I am General Contractor, but working alone and simply can't take big concrete job as concrete will not wait for me to finish like the pavers did.
Anyway, what I know about good concrete is that it needs to be vibrated to release air bubbles and be really strong.
I did vibrate several smaller pads and they never had even haircracks.
I hire contractors to lay 300 tons of my house foundation and it took 7 people to pour concrete with vibrators. No cracks.
But when I observe other contractors working in the area - they never use vibrators.
So I yet have to see pad in CA bigger than 8' with no crack on it.
We do have very nasty clay here who in summer can develop ground cracks big enough to slide your hand in.
Once more time I will recommend recycled concrete base rock.
Our county is selling it for like $14 a ton, so next to nothing and I have my RV driveway done with it like 15 years ago, still semi-solid and easy to blow the leaves from.
Anyway, what I know about good concrete is that it needs to be vibrated to release air bubbles and be really strong.
I did vibrate several smaller pads and they never had even haircracks.
I hire contractors to lay 300 tons of my house foundation and it took 7 people to pour concrete with vibrators. No cracks.
But when I observe other contractors working in the area - they never use vibrators.
So I yet have to see pad in CA bigger than 8' with no crack on it.
We do have very nasty clay here who in summer can develop ground cracks big enough to slide your hand in.
Once more time I will recommend recycled concrete base rock.
Our county is selling it for like $14 a ton, so next to nothing and I have my RV driveway done with it like 15 years ago, still semi-solid and easy to blow the leaves from.
If not done right concrete will crack anywhere.
We're in the snow belt, our average temp last February was 6F - it gets cold here.
The concrete in one garage, which we did not build, is cracked in many places. The concrete in our big garage, which we did build, isn't. We built it in 2001, so I'm thinking if it was going to crack it probably would have by now.
The key is ground preparation, plenty of reinforcement, and relief cuts.
As you can see, we used rebar, mesh, and fiber reinforced concrete. You only have one chance to do it right the first time, skimping on the prep work is wasting foolish $$$.
Here is the before and where our MH now lives;
We're in the snow belt, our average temp last February was 6F - it gets cold here.
The concrete in one garage, which we did not build, is cracked in many places. The concrete in our big garage, which we did build, isn't. We built it in 2001, so I'm thinking if it was going to crack it probably would have by now.
The key is ground preparation, plenty of reinforcement, and relief cuts.
As you can see, we used rebar, mesh, and fiber reinforced concrete. You only have one chance to do it right the first time, skimping on the prep work is wasting foolish $$$.
Here is the before and where our MH now lives;
Than in CA concrete always crack.
I just put 44,000 lb of pavers on my driveway. Everything on slope what would make heck of the job with concrete.
I wish my back was 20 years younger, but not only results are very nice as I was able to form flower beds, sidewalks and garbage cans pad, but right after the finish come project with fountain that needs power conduit.
I just pop row of pavers, scrape some gravel under, lay the conduit and put everything back.
I just put 44,000 lb of pavers on my driveway. Everything on slope what would make heck of the job with concrete.
I wish my back was 20 years younger, but not only results are very nice as I was able to form flower beds, sidewalks and garbage cans pad, but right after the finish come project with fountain that needs power conduit.
I just pop row of pavers, scrape some gravel under, lay the conduit and put everything back.
Bruce Brown wrote:
Gravel is fine, a garage is better, a heated garage is the best. :B
I think cooled garage will beat heated garage 🙂
