Everything in a garage sits on the pad: the walls, the door, the cars, the workbench and years of salt and slush dripping off tires. A pad that was poured on a soft base, too thin or without the right edges will crack, settle and let the door seal gap. It is also the one part of a garage you cannot easily redo once the walls are standing.
Rock Solid Exteriors is a family-owned, locally owned and operated concrete contractor in Clinton Township, in business since 1997. We pour concrete pads for new detached garages, replace worn-out garage floors, and pour pads for manufactured homes. Call (844) 757-6543 or book a free in-home concrete estimate.
Which Project Do You Have?
A pad for a new garage
You are building a detached garage, or having one built, and need the slab and its foundation first. This is permit work. The slab has to match the garage plans, so we coordinate with you and your garage builder on size, door openings, anchor bolts and elevations before anything is poured. Your building department also decides what the edges need, such as a thickened edge or a separate footing or rat wall. See footings and rat walls.
Replacing an existing garage floor
The garage is fine, but the floor is cracked, heaved, pitted from salt or sloping the wrong way so water pools inside. The old floor is broken out and removed from inside the garage, the base is corrected, and a new floor is poured with slope toward the door. Access is tighter than outdoors, so planning where the concrete truck, pump or buggies go is part of the estimate.
A manufactured home pad
A manufactured home needs a level, stable pad built to the requirements of the home’s installation instructions and local rules. We pour it to the dimensions and specifications provided for your home and site.
What Makes a Garage Pad Last
- The base. Topsoil and organic material are removed, and a compacted aggregate base goes down. Most slab cracks and settling trace back to a soft or poorly compacted base. The clay soils common in Macomb County hold water, which makes a good base even more important.
- Thickness and reinforcement. Garage slabs carry vehicle loads. Thickness, reinforcement and edge details are set by the plans and the local building department, and we will explain what your project calls for.
- Edges. The edges of the slab carry the walls. Depending on the building and local code, that means a thickened edge, a rat wall, or frost footings.
- Slope. A garage floor should slope gently toward the door so melting snow drains out instead of pooling against the back wall.
- Control joints. Joints cut into the slab control where shrinkage cracks form, so they stay straight and inside the joint.
- Curing. Concrete keeps gaining strength for weeks. Giving it time before heavy loads, and keeping deicing salt off it the first winter, pays off for decades.
Our Process
- Site visit and estimate. We look at the site or existing floor, access and drainage, and review any garage plans. You get a written estimate.
- Permits and utilities. Our crews pull city permits where required. Utilities are marked through MISS DIG before any digging.
- Excavation or tear-out. The site is excavated, or the old floor is broken out and hauled away.
- Base and forms. The base is placed and compacted, and forms are set to the planned size, elevation and slope. Any footings, rat walls or thickened edges are formed as the plans require.
- Inspections. Where the permit calls for an inspection before the pour, it is scheduled at this point.
- Pour, finish and joints. The concrete is placed, finished and jointed. Anchor bolts are set if the garage framing needs them.
- Cure and walkthrough. We tell you when you can walk on the slab, when framing can start and when it can take vehicles.
What Affects the Cost of a Garage Pad
A 2026 Michigan cost guide puts professionally installed concrete slabs for garages at about $8 to $14 per square foot, or roughly $1,600 to $2,800 for a one-car pad (about 200 sq ft) and $4,000 to $7,000 for a two-car pad (about 500 sq ft). Smaller pads tend toward the high end per square foot. These are typical published ranges, not a Rock Solid quote. On your project, cost depends on:
- Size and thickness of the slab
- Edge and foundation requirements: thickened edge, rat wall or frost footings
- Tear-out of an old floor, and hauling
- Site work: excavation, fill, grading and base depth
- Access for the truck, especially for floors inside existing garages
- Permit and inspection requirements in your city or township
0% financing for 60 months is available on approved credit, and veterans receive a 10% discount. See financing.
Garage Pad FAQ
Do I need a permit for a garage pad?
A new garage almost always needs a permit, and the slab is part of it. Rules for floor replacement vary by city and township. Our crews pull city permits where required.
Does a garage slab need footings?
It depends on the building and your local code. The Michigan Residential Code generally requires footings to extend 42 inches below grade, but it allows exceptions for some small, detached, light-frame accessory buildings. Many detached garages are built on a slab with a thickened edge or a rat wall instead. Your building department makes the call; see footings and rat walls.
Can you replace just part of my garage floor?
Sometimes a badly damaged section can be cut out and replaced, but it will not match the old concrete, and the rest of the floor keeps aging. If the whole floor is heaving or sloping the wrong way, full replacement is usually the better value.
How soon can I park on a new garage floor?
Foot traffic usually comes first, then vehicles after the concrete has had more time to gain strength. We give you timing for your pour and the season.
Can you pour the driveway and garage pad together?
Yes, and it often saves a mobilization. See driveway replacement.
Garage Pads Across Macomb, Oakland and Lapeer County
We pour garage pads and floors throughout Clinton Township, Sterling Heights, Macomb Township, Shelby Township, Warren, St. Clair Shores, Chesterfield, Roseville, Mount Clemens, Troy, Rochester Hills and Lapeer. For the rest of our concrete work, see concrete services, and see finished slabs and driveways in our standard concrete gallery.
Get a Free Garage Pad Estimate
Call (844) 757-6543 or request your free in-home estimate. Office hours: Monday to Friday 9 AM to 8 PM, Saturday 9 AM to 3 PM, closed Sunday. Michigan Residential Builder License 2102205396.
Rock Solid Exteriors, 42452 Hayes Rd #2a, Clinton Township, MI 48038.