Concrete cutting in West Covina CA - clean openings planned around what's inside
Need a doorway in a wall, a pipe through the slab or a cracked section removed? We plan each cut so it comes out clean.
- Fully licensed and insured.
- Free estimates at your property.
- Expect a reply within 1 business day.
What does concrete cutting involve, and what has to happen first?
Concrete cutting in West Covina is the careful removal of hardened concrete with diamond tools. A saw blade makes straight lines for a doorway, a removed section or a clean edge, and a hollow coring bit makes round holes for pipe, conduit or anchors. Done right, you get a square opening without cracking the concrete you're keeping.
Most calls start with something you want to change, like a new doorway, a drain line that has to get through, or a cracked section of driveway or garage floor. The price moves with how thick the concrete is, how much steel is in it, whether it's a wall or a slab, and whether we're working indoors, where the saw and the dust control change. The schedule usually waits on the planning more than the cutting, meaning the scan, an engineer if the cut is structural, and any permit, and I'll lay all of that out when I write up your estimate.
How do you know when it's time to cut concrete?
A cracked section to remove
One stretch of driveway or patio has cracked, sunk or lifted, but the rest is still sound. A straight cut around the bad part lets us take out just that piece instead of the whole slab, and the longer it sits, the more water gets under it and the bigger that piece tends to get.
A line that has to pass through
A new drain, a gas line or conduit for an outlet has to go through a slab or a foundation wall. A cored hole gives it a clean round path, while hammering one out usually cracks the concrete around it and leaves a patch you'll be looking at for years.
A wall that needs an opening
You want a door in the garage, a window in a block or concrete wall, or a way through to the yard. That kind of cut can touch the steel holding the wall up, so it needs planning well before anyone picks up a saw, because the questions about engineers and permits take longer than the sawing.
How we handle concrete cutting and coring
On a cutting job, most of my time goes in before the saw starts. I walk the spot with you and mark the layout, then we plan a scan to see what's inside the concrete, whether that's rebar, the steel bars that hold a slab or wall together, or a pipe nobody remembered running. If the cut could touch something structural, we talk about whether an engineer should weigh in before we go any further. Then we pick the tool, a diamond saw for straight lines or a coring bit for round holes, and for indoor work we choose the saw and the way we handle dust and slurry with the people inside in mind. We cut, break out and haul away the pieces, and clean up so you're left with a square, clean edge.
A cut is often the first half of the job. When we take out a cracked strip of driveway, our concrete driveway building work pours the new piece and ties it into the old slab, and when a patio gets cut back or opened up to make room for a bigger one, the new slab comes from our concrete patio construction side, starting with a base that's dug out and packed.
Get a free estimate for your cut or core
Send the form and we'll get back to you within one business day. Then I come out, look at the concrete and write up a free estimate, with no obligation to go ahead.
- Based in
- West Covina, CA 91790
- Hours
- Mon–Fri: 7 AM–11 PM, Sat–Sun: 8 AM–10 PM
What happens after you call us about concrete cutting?
Here's how a cutting job runs from your first call to the last piece hauled off, so you know who's doing what at each stage.
Call or send the form
Tell us where the job is and what needs cutting or coring. We'll get back to you and set a time for me to come out.
I come look and write it up
I look at the concrete, ask what the opening is for and how you'll use the space, and write up an estimate. You'll have the price in writing before you decide anything.
We plan, cut and clean up
Once you say go, we handle any permit the job needs and check the layout against the scan, then cut or core, contain the slurry and haul off the pieces. I walk you through what's left so you know what comes next.
Why West Covina homeowners call A&D for concrete cutting
The owner on site throughout
I come out myself to look at the job and write the estimate, and I work the job alongside our crew. The person who planned your cut is standing there when it happens.
Taught by a foreman who checked everything
I learned under an old-school foreman who made me reset forms until they were dead straight, and I started this business in 2023 after years on his crew. His rule on cutting was that you can always take more off, but you can't put it back.
