long-term value.

Where DIY makes more sense: a utilitarian shed or hot tub pad in a less visible location, or if you have previous concrete experience and the confidence to specify the right mix and execute the finishing work. If you are curious about cost, New Brunswick Concrete can match you with a local contractor for a free estimate so you can compare it to your DIY budget before deciding.