|
Posted by DanG on October 15, 2006, 12:01 pm
I think we all need more information. What do you mean by a
concrete house? Footings, sure. Slab in contact with the earth,
can be protected with blankets. ICF's,insulated depending on how
heavy a concrete mass. Cast in place walls? There are usually
significant windows of weather that allow temperatures for
concrete.
Are you doing the work or using subs?
Are you the general?
Are you worried about quality or time?
If you wait in Oklahoma for those 22 days each year when it's not
too hot, too dry, too wet, too cold, too windy, you may never get
'er done.
We pour concrete in central Oklahoma year round, though I prefer
to avoid heavy schedules in January and February. There are a few
days that common sense says that humans don't want to be out, much
less concrete. Concrete reponds to real temperature, not chill
factors. Oklahoma has given me a whole new respect for chill
factors. I've worked in Colorado at 12 below in a sweater for
weeks on end; when it's 30 above with 60% humidity and the wind is
howling here, it's time to go to the house. The song says it all.
. . . "when the wind comes sweeping down the plains . . . .. ."
Don't pour concrete on frozen ground.
Don't pour concrete on ice or snow.
Don't pour concrete in deep water puddles and mud.
Pour when the temperature is 35 and rising.
Protect concrete from freezing for a minimum of 3 days, 7
preferred, 28 ideal. This can be done with heaters, blankets,
tents, etc.
Footings dug into soil and poured can usually survive by ground
temperature alone in the proper weather window.
______________________________
Keep the whole world singing . . . .
DanG (remove the sevens)
dgriff237@7cox.net
> This topic is of great interest to me. My wife and I were
> planning on
> building a concrete house but time got away from us, and now it
> looks
> like it'll be too cold to do it until spring. We live in
> northeastern
> Oklahoma, so it'll be probably February or late January at the
> earliest
> before we have temperatures down to 21 degrees. However, we've
> already
> had a soft freeze and I'm concerned that if we're pouring
> concrete for
> a 2000 sq foot house, that we should wait until Spring. Is this
> true
> or is there a way to keep the concrete from freeze?
>
> Vinh Dam wrote:
>> In general, the subcontractor is responsible to put a thermal
>> blanket on
>> the concrete when weather prediction calls for a freezing
>> night.
>> However, legally, it would be touch to prove so in court if you
>> don't
>> have it on paper. I am aware that many of the construction
>> related
>> cases rely on "common practices". In this case, the common
>> practice is
>> that the subcontractor is supposed to cover the concrete when
>> there is
>> freezing weather. No mater what the weather is, he has to
>> deliver a
>> non-defective product before getting paid.
>>
>> How about making him paying for a concrete test to make sure
>> that the
>> cracks don't compromise the strength of the concrete? I
>> haven't done a
>> concrete test yet but I think such a test is feasible.
>>
>> -vd-
>>
>> SteveF wrote:
>> >> I'm a GC in central oregon. My concrete guy poured out 15
>> >> yards yesterday
>> >> for the flatwork around a house I'm building. For some
>> >> darn reason he
>> >> didn't think he'd need blankets last night. Needless to
>> >> say, it got down
>> >> to 21 degrees last night. I noticed this morning that there
>> >> were a few
>> >> areas that were starting to turn light gray. It looks like
>> >> the thing is
>> >> ready to freeze pop. I've put in a call to his cell saying
>> >> that we'll
>> >> need blankets for tonight.
>> >>
>> >> Basically, if the thing freeze pops and starts spawling,
>> >> then I'm going to
>> >> be in a fight with him on getting paid...and ripping the job
>> >> out.
>> >>
>> >> Does this seem like he should have to take care of it or am
>> >> I off base?
>> >>
>> >> -Dan
>> >
>> > I vote that he is responsible for knowing the forecast and
>> > making
>> > arrangements for protecting the concrete from freezing.
>> >
>> > Steve.
>> >
>> >
>
| 
Yahoo! 
Google 
Windows Live 
del.icio.us 
digg 
Netscape 
XML Sitemap