Question about concrete

[yeller]

I have to pour a small driveway for my boat and once I do this, the boat will be trapped behind it. Anyone know how long I would have to wait before I could drive on it?

[Johntrip]

Depends... weather temp humidity??? location?

[Cuda]

Next day.

[MOP]

First it should be 3,500 psi, 4" amd wire reinforced, stay off for three days to be safe. One thing New Yorkers know is concrete:wink:

[Cuda]

I've been on litterally hundreds of construction sites, and I assure you, you aren't going to hurt it after one day. I've seen them get on it the same day, if it was an early morning pour.

I've heard it takes 25 years for concrete to fully cure.

[glashole]

we've driven platform lifts over concrete the next day which would be heavier than your average boat

[LKSD]

Yes a few days.. Also reinforcments inside (rebar) help to make it strong. Also the slower & damper the cure the stronger it can be...

That said if you ever have to remove it concrete is EVIL!!!:yes: Dont ask me how I know :bonk: :boggled: :bonk: Jamie / Lakeside

[yeller]

Thanks. I don't mind waiting a few days. For some reason I thought you had to wait a couple weeks.

JW, I don't plan on pouring it as thick as yours. :)

[LKSD]

Thanks. I don't mind waiting a few days. For some reason I thought you had to wait a couple weeks.
JW, I don't plan on pouring it as thick as yours. :)

God No! :eek!: I did not pour that concrete. The idiot we bought the house from did that. It was horrible. We just finished it. Jamie

[Cuda]

Damnit! They poured some concrete on the jobsite today around noon, and I meant to take a picture of me standing on it before I left a 4 o'clock. :(

[MOP]

Joe no question you can walk on it hardens up a bit, but it will not take a concentrated load for at least a couple of days. Main reason is the ground under it is usually been disturbed and now has gotten pretty wet from the drain down from the fresh concrete, so you have a not to good supporting mud under it that needs time to drain off and harden up. My dad was a concrete contractor as a side line for many years so we did it all from foundations to patios, I also had a job on a 12 yard mixer for a couple of years. I picked up quite a bit from the contractors and inspectors.

[MOP]

Damn Poodle is taking a swipe at the "Smack Master" title!!!!

[LKSD]

Your skinny ass vs a trailer rolling across it is no comparison... :wink:
JW, you would NOT like my folks house.. Dad was in the concrete business. 12" slabs throughout the house with 2" of terrazo on top.. All CBS block walls, and I mean ALL! There is NO drywall in the entire house..
Concrete patio approx 100 x 50, 6" slabs... Oh, the driveway is the weak spot, it's only 4" concrete..
Hell to hang pictures in...

Poodle,

Your dad's house sounds nice. We would have loved to have kept everything concrete. However ours was done sooo half assed ....everything was pitched toward our basement door which was not good. It would come from the road down our dirveway onto our sidewalk and right to the back door. Winter was like an ice rink and with a heavy rain water would come over the storm door for the spring/summer seasons. What a mess. We had to get rid of it especially with doing up our basement so as not to ruin things. I just dont know what some people think.

Maybe again in the future I may put conrete back in. I have to save my pennies first and find someone competent. Send your dad my way. Jay:pimp:

[LKSD]

Sounds like you guys had a neat place.. That would cost a fortune to build like that today.. I guess it has withstood all of the hurricanes without fail.. :) Jamie

[Cuda]

Joe no question you can walk on it hardens up a bit, but it will not take a concentrated load for at least a couple of days. Main reason is the ground under it is usually been disturbed and now has gotten pretty wet from the drain down from the fresh concrete, so you have a not to good supporting mud under it that needs time to drain off and harden up. My dad was a concrete contractor as a side line for many years so we did it all from foundations to patios, I also had a job on a 12 yard mixer for a couple of years. I picked up quite a bit from the contractors and inspectors.
Again, I beg to differ. I've seen trucks parked on the new slabs the next day with no ill effects.

[Cuda]

Your skinny ass vs a trailer rolling across it is no comparison... :wink:

My ass may be skinny, but my Buddah Belly makes up for it. Probably about the same psi as a Ford diesel.:wink: :tongue:

[BUIZILLA]

in my younger, and more wiser days..... I worked for a block and concrete contractor, and i'm not exagerrating when I say we poured tens of thousands of yards of mix.... and we parked our trucks on it the next day...

