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Posted by EXT on December 13, 2006, 11:37 am
If your concrete (not cement) is running down a 10 inch incline in 9 feet,
you have WAY too much water in the mix. Unlike the stupid scenes in the
movies where concrete is as watery as soup, concrete should be stiff and be
difficult to spread. Too much water makes concrete weak, crumbly, easy to
wear down and subject to a lot of cracking. Think of Gunite, where they
spray concrete on vertical surfaces such as pools, and it stays there. If it
was even slightly watery it would slide down to the bottom.
>I have done a fair amount of cement work over the years. Mostly flat
> areas or very slightly pitched. But I have a section of grass between
> two poured slabs that gets pretty muddy at times and it leads to my
> barn, so I am always walking there. I want to pour a sidewalk in
> there, but leave part of it grass. It's only about 8 or 9 feet long,
> but it drops about 10 inches in this span. Because I will
> occasionally lead a horse thru there, I'd prefer not to make a step,
> not to mention I often walk out there at night and it's pretty dark
> back there and I know I will trip on it unless I am always carrying a
> flashlight (and half the time I cant find them). So, I'd prefer to
> just follow the slope of the soil thats there now. The problem is
> this: If I pour a slab with that amount of slope, wont the cement all
> pool to the lower end of the slope? Should I just keep working it
> back up until it begins to set, or should I put 2x4s every 3 feet
> until it sets and then pull them out and fill in the gaps? Whats the
> best way to do this?
>
> One other thing. I dont want this cement smooth, or it will become
> real slippery in winter when it ices over. I know the trick to run a
> coarse broom over it after its set, but I think that is still not
> rought enough. How can I make it rougher? No, I dont want to pour it
> and not trowel it, leaving all the stones exposed. Thats too rough.
> I was wondering about troweling it and pulling a leaf rake across it,
> or something like that, Something that would make an "X" pattern
> would be ideal. I guess the roughness should be similar to the side
> of a concrete block.
>
> Then too, there's another thought. Would I be better off using patio
> blocks? (I mean the 4" thick, not the 2" which crack too easily esp
> if a horse walks on them. I'm not sure how well they would work on a
> slope like that ???
>
> Thanks
>
> Mark
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