Fully licensed and insured in California
California's contractor licensing board counts concrete sawing and coring as licensed concrete work, so it's fair to ask anyone you hire about theirs. We're fully licensed and insured, and we're based right here in West Covina.
On a cut, everything that counts gets decided before the blade touches concrete. Contact us with what you need opened up, and I'll come take a look.
Concrete cutting, permits and slab work in West Covina
In West Covina, permits for private work come from the city's Building Section, and its Building Counter takes applications Monday through Thursday, 7:30 am to 5:30 pm, going by the city's posted hours. Whether your particular cut needs a permit depends on the job, so if you'd like to ask before we schedule, call the West Covina Building Division at 626-939-8425 for current details. If your job does need one, we handle the paperwork, line up the inspections and keep you in the loop. We're based in West Covina and work in many of the cities around it, so reach out even if yours isn't on our list.
A lot of what we cut around here is older slabs and block walls, like a garage getting a new door, a drain rerouted under a floor or a tired driveway section coming out, and you can't tell from the top what's been poured in or run through over the years. That's why the scan comes first, and we see the same mix of older concrete on jobs in El Monte and Covina.
Questions about concrete cutting in West Covina
Should my concrete be scanned before cutting or coring?
Yes, plan on it. One national field guide treats scanning as the first step, using ground-penetrating radar, which reads through the concrete, and electromagnetic locators to find the steel and the lines inside so the cut or core can be moved off them. We plan a scan before we cut or core, so it's in the schedule from the start.
How do I know if my slab is post-tensioned before cutting?
You often can't tell from the surface, so if it isn't ruled out, treat it as post-tensioned. A post-tensioned, or PT, slab has steel cables pulled tight inside it, and the same field guide says to scan every cut and core in one, even a small hole or a shallow cut, and to bring in the structural engineer before cutting if PT hasn't been ruled out. Tell us if your building might be PT, and we'll talk through the scan and the engineer before anything else.
Do I need an engineer to cut a doorway in a concrete wall in West Covina?
If the opening is structural, yes. The field guide says any structural opening, or any cut through structural reinforcement, needs the structural engineer of record, the engineer responsible for the building's design, so leave time for that before your cutting date. We'll talk at the estimate about whether your opening falls in that group.
What is the best way to keep concrete cutting dust down indoors?
Cut wet, pull the dusty air out and pick the right saw. Cal/OSHA calls the fine silica dust from cutting concrete a known cause of cancer and of silicosis, an incurable and often fatal lung disease, and the state's construction rules call for exhaust as needed indoors and enough water on wet cuts to keep visible dust down. One industry sawing specification says a gas saw used indoors needs good ventilation and names electric, hydraulic or air-powered saws as the other choices, so for indoor jobs we pick the saw with the people inside in mind.
What happens to the slurry when concrete is cut wet?
It gets held on site, not washed down a drain. The field guide says cutting slurry, the gray paste of water and concrete dust that comes off a wet blade, must be contained rather than drained, so it's a fair question for any crew you're considering. We plan how we'll catch and clean it up before the first cut.
How much does concrete cutting cost in West Covina?
The price comes down to how thick the concrete is, how much steel is inside and how many feet of cut or how many holes you need. Indoor work, tight access, a scan, an engineer's review and hauling off the broken pieces all add to it, while an open outdoor slab that's easy to reach costs less. I'll write up your number after I've seen the spot.
Work that often follows a concrete cut
Concrete driveway building
If the cut takes out a cracked or sunken stretch of driveway, a new pour that ties into the old concrete brings the surface back level.
Concrete patio construction
When you're cutting out a tired patio or squaring off an edge for a bigger one, the new slab goes in on a properly packed base.
Cities we cover for concrete cutting
A&D West Covina Concrete Construction is based in West Covina, California, and the 12 cities listed here each have their own page, including Baldwin Park and Pomona. We work in many of the cities around them too, so reach out even if yours isn't listed.
Plan your cut before the saw starts
Call (626) 412-8532 or send the form with the address, whether it's a wall or a slab, the opening you need and whether the building might be post-tensioned, so I show up ready to talk it through.
West Covina, CA