There's an old saying in the trade: there are two kinds of concrete. Cracked, and not cracked yet.
It's a joke, but it's also most of the answer to this question. A concrete deck is one big solid slab, and slabs crack. A paver deck is hundreds of separate pieces, which is exactly why it doesn't fail the same way.
That doesn't make concrete a bad choice. It's a perfectly good option for plenty of yards. But if you're about to live with a deck for the next twenty years, it's worth knowing what you're signing up for with each one.
For most Orange County pool decks, yes. Pavers usually last longer, they're much easier to repair, and they give you far more choice of color and pattern. Concrete generally costs less up front and is a reasonable option, especially for a simple layout, but it comes with one trade-off you can't design your way out of. It cracks.
Because the ground under it moves, and a slab can't move with it.
Soil expands when it's wet and shrinks when it dries out, and plenty of Southern California soil is clay-heavy enough to do that noticeably. Add tree roots, a bit of settling and a few decades of summers, and something has to give. With a solid slab, what gives is the slab.
When concrete cracks, you get two choices: patch it and look at the patch, or cut out the section and pour it again. Neither one ever quite matches the rest.
Control joints help a crack happen in a tidy place. They don't stop it happening.
A paver deck is made of individual units set on a compacted base. When the ground shifts a little, the pavers shift with it instead of snapping. And if one does crack, stain or settle, you don't live with it or rip up the deck. You lift that paver out and set a new one.
That single fact is most of why we recommend them. A deck you can repair one piece at a time is a deck that still looks right in fifteen years.
Usually, yes, up front. We're not going to pretend otherwise.
Where the comparison gets more interesting is over the life of the deck. A concrete deck that cracks gets patched, then patched again, and eventually replaced. A paver deck gets the odd paver swapped. The price of either one depends on the size of the deck, whether an old deck has to come out first, access to the yard and the pattern you choose, so we quote decks on site rather than guessing. There's more on what moves the number on our pool deck & paver page.
Any deck gets warm in a July afternoon, pavers and concrete both. The bigger factor is color. Lighter tones stay noticeably more comfortable than dark ones, so if the deck gets full afternoon sun, factor that in before falling for the charcoal. Your feet will vote either way.
They have a few, and you should hear them from us rather than find them later.
A paver deck is only as good as what's underneath it. Nobody admires a compacted base at a barbecue, but it's the part that decides whether the deck is still flat in ten years.
If a remodel or a resurfacing is already on the calendar, that's the moment. Not because doing them together makes the deck cheaper, because it doesn't. It's about sequencing.
The pool is drained and the yard is already staged for work. And if plumbing lines are being replaced, those runs go under the deck. Pour or lay a new deck first and do the plumbing later, and someone ends up cutting straight back into brand-new work. Doing it in the right order is simply the efficient way to build it. If that's where you're headed, the full pool remodel page walks through how the pieces fit together, and pool plumbing repair covers the lines that run underneath.
We install Angeles pavers, and two patterns account for most of what people pick. Courtyard is the most requested: a mix of larger modular blocks that looks relaxed and a little upscale. Cobble is a close second, with smaller rectangular units in a tighter pattern that reads more traditional.
Every deck we install also includes proper grading and drainage, so water runs away from the pool instead of pooling on the surface. It's not the fun part of choosing a deck, but it's the part you'd notice after the first rain if it were missing.
“We recently completed an entire deck and pool remodel with ACE… we love the finished product.”
Gene L. · deck and pool remodelWe'll come out, look at the deck you've got and the ground it's sitting on, and give you a straight recommendation.
Call (909) 577-5274More on your backyard: Pool Deck & Pavers, Full Pool Remodel, Tile & Coping and the Pool Resurfacing & Remodel hub. ACE Pool Repair & Remodel serves Orange County and parts of Los Angeles County. Licensed, bonded and insured, CA Lic. #1075061.