[MOP]

Yeah but you were'nt talking 4" home owner thickness, go to 6" and the picture changes a lot.

[Cuda]

LOL, the only flaw to his plan was the driveway.. Figuring us kids needed a place to roller skate, he did the entire thing in well laid out and perfectly leveled concrete.. :yes: :yes:
None of us ever skated... :boggled: :bonk:
The previous owner of my house had the same flaw, when they poured the concrete slab between my house and my detached garage. It has absolutely no pitch on it at all. Neither did my back porch slab, but I put pitch on it before I tiled it, otherwise water would sit right in front of the door.

[Forrest]

Wow! I never knew how many of our Donzi brothers have their roots so firmly embedded in concrete! You can add me to that list as well.

Back in the summer and fall of 1974, I poured concrete (concrete labor) during the construction of a condo building in Virginia Beach, VA, where I grew up. I started the job when the second floor was being poured, and quit when we finished pouring the top floor. Talk about getting a good night's sleep - that job would flat put you to work! Anyway, I remember that we could not add the next floor until the floor and structure below cured for nine days which was about the length of time that it took us to complete one floor. To speed the initial cure up, we used electrictly-heated steel forms and blankets. We would pour in the late afternoon, finish in to the night, and break out the forms from day-before's pour the next morining. Needless to say, I learned a lot about concrete during that short time.

When in doubt, just wait a little longer . . .
Your concrete will always be safe once the the concrete turns from green to white.

PS. I don't know who's boat that is in the forground.

[yeller]

Madpoodle, your dad sounds like my grandfather. He came from the old country and built his own home when he got here. The only way he knew to build was poured concrete. 6" concrete interior walls. About 80yrs later, there is hardly a crack anywhere. It'll last forever.

I'll pour on a Sunday. That way I won't have to drive on it till the next Saturday. I wouldn't want to use it next day. From what I remember, even though it may appear to be holding the weight, it can crack internally which will show up later. I just couldn't remember the 'safe' waiting period. I was afraid I'd have to wait a couple weeks.

[Johntrip]

Well..... Been sellin building materials for 17 years specializing in concrete related items. Mesh,rebar,curing,coloring, and repair materials just to name a few..... My questions at the beginning of this thread would put all speculation to rest. If you live in Michigan where its cold it might take longer to setup. If you live in Miami where its warm and the ground is stable (coral rock) you would be good to go in about 24-48 hrs. Either way put a sprinkler on it oscillating works well. (you don't want it to puddle). Depending on how big it is you may want to consider an expansion joint for flex. (More important if your subtrate is soft). You could also add a concrete accelorator (antihydro) and be good in 12 hrs or less.

[yeller]

Johntrip, I live in Vancouver, Canada. The temperture will more than likely be high 60's. I do know about keeping it wet. Got another ? for you. If I want to color the concrete, is there a product that is added during the mixing stage, or something that is sprayed on right after the pour, or done later? In other words, what options do I have?

[pmreed]

In my college days, I worked for a contractor who built shuffleboard courts all over Florida; I tied a lot of steel and wheeled a lot of concrete in those days. To add color, we sprinkled the appropriate colored powder over the surface and floated it in during the finishing process. I was just cheap ($1.35/hr) labor, so the finishing was done by more experienced hands. The color was therefore just in the very top part of the concrete. In non-critical applications, driveways and such, I'd participate in the finishing. You could get just about any color you wanted, though most of what we did was a green or a coral red.

Phil

[MOP]

Ditto on the top layer, we would sprinkle it as even as possible then use the electric bull float to get a nice even effect.

[yeller]

Well, that sounds simple enough. If I can color it, it'll help subdue the wife. She wasn't very pleased that I'm ripping up the lawn for concrete. :wink: :)

[gold-n-rod]

In my college days, I worked for a contractor who built shuffleboard courts all over Florida

I chuckled when I read that, thinking to myself, "Of course, with all the blue hairs moving there."

Then I caught myself. My daughter and soon-to-be SOL just bought a house built in 1957. It has a court tiled into the basement floor. These kids have turned shuffleboard into a drinking game!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!:beer: All of their 20-something friends love to come over and play. I will admit that I've gotten both tipsy and rowdy playing it, too!!!!

Of course, living in a college town, I'm constantly amazed at what activities kids can turn into drinking games......... like cornholing :eek!: :eek!: :eek!: (do be careful if you Google that at work)!!!!!!!!!

