DelGrosso Design specializes in Artistic Concrete and Stone Construction, indoor and outdoor water features, landscapes and interior natural sceneries, stone and concrete paving and walls covering. The company has been founded in California in 2002 by Andy DelGrosso after more than 10 years of being in business in Northern Italy (Lake Como), where he was born and raised.

All our work is hand-made with passion and superior mastery. Going through our website and pictures' gallery you will see how unique our projects are. They are always developed with and for our clients, in this way achieving a complete customer satisfaction. Our dedication to our customers shows in the details of every project. Our goal is to always exceed our clients' expectations.

Andrea's (Andy's birth name, like Boccelli, the Italian singer) construction background goes back to when he was 16 and, following the footsteps of his grandfather and his dad, started building with stone and concrete. Over the years he developed his own artistic talent, as well as a strong sense of business. In 2002 he moved to San Francisco Bay, making his childhood dream come true.

DelGrosso Design is located in the heart of the  "Wine Country", in the world famous Valley of the Moon, between Santa Rosa and Sonoma. We operate in the North and East San Francisco Bay, in The City of San Francisco and in Lake, Mendocino and Napa counties. Among our services are Concrete floors, Counters, Interiors, Concrete pavers, Stamped Concrete, Flagstone Paving, Bocce Courts, Hardscapes and Landscapes, Low voltage Light System, Stone walls, Stucco walls, Waterfalls and ponds, Outdoor kitchens, barbecues and fireplaces and more.

Our Unique designing style is rich with Italian and Mediterranean touches. Our values of honesty, reliability, great performance and clean look, makes of our company "one of a kind". All our employees are trained and insured through the State Fund Workers' Compensation. Over the years we have built a solid reputation based on all these facts.

In the last years Andy and his wife Christine grew the family owned company toward a more specialized kind of installations, like interior counters and floors finishes, where the unique designing and coloring styles can be more appreciated. Our philosophy is to continually grow toward new frontiers, where the limit is human imagination only.

Contact our offices any time for any additional information, and to set an appointment for a FREE project inspection and estimate at (707) 537-8752

To verify our licensing click the following link to the California State License Board (CSLB) web site below:

https://www2.cslb.ca.gov/OnlineServices/CheckLicenseII/CheckLicense.aspx

In the last decade the term "concrete floors" have become a synonymous of "high end polished and stained floors"; in reality concrete floors include a variety of several options and finishes, often completely different from one each other.

First of all there is a difference between a "concrete floor" and "cement floor".

A concrete floor usually is a 2"-6" thick  reinforced slab of concrete (mix of Portland cement, fine and coarse aggregate usually up to 3/4" or 1" in size, sand and water). The concrete can be integrally colored at the concrete plant while mixing, or can be colored on the surface while finishing using special colorant powders, or can be colored after the concrete is dried and cured using color stains. Often more of this coloration process are done on the same concrete slab to achieve peculiar looks, like antiquing or marbleizing effects.

Once finished the concrete slab can be polished to a progressively smoother finish using machines equipped with diamond grit coated disks. This process usually require specific quite expensive machinery which only a few specialized companies own.

Cement floors are usually thin coats applied in layers on the surface of a multitude of substrates, but mostly concrete and tiles or backer board. These cement coats are called in a multitude of ways, but generally in the trade we refer to them as "polimeric modified cement overlays".

The thickness of the coats varies from 1/32" (usually called Micro-topping) to 1/16" and 1/8" (trowel coats) and 1/4" to 1/2" (stampable overlays). All cement coating materials are made of a specific mix of cement grouts and white or gray Portland cement, often silica sand and other additives, among whom the most common is a polymer (the polymer can be liquid or powder). Cement overlays are lately becoming one of the choice of preference as far as concrete restoration because of the contained cost and at the same time long durability and extreme customization options.

One factor that often is underestimated in concrete and cement floors installation is the quality of the craftsmanship. Both concrete and cement projects require HIGHLY SPECIALIZED CRAFTSMANSHIP . Years of proven experience are often the best guarantee of durability. Other factors are also quality of the materials, technical knowledge of new available materials , mastering different application techniques, and of course proper preparation of the job, proper addressing of possible issues (cracking is always the most critical one), proper follow up after the installation.

Simple details as preparing a mock up for the client approval can make a huge difference when the priority is the client satisfaction ; in the case of cement floors it is a simple operation and the mock up can be prepared on a 2'x2' or 2'x4' MDF boards or concrete backer boards, easy to transport and move around at the job site.

Both concrete and cement floors should be sealed to protect the coloration; most of the sealers change or affect the look of the floor. The most durable sealers for concrete and cement are usually epoxy or urethane based. Although some of the sealers available on the national market do not comply with the Bay Area Air Quality Commission more strict regulation on VOC (maximum allowed is 100 VOC), all our sealers are compliant with the new 2011 VOC restrictions.

As last, a note about the term "resurfacing". This word means "create a new surface"; this operation includes applying cement coatings over existing (generally old) concrete slabs or even counters, or create a new surface with cement over tiles or other stable and sturdy substrates which will accept the cement coat.

Sometime the term "resurfacing" creates confusion in owner of polished concrete or stone floors and counters. Using this term they might expect for their floor or counters to be re-polished or buffed with a machinery to bring out the long time gone sheen. This operation can be done as part of the maintenance process on concrete and stone polished floors, but shall not be confused with the application of top coatings.

DelGrosso Design also specializes in concrete floors polishing. This process, besides restoration of old and worn out concrete, consist on finishing of new concrete floors to a medium or high gloss.

What is commonly called "concrete polishing" is actually a multiphase installation. On old concrete the first phase consists on "grinding" the surface; this process often exposes the stone aggregate present inside the slab. Sometimes this phase is more pronounced to create the so called "terrazzo" finish.

