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Concrete is a heavy rough composite material composed of fine and coarse broken stone and gravel, dirt and cement, bonded together with water that cures and hardens over time. The mix can be poured or spread into a mold, and once cured, it forms a mass resembling that of hardened stone. Concrete is the second most used building substance in the world, and is the most widely used building material for structures, providing resilience for climate disasters and capturing waste (i.e. ash, coal, grime, debris, bugs, etc.)
There are three universally basic ingredients for concrete:
The cement and water form a thick paste that coats the aggregate and sand in the mix, and then that paste hardens and binds the aggregates and sand together. Water is needed to chemically react with the cement and to provide workability with the concrete. The amount of water in the mix, in pounds, compared with the amount of cement is called the water/cement ratio. The lower the w/c ratio, the stronger the concrete. Sand is a fine aggregate; gravel or crushed stone is the coarse aggregate in most mixes. All of these combined provide higher strength and less permeability.
The concrete mix is workable, and it can be placed and consolidated properly by us here at F.R. Concrete. Desired qualities of the hardened concrete are met; for example, resistance to freezing and thawing and deicing chemicals, watertightness, wear resistance, and strength. Since the quality depends mainly on the water to cement ratio, the water requirement should be minimized to reduce the cement requirement (and thus reduce the cost).
We take these steps to reduce the water and cement requirements:
Admixtures are additions to the mix, used to achieve certain goals.
Fibers can be added to the concrete mix in replacement of welded wire mesh. The problem with welded wire mesh is that it often ends up on the ground from being stepped on as the concrete is being placed, specifically if no support blocks are used. Another problem is that mesh doesn’t prevent or minimize cracking, it simply holds cracks that have already occurred together. If you could look into a section of concrete poured with fibers you would see millions of fibers distributed in all directions throughout the concrete mix. As microcracks begin to appear due to shrinkage as water evaporates from the concrete, the cracks intersect with the fibers which block their growth and provide higher tensile strength capacity at this crucial time. Always leave it to the professionals, and that’s us here at F.R. Concrete!
When the concrete sticks to the trowel as it is lifted off the concrete, or concrete sticks to the finishers kneeboards, too much sand in the mix, or higher than necessary air entrainment, are most likely the causes.
Excessive bleed water will delay the finishing operation and can cause serious problems with the surface of the concrete. Adding more sand to the mix, adding more entrained air, using less mix water, or adding cement or fly ash are possible cures. Fly ash and air entrainment improve workability and pumpability. Appropriately setting the time of the mix can be slowed with retarders, or sped up with accelerants. The concrete mix may be cooled in hot weather by replacing part of the mixing water with ice, sprinkling water on the aggregate pile, or injecting liquid nitrogen into the batch. Because of these techniques, it is always important to use the best company for the job, and that’s us. We care about a beautifully finished job for our clients.
There are two major steps to installing concrete: placing the concrete mixture, and spreading the mixture into place. Normal concrete weighs approximately 150 pounds per cubic foot and should be placed as near as possible to its final position. Excess handling can cause segregation of the course and fine aggregates. Wetting up the concrete so it can be raked or pushed into a location far from where it is discharged is not acceptable, and it’s stressed to leave it to the professionals, so nothing is mishandled. Concrete is poured directly from the chute of the ready mix truck, wheeled into place with a buggy, or pumped into place with a concrete boom pump. The purpose of spreading fresh concrete is to place concrete as close as possible to finish level, to facilitate straight edging/screeding the concrete. Short handled, square ended shovels are recommended for spreading concrete. A come-along, a tool that looks like a hoe and has a long straight edged blade, can also be used. Any spreader being used should be rigid enough to push and pull wet cement into place, without bending or breaking.
How often you’ll need to reseal or replace your concrete depends on factors like the weather and how much vehicle/foot traffic it receives. But generally speaking, you’ll need to reapply acrylic-resin sealers roughly every two to three years, while penetrating sealers can last for five to 10 years. In many instances concrete can be repaired instead of replaced. Still, some cracks are serious enough to warrant the need for removal and replacement of it. The extent of damage will determine if repairs are possible, the longer cracks are left untreated the more severe they become. Use F.R. Concrete, and we will do the hard work for you.
It maintains the integrity with minimal maintenance.