[Cuda]

Back in the summer and fall of 1974, I poured concrete (concrete labor) during the construction of a condo building in Virginia Beach, VA, where I grew up. I started the job when the second floor was being poured, and quit when we finished pouring the top floor. Talk about getting a good night's sleep - that job would flat put you to work! Anyway, I remember that we could not add the next floor until the floor and structure below cured for nine days .
That's probably what they called "prestressed slabs" I would guess. All the older condos built along Pinellas County Beaches were built with them I wasn't there when they built them, but I can tell you that tile guys HATE tiling over them. They all seem to have a hump in the center, and slope down to where it meets the next slab. They could very well require longer drying than a slab poured on grade.

[Johntrip]

You have a few options... Powder oxide into the concrete truck before its pumped out.... emory aggregate floated into the surface, a curing stain applied after set up, decorative spray (knock down) or a stencil to create a pattern, or an acrylic paint one designed for concrete and wear..... oxide is the easiest and the color is throughout.... good choice. whoever delivers your concrete will have it......

[Cuda]

I know when they order concrete for the drive thru lane at McDonald's, they order black concrete, so all the cars idling there don't stain it. I was at the Whataburger we had just done, about a week after it was open, and there were oil stains all over their concrete at the drive thru, it was regular gray.

[Forrest]

That's probably what they called "prestressed slabs" I would guess. All the older condos built along Pinellas County Beaches were built with them I wasn't there when they built them, but I can tell you that tile guys HATE tiling over them. They all seem to have a hump in the center, and slope down to where it meets the next slab. They could very well require longer drying than a slab poured on grade.

The building next to the one we we building was going up at the same time, but it was built entiely differently than ours. They did actually used pre-stressed pre-sized concrete panals built in a factory. The panals would arrive on trucks and their crane would lift them into place. Once the panals were in place, the workers would then fasten them together. Using this method, they could go up two-and-half floors in the time that we could go up only one floor. Our method of form-in-place using reusable steel tunnel-forms on tracks was a new concept at the time forconcrete construction. Most everyone else at the time who was building using the form-in-place method was using wood forms, which required form carpenters, were one use since the forms had to be distroyed in order to be removed.

Hmmmm, black concrete . . . that's what I need for my driveway!

[Cuda]

Forrest, at the same time you were doing concrete in condos, I was working pipeline (read digging ditches) for all the gas mains along Clearwater Beach, and Sand Key. There wasn't one building on Sand Key at the time, now it's nothing but condos. That's where I was working when I crushed the index finger on my right hand at 18 years old. It still doesn't bend. We also strung pipe underneath the old Sand Key Bridge. I remember once we were hanging on a scaffold off an old rickety ass crane. They were lowering us down, and the brake failed on the crane, dropping us in Clearwater Bay. It only dropped us about a foot into the water, I grabbed the cable and held on. The other guy on the scaffold, panicked, and jumped off. He damn near drowned wearing those work boots. We had no lifejackets on. Osha would have a fit nowdays.

You can order the black concrete, just tell them how much you need, and they mix a dye in with it.

[Ed Donnelly]

In Toronto your property tax goes way up if you have a concrete driveway.
Solution add black powder dye to concrete so it looks like a paved driveway..They charge $75 more to flush out any black residue, but well worth it.. Car is sitting on black concrete.......Ed

[MOP]

To coin a phrase your car is "Poetry in Motion" sitting still!!

Anyway back to the mud muddle, found a couple of explanations on cure time.

http://www.tpub.com/content/construction/14043/css/14043_201.htm

http://www.reliableremodeler.com/remodeling_ideas/remodeling_ideas.asp?ArticleID=736

[Johntrip]

Yeller, go to my website www.johnabellcorp.com and click on the Lambert icon in the middle of the home page. They are manufactures of concrete coloring solutions.

[yeller]

Thanks again guys. I've had better response to my concrete question than most boating questions I ask. :biggrin.: :biggrin.:

Ed, I have have the same tax problem as you. That's why I hadn't poured a pad for the boat. I hadn't thought of the black concrete to mimick asphalt. I'll have to think about that one. The bit of driveway I'm adding won't affect the taxes because it's just an addition to what I already have.

[MOP]

Surprised they are not questioning the banked turns:jestera: