The concrete stays. The cracks, the heat, and the three shades of gray go.
Rubber Stone and Vuba Stone are overlays. They go on top of the driveway, pool deck, or patio you already have and turn it into one surface. NorCal Surfaces installs both across Northern California, for homeowners and for the contractors whose customers ask for it, and is the only authorized Rubber Stone dealer for Shasta County.
Rubber, or stone
Same idea, different material. Rubber Stone is the soft, cool, colorful one. Vuba Stone reads as real stone and lets water through. Plenty of homes get both: rubber around the pool, stone on the driveway.
Rubber Stone
Recycled and EPDM rubber granules bound in polyurethane, troweled over your existing concrete as one continuous surface.
- Made of
- Recycled tire rubber and EPDM granules, polyurethane binder
- Looks like
- A fine, even speckle. 20-plus colors, two- and three-color blends
- Underfoot
- Soft. Absorbs impact, textured for grip when wet
- In the sun
- Noticeably cooler than bare concrete or a solid coating
- Goes over
- Concrete, asphalt, tile, wood. Cracked, pitted, or mismatched is fine
- Best for
- Pool decks, patios, steps, driveways, play areas
- Care
- Hose or pressure wash. Clear top-coat re-roll every 3 to 5 years
- Backed by
- Manufacturer's 5-year warranty on the installed product
Vuba Stone
Crushed marble and natural pebble mixed with a clear, UV-stable resin. Solid when it sets, with air between the stones, so water goes straight through it.
- Made of
- Marble and natural aggregate in a moisture-tolerant UV resin
- Looks like
- Stone. Natural blends from near-white to charcoal
- Underfoot
- Firm, textured, comfortable barefoot
- Water
- Permeable. Roughly 20 gallons per square foot per minute drains through
- Goes over
- Sound concrete or asphalt. No demolition
- Best for
- Driveways, patios, paths, entries, pool surrounds
- Care
- Washing. No sealing schedule
- Lifespan
- 15 to 20-plus years installed
Anywhere there is a slab you are tired of
Pool decks
The number one job. Cooler, grippy when wet, and one surface over every pour around the pool.
Driveways
Cracked, spalled, or stained slabs get covered instead of replaced. Vuba Stone if drainage is the issue.
Patios and walkways
The back patio that has never matched the front walk. Same product, same color, one continuous run.
Steps and porches
Chipped step edges and slick porches. Rubber Stone wraps the nosing and gives the step some grip.
Garages and shops
Rubber Stone goes indoors too. Softer on the knees than epoxy, and it does not show a dropped socket.
Hot, cracked, slippery, and three different colors
That is the deck we get called about most, almost word for word. The original patio, the strip poured when the pool went in, and the pad by the pump that was never meant to match. Each one has settled its own way, and by mid-afternoon in July none of them can be crossed barefoot.
Rubber Stone covers all three pours at once. Cracks and seams get filled, the whole thing gets one color from the chart, and the surface that comes out of it is cool, grippy when wet, and soft enough that a slip is a bruise instead of a trip to urgent care. The concrete underneath does not move, and the deck does not care that it was three slabs.
- 1
Look
We come out, walk the slab, and bring the color chart. You keep the sample.
- 2
Prep
Pressure wash, fill cracks and spalls, grind where needed, prime.
- 3
Pour
Mixed on site and hand troweled. Most residential decks are one day.
- 4
Cure
A day or two depending on the weather. We plan pool jobs around your swim season.
- 5
Walk on it
Barefoot, in July, at two in the afternoon.
Overlay, or tear it out
A new pour is the right answer when the slab has failed. When it has only cracked, faded, or gotten hot, an overlay does the job in a fraction of the time.
| Rubber Stone | Vuba Stone | New concrete | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Demolition | None | None | Jackhammer, haul-off, dumpster |
| Time on site | 1 to 2 days | 1 to 2 days | A week or more with cure |
| Old cracks | Covered, flexes over them | Covered | Gone until the new ones |
| Heat in sun | Cooler | Cooler than concrete | Hot |
| Wet grip | High | High | Depends on finish |
| Rainwater | Sheds | Drains through | Sheds |
| Feel | Soft | Firm stone | Hard |
| Look | Fine speckle, any color | Natural stone | Gray |
Pool builders, concrete crews, landscapers
Your customer saw Rubber Stone somewhere and wants it on the job you are building. We install it anywhere in Northern California.
Territory
We install Rubber Stone across Northern California. Dealer territories are exclusive, and Shasta County is ours, so on a Shasta job there is no second installer and no risk of an unauthorized install voiding the warranty.
Scope
We take the overlay portion of the project: prep, pour, cure, walkthrough. You keep the customer and the rest of the build.
Samples
Color charts and hand samples for your customer to keep. Ask and we will bring them to your job site or your office.
Schedule
We slot in after your pour has cured and before the fence and furniture go in. Tell us the date and we will hold it.
What people ask before they call
Both Rubber Stone and Vuba Stone are designed to go over existing concrete or asphalt. We pressure wash, fill the cracks, grind or prime as needed, and pour on top. The slab stays. If a section has sunk or is actively moving, we will tell you that before we quote, because an overlay follows whatever is underneath it.
Rubber Stone flexes, which is the reason it holds up over concrete that has already cracked once. Hairline and settled cracks stay hidden. A slab that is still heaving from tree roots or water is a different problem, and we would rather say so than sell you a surface that telegraphs it in a year.
Cooler than bare concrete or a solid coating in direct sun. Rubber does not hold heat the way a slab does. Lighter blends run cooler than dark ones, so on a pool deck we steer toward the lighter side of the color chart.
No. Rubber Stone has a textured, high-traction finish that stays grippy when wet, which is why pool decks and splash areas are the most common place we install it.
Rubber Stone is usually walkable within a day or two of the pour, depending on temperature. Vuba Stone cures in a similar window. We schedule around your pool season, not the other way around.
A hose or a pressure washer. Rubber Stone gets a clear top-coat re-roll every three to five years to keep the color fresh, and the manufacturer backs the installed product with a five-year warranty. Vuba Stone needs nothing beyond washing.
Rubber Stone is installed by authorized dealers only. We install it anywhere in Northern California, and for Shasta County we are the only dealer authorized to. Contractors and pool builders can bring us in for the overlay portion of a job. Homeowners get the same crew either way.
Rubber Stone and Vuba Stone, installed
Product photos from the manufacturers we install for, until our own job photos are up.
Product photos courtesy of the Rubber Stone and Vuba Stone manufacturers. Court photos are public domain (CC0) via Wikimedia Commons. Photos of our own jobs are coming.
Where the overlays go
Send us the slab
A couple of photos, the town, and roughly how big it is. We will come out with the color chart and give you a number for Rubber Stone, Vuba Stone, or both.