I recently put-up a small garage, 24' x 24", and want to pour a
concrete floor in it. I am a farmer and have done some work pouring
and setting ready-mix around feed bunks, etc., and have done sidewalks.
Pouring things like sidewalks was easy, because when you "strike-off"
the concrete, you just run a board along the top of the forms. But
when I do this enclosed building, how do you do it when you are up
against a wall? And how can you do a 24' x 24' slab in one continuous
pour?

It is because of these questions I would like to find out if someone
could recommend a good book or maybe even a video that would help me.
I have done some searches, but so many of the books/videos seem slanted
to either the completely simple or the very complex. Like I mentioned,
I am not a complete novice to pouring/setting ready mix cement--but at
the same time I am not going to be doing a real complex job either. I
just need some advice on how to pour a floor in a modestly sized
building. Thanks in advance for any and all advice!

On 12 Oct 2005 09:23:14 -0700, wrote:

I recently put-up a small garage, 24' x 24", and want to pour a
concrete floor in it. I am a farmer and have done some work pouring
and setting ready-mix around feed bunks, etc., and have done sidewalks.
Pouring things like sidewalks was easy, because when you "strike-off"
the concrete, you just run a board along the top of the forms. But
when I do this enclosed building, how do you do it when you are up
against a wall? And how can you do a 24' x 24' slab in one continuous
pour?


I think the first thing you should do is find out what
it would actually cost to have a concrete company come
out and do the pour and float for you. Buying sack-cement
and mixing it yourself is frequently not cost-effective
on medium to large jobs.

You can install screed boards and take them out after rough screeding. There
are also sheet metal strips that stay in the concrete and form joints
between sections. You can install fiber strips along the edges and leave
them in the concrete. You did not say what kind of walls you have but there
should be expansion joints between the slab and the walls. All in all, a 24
by 24 slab is not a job for an amateur. It is a lot of hard, fast work and
when it starts to set it can get unmanageable real fast. Either have it done
or do it in small sections. It will need control joints to control cracking
anyhow. Just had a 12' by 40' by 6" fibered slab poured for motor home
parking. Took 9 cubic yards, cost $630 for the concrete and $720 for
forming, pouring and broom finishing. In NE Alabama.
Don Young
wrote in message
ups.com...
I recently put-up a small garage, 24' x 24", and want to pour a
concrete floor in it. I am a farmer and have done some work pouring
and setting ready-mix around feed bunks, etc., and have done sidewalks.
Pouring things like sidewalks was easy, because when you "strike-off"
the concrete, you just run a board along the top of the forms. But
when I do this enclosed building, how do you do it when you are up
against a wall? And how can you do a 24' x 24' slab in one continuous
pour?

It is because of these questions I would like to find out if someone
could recommend a good book or maybe even a video that would help me.
I have done some searches, but so many of the books/videos seem slanted
to either the completely simple or the very complex. Like I mentioned,
I am not a complete novice to pouring/setting ready mix cement--but at
the same time I am not going to be doing a real complex job either. I
just need some advice on how to pour a floor in a modestly sized
building. Thanks in advance for any and all advice!