Concrete Driveway Fundation Steps by DCI Demolition Company

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To ensure your concrete driveway will look good for years to come, there are important steps that DCI Demolitions Company makes during installation. How well your driveway looks and works long term is largely due to the quality of workmanship and materials that go into it. To help ensure a trouble-free way



A properly prepared sub-base
The uniformity in both soil composition and compaction is the key to good subgrade-one that will provide adequate support, ensure uniform slab thickness and avoid liquidation of the slab and structural cracking. Soft spots should be removed and replaced with good material, such as gravel or crushed stone. Many Western states have expansive soils. Under these conditions, from 2 to 8 inches of crushed rock should be used as sub-base material, depending on the degree of expansion. If you are not sure about the characteristics of the soil in your area, consult a soil engineer.

Do not let the concrete is placed on the subgrade must be completely dry Spray the first sub-base to cushion will keep water fresh concrete is absorbed.

Plate compactors and rollers are the most common machines used for compacting the subgrade residential driveways.

Correct concrete mix
Mix design will impact the performance and longevity of a concrete driveway.

Control Joints driveway can be incorporated in a decorative pattern.

Joints positioned correctly
To help prevent random cracking, control joints should be placed at a maximum distance of 10 feet of a roadway slab 4 inches thick. While random cracks are generally not a structural problem and not reduce the life of the road, which can be an eyesore. Also avoid joint patterns that produce rectangular or triangular sections. The depth of control joints is also critical. The concrete installer must hand tool or saw cut to a depth equivalent to one quarter of the thickness of the slab (or 1 inch for a slab 4 inches).

Reinforcement
The use of steel reinforcement provide additional structural capacity to your driveway and is especially important if the slab will be exposed to heavy traffic. The reinforcement will not prevent cracks, but will help keep them together if they occur. Reinforcement may be wire mesh or ½ inch (# 4) of the steel reinforcing bars placed in a grid pattern with a spacing between bars of approximately 12 inches. In any event, the blocks must be used to maintain low reinforcement centered within the concrete.

Placing concrete in the proper thickness
The thickness is the main factor (even more than the strength of concrete) in determining the structural capacity of a driveway. Place concrete with a minimum thickness of 4 inches. Increasing the thickness of 4 inches to 5 inches will add approximately 20% of its specific cost, but also increase the capacity of almost 50% of its driveway. In DCI Demolitions Company also considers the thickening of the edges of the road for 1 or 2 inches to provide additional structural support in the most likely area that is subject to a heavy load, with the thickened section extending from the edge of the slab 4-8 inches.

Suitable finish
The largest errors occurring during the finishing of concrete walkways are overworking and performing surface finishing operations, while the bleeding water is present.

The finish is usually a three-step process. We at DCI Demolition Company relaizamos the following:

Level or strike the concrete with a ruler to achieve a uniform surface.
Float concrete with a wood or magnesium bullfloat before bleed water accumulates.
Apply a simple broom finish to enhance traction, unless the plans call for stamping the road or applying other decorative textured finish.
The final finish with a steel trowel is unnecessary and can actually do more harm than good to seal the concrete surface prematurely and preventing water evaporation bleeding.
Proper drainage
To eliminate standing water in your driveway should slope toward the street, away from existing structures (like your house and garage) a minimum of 1/8 inch per foot. If proper drainage is prevented, because the concrete slab is wedged between two structures, you may need to install a drain that collect water at a low point in the concrete and divert it away.

Curing techniques appropriate
Cure the concrete as soon as finishing is completed. Curing of concrete is the final step of the process, and one of the most important. Unfortunately, it is also one of the most overlooked. In extreme cases, failure to cure the concrete immediately after the final finish can result in strength reductions up to 50% by reducing the resistance of concrete to weather effects and increasing the possibility of defects in the surface.

Curing methods include covering the concrete with plastic sheets or blankets moist curing, continuous spraying and the application of a curing compound forming liquid membrane. For slabs that will be acid stained, wet curing is the best approach, since a curing compound should be completely removed to allow the acid stain to penetrate. To cure the most common single or integrally colored concrete forms, however, is the use of a liquid curing compound. Read more about why it is important concrete curing and how.

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