The next step is called "honing", where the surface is smoothed out to a medium gloss (#800 grit diamond disks). During this phase a water based fortifying product called "densifier" is sprayed on the surface to increase the superficial strength of the floor slab and make it hard enough to go through the next phase.

The last phase is the "polishing", in which the honed surface is polished with progressively finer diamond grit impregnated disks (generally up to 3500 grit). At this point the concrete floor will have a good sheen, but not yet as high as it could be.

The high gloss finish is normally achieved by applying a protective water based sealer usually containing siliconates, and finally burnishing (high speed buffing) of the surface.

The polishing process has been developed centuries ago in Europe, where most of the buildings (cathedrals, public halls, museums and more) needed a floor finish with a  luster. Over the last decades modern technology made possible the polishing to become affordable to the residential clientele.

Our polishing equipment is manufactured in Europe, where polished concrete and stone are a traditional element of architecture.

Concrete countertops, as concrete floors, are usually seen by the general public as a very high-end expensive product. There are differences between "concrete" and "cement" countertops.

Most of the concrete countertops consist in a 2" or thicker slab of concrete with a steel reinforced core. Usually  concrete counters are finished before they are completely dry; this operation done with trowels smooths and compacts the surface of the slab (cream), creating a uniform superficial layer. The majority of concrete counters are manufactured in factories which are equipped with special vibrating tables and in a conditioned environment. This factor limits the size of the maximum slab to 3'W x 7'L: anything bigger would be to heavy for a safe transportation and installation at the client's. Some company build the countertop "in place" by constructing forms around the support cabinets and pouring special concrete mixes into the forms; this process although more invasive than a simple a few hours installation, allows for more customization of sizes and shapes otherwise hardly obtainable in a warehouse.

Concrete countertops are fascinating because of the extreme look that can be achieved using color patinas (concrete stains); some counters in fact are unique pieces of art.

Polished concrete counters are usually created embedding stones or pebble in the concrete mix, or other materials (I have seen fiber-optic, sea shells, glass) and then once the concrete is dry the surface gets polished with a hand held diamond disk polisher. Once again the hand of the craftsman is extremely important in the final result. This kind of counters (polished or honed countertops) can also be stained: the stain will only be absorbed by the concrete surrounding the embedded stone or glass.

Particular care need to be taken when sealing concrete counters. Such a smooth surface as polished concrete requires especially formulated sealers. Be aware of urethane based sealer directly brushed on polished counters: it will not create a durable finish. Urethane should be applied in multiple very light spray-on coats, and only by trained personnel.

Water based sealers are also available on the market, but only a few are of good quality. Consult with a countertop expert before purchasing or applying a sealer to your counter. It will save you a lot of troubles and money, doing the right thing the first time.

Our topical sealers are all FDA approved for food preparation and are recommended for kitchen counters. Plan a resealing operation on a periodical base. If you wait to long the counter could get damaged and the repair cost will be way higher than the  maintenance resealing. 

Stained cement countertops are made by applying thin coats of polymeric modified cement on concrete, tiles and laminate (formica) counters. This kind of countertops allow the same artistic creativity of the stained concrete countertops in conjunction with the easier maintenance of the polished ones. Most of the countertops cements are unknown to the old school concrete countertops manufacturers and only in the last years are starting to take over the scene of the high-hand countertops construction.

Cement countertops must be sealed. High gloss epoxy offers the highest degree of protection against corrosion, accidental staining and scratching, but is quite difficult to apply and requires an experienced crew. Urethane based sealers are also available when a lower sheen and a more natural feel is required, but the degree of protection lowers of a few points.

Comparing concrete and cement counters to natural stone ones you will find that they all require a similar amount of care and maintenance; while a natural stone countertop contains the beauty of nature, a stained one will contain the personality of the craftsman that created it. This is a unique feature that makes of concrete and cement counters "one of a kind" creations.

DelGrosso Design proudly sustain and encourage the practice of Green Building in our territory.

DelGrosso Design installation meets the Green Building requirements, which just recently changed for the San Francisco Bay area; the new requirements are lowering the admissible VOC (Volatile Organic Compound) content in sealers to 100.

Many manufacturers are developing new products compliant to this new stricter regulations, but it is up to the contractors to act following these rules and use only admissible products. Many contractors are still buying products manufactured out of State and sometime not compliant with the new California Law.

We believe that we make the future of our Nation and of the World starting from our neighborhood. We help our clients to make the sometimes difficult decisions during a construction project, and in this process we make sure that the project we are going to build will positively affect the environment.


Here following some of the reasons why our floors are environmentally friendly.

- Cement floors hardly require demolition of existing substrates, saving energy and not wasting materials.

- Concrete and cement floors retain heat in cold weather and stay cooler in warm weather, reducing energy consumption.

- Cement coatings reduce dust and allergens often found in other flooring, especially carpet.

- Our cement coatings utilize sustainable materials abundant in Nature, as limestone and sand, unlike other materials, as for instance wood, which require the harvesting of forests, sometime endangered and protected.

- Cement flooring largely reduce the quantity of Portland cement used in comparison to concrete floor slabs.

- DelGrosso Design only uses Bay Area VOC compliant sealers and coating products, to reduce the air pollution and improve the air quality that we breath.

- Our cement coatings are virtually mildew free, abating the number of chemicals normally necessary to clean other kind of floors, mainly ceramic tiles grout.

Feel free to call or email our offices for more detailed information regarding "Green Building". Our personnel will be friendly and provide you any available information.

Require your contractor or other contractors on the project to provide Green Building compliance information and to use only admissible products.