8x 34 slab. Can I handle it ?

[fastfredracing]

Im sick of calling concrete contractors. They are all busy and out of 11 calls , I got 2 calls back , one guy scheduled to come bid, and never showed. The other guy was booked till august .
I'm pouring my floor myself . I really wanted to anyhow. I like the satisfaction of doing it myself, and its fun learning a new skill. The few smaller pads I mixed and poured turned out pretty nice considering I have no experience . 2 years later, no cracks, or heaving . I think I have the basics down.
By the end of this weekend, I should have down my vapor barrier, and most of my rebar work done . Ill be ready to go in about 2 weeks . I have already excavated, have my drains in, and all my gravel is in , leveled up and compacted .
I will be using ready mix for this one . Easy access for the truck and I can chute the whole thing. there will be no wheel barrow work .
I am 24 feet wide, and 34 feet long. I was planning on breaking it up into 3 even pours . It will be me , my good buddy alan who is a work horse, and I can get some help from my boy ( minimal , but he can help us muck and screed and get the grunt part done .
I am under roof so not being under direct sun should buy me some time as far it starting to harden .
Should I go for it ?

[stomachmonkey]

Yes

[dad911]

That's only 3.5 yards per pour at 4" thick. Around here you would pay a premium for the short loads.

3 Premiums + retail might equal the labor of a contractor.

[vash]

i am a civil engineer. i have seen it done hundreds of times. i have yet to try myself. one time, a foreman asked if i wanted to try it. i sucked with that long handle screed. it is an art. i then put on glove and worked the rough screed. i ended up dumping a bunch of pens and pencils out of my vest pocket like a fool. i got laughed at in good fun. but that short stint was backbreaking.

then there was that time i tried to shoot shotcrete. wow. just wow. that is difficult.

i know my limits. and i know finishers that work on the side. my concrete companies probably wouldnt even try to charge me, but i would have to pay, to be ethical. but i would pull a mix design out of my files and ask for a strong mix.

[Scott Douglas]

My brother just had this pad poured last weekend while he was gone dog sitting.
25x40 with a ramp up to his other shop pad. Turned out pretty nice IMO.



Not sure how many guys were in the crew, probably no more than 6-8 though.
From my experience doing this type of work, I'd recommend you get at least two more guys to help out.

[Arizona_928]

From my experience it's the prep work and form building. Pouring, leveling, and finishing are the easy parts. One contractor i drink a lot of beer with laughs at how much he makes on a half a day worth of cement work

[Scott Douglas]

If you're not used to doing this type of work it can be back breaking IMO.

[ben parrish]

It is hard...I have done my last pour for this life. I did a former garage that was 18 x 24. I had two guys helping me and it was a lot of work finishing it off as I was particular about having a very smooth finish. The last pour I did was about 4 years ago for two sidewalks, the guy I had helping crapped out on me at the heat of the day...damn near got away from us.
If you have the right help and the dedication to finish it to your desired smoothness, it’s not complicated but it’s not something that you can do if everyone is not committed 100%. Try to pour on a cloudy cool day as it affords you more time to finish it off. Full sun and dry/ low humidity is the hardest conditions to pour and finish in.

[URY914]

^^^Agree 100%

[Scott Douglas]

My brother has had a lot of concrete poured over the years, both at this new place and at his former place. Luckily for him he's been able to find some guys in both places that know what they're doing and do it well.
IMO your three small pours, if done individually, would be manageable with the crew you have. Trying to do it all at one time would be pushing it IMO.

[Baz]

Every time I see a post like this from Fred I think of this scene from Kelly's Heroes.......

[Superman]

I have a lot of respect for the laborers who place concrete and the cement masons who finish it. And for the weight and thickness of concrete. I would be very hesitant, to say the least, to try it myself. If you do this, you will sleep very well that night.

[flatbutt]

Do you guys use a sonicator for the deeper pours like posts?

[Tidybuoy]

This can be done but I would recommend having at least one friend help you.

I did a similar concrete job as mine was 8' wide by about 25' long with the end section being 14x14 square. For me, I did mine in 3 separate sections that were separated by a bricks width (later inset with bricks - see photo). This made it 3 separate small jobs (all done the same day). My biggest issue was I have very limited space to walk around the concrete as this was between a fence and garage.

I bought tow behind container of pre-mixed concrete and it took 3 trips (concrete yard was 1 mile away). It would be easier to have it delivered but you need to be completely ready for the truck as they pour quickly. Cover your car/truck with plastic as it splatters when pouring out of the container to wheel barrow.

For finishing, I did rock salt around the perimeter and broom finish in the center. This took 3 yards of concrete total.

In hindsight, it would have been much cheaper to have it done as I spent lots on tools, boots, etc..

[Evans, Marv]

I'd consider renting a power float machine for the final finish. Those do a great job.

[908/930]

I think you have an idea what you are getting yourself into so you should be fine. Are there any concrete contractors doing work nearby so you can go and watch?

If you use a power trowel be careful on the timing when you use it, need to make sure any gasses are out of the concrete or you will seal them in and end up with little bumps, the idiot flatwork contractors that poured my garage did this.

[Dantilla]

Do NOT order mud for an afternoon pour.

Afternoon mud? Everybody else's leftovers! Starts going off as soon as the truck leaves.
Extremely difficult to work.

Ask me how I know.
Better yet, don't ask!

[fred cook]

You plus one other person should be able to do the slab work. If you don't already know how, read up on setting batter boards, screeding the concrete, setting threaded "J" hooks (anchors for the bottom wall plate) and floating the slab. The extra person will make everything go much better, especially screeding the raw pour. If you are planning on having cars on the slab, consider making it a 6" thick rather than a 4" thick slab. Doing so will make it easier later to properly anchor a two or four post lift.If needed, don't forget to plumb any water and/or sewer stubs. Once it is poured and finished, keep the surface wet for a couple of days to cut down on the heat of hydration caused by the curing concrete. Good luck!

[Superman]

Originally Posted by fred cook

....Once it is poured and finished, keep the surface wet for a couple of days to cut down on the heat ....

A cement mason once told me this. His crew finished a slab and the forms happened to be perfect to form a shallow pool over the slab. Unintentional, but he submerged that slab. You see....concrete does not "dry" like a mud pie. It cures. A chemical reaction occurs when the water is added to the Portland Cement. It get warm. VERY warm in the case of a 'hot' mix. It will cure under water. Wicking the heat away helps.

And then there is finishing. Troweling. Working the concrete causes the creme to rise to the top. This allows a smooth surface, which is also workable (by broom or whatever). It is not just a matter of getting it flat. Getting the aggregate to move away from the surface is important, and this is part of the finishing/troweling process. It causes the surface to be workable, and also causes the surface to be harder.

[pmax]

I'm not a pro

I use self leveling concrete like Millie does.