Was hoping to lay concrete base 6metres by 3metres. Temperature this morning
below freezing. Whats the groups advice for laying concrete in this weather?
Any help gratefully accepted. Thanks

"sploop" wrote in message
...
Was hoping to lay concrete base 6metres by 3metres. Temperature this
morning
below freezing. Whats the groups advice for laying concrete in this
weather?
Any help gratefully accepted. Thanks



Don't if you can delay the job.

If you really have to have it down today get them to put the
appropriate ad-mixture in the mix, and when down and beginning to
harden cover in hessian and straw.

AWEM
(who for years had a crumbly concrete apron that he'd laid when it was
too cold - now replaced)

"Andrew Mawson" wrote in message
...

"sploop" wrote in message
...
Was hoping to lay concrete base 6metres by 3metres. Temperature this
morning
below freezing. Whats the groups advice for laying concrete in this
weather?
Any help gratefully accepted. Thanks



Don't if you can delay the job.

If you really have to have it down today get them to put the
appropriate ad-mixture in the mix, and when down and beginning to
harden cover in hessian and straw.

AWEM
(who for years had a crumbly concrete apron that he'd laid when it was
too cold - now replaced)

Monday shows forecast 11.c during day and 2.c overnight. Would this be OK?
Thanks

On Thu, 17 Nov 2005 11:12:37 GMT, "sploop"
wrote:

Was hoping to lay concrete base 6metres by 3metres. Temperature this morning
below freezing. Whats the groups advice for laying concrete in this weather?
Any help gratefully accepted. Thanks


The stuff must set, before the water freezes, or even gains small ice
cristals.

Its best to wait.

Rick

"sploop" wrote in message
...

"Andrew Mawson" wrote in
message
...

"sploop" wrote in message
...
Was hoping to lay concrete base 6metres by 3metres. Temperature
this
morning
below freezing. Whats the groups advice for laying concrete in
this
weather?
Any help gratefully accepted. Thanks



Don't if you can delay the job.

If you really have to have it down today get them to put the
appropriate ad-mixture in the mix, and when down and beginning to
harden cover in hessian and straw.

AWEM
(who for years had a crumbly concrete apron that he'd laid when it
was
too cold - now replaced)

Monday shows forecast 11.c during day and 2.c overnight. Would this
be OK?
Thanks



Speak to your concrete supplier - they should be able to dope the mix

AWEM

"sploop" wrote in message
...
Was hoping to lay concrete base 6metres by 3metres. Temperature this
morning below freezing. Whats the groups advice for laying concrete in
this weather? Any help gratefully accepted. Thanks
Monday shows forecast 11.c during day and 2.c overnight. Would this be OK?
Thanks

sploop wrote:
Was hoping to lay concrete base 6metres by 3metres. Temperature this morning
below freezing. Whats the groups advice for laying concrete in this weather?
Any help gratefully accepted. Thanks

It is possible to heat the concrete, while it sets, to avoid freezing.
If you have it, a simple layer of straw on top of it, and a tarp over
that will do - the concrete will generate its own heat.
A heater set to "frost" also can help.

On Thu, 17 Nov 2005 11:31:15 +0000 (UTC), "Andrew Mawson"
wrote:


AWEM, who for years had a crumbly concrete apron

Must make cooking a bit difficult.

sponix

"sPoNiX" wrote in message
...
On Thu, 17 Nov 2005 11:31:15 +0000 (UTC), "Andrew Mawson"
wrote:


AWEM, who for years had a crumbly concrete apron

Must make cooking a bit difficult.

sponix

Yes a tad heavy round the neck cord g

Seriously though, when it was taken up to extend the garage forwards
although the top couple of inches was basically compacted ballast the
bulk of it was pretty hard - certainly the JCB puffed a bit of black
smoke hoiking it out !

AWEM

Don't

Concrete (normal mixes anyway) should not be laid when frost is present
or likley.
Wait until there is no frost on the ground, if frost is likley within
first 48 Hrs .. then insulate the top ... ideally with a layer of straw
and top with poly sheet - or as a minimum a thick tarp.


You can get frost proofer added, but it is far better to do without ...
as theses are accelerators, and can weaken the finished strength.

sploop wrote:
Was hoping to lay concrete base 6metres by 3metres. Temperature this morning
below freezing. Whats the groups advice for laying concrete in this weather?
Any help gratefully accepted. Thanks


Best thing is to add an antifreeze. Dilute sugar makes a good
antifreeze

Unfortunately I haven the heart, dont do that, least not unless you
want to play expensive party tricks.


NT

Also if Building Regs are involved (they may not be for this) they
would be in their rights to refuse to accept this without a full lab
analysis ... of a cured cube of the mix, for compressive strength.


If Bld Ctrl not involved you can do as you want ... persoanlly I would
go buy a 5 litre container of FEB accelerator and add that to the mix (
if home mixing)

Rick wrote:

Concrete (normal mixes anyway) should not be laid when frost is present
or likley.
Wait until there is no frost on the ground, if frost is likely within
first 48 Hrs .. then insulate the top ... ideally with a layer of straw
and top with poly sheet - or as a minimum a thick tarp.

You can get frost proofer added, but it is far better to do without ...
as theses are accelerators, and can weaken the finished strength.

Note the term "or likely" ignore the "when frost is present" bit.

They put new sea barriers on the coast of North Wales after a flood one
winter. Some of them were poured in frosty weather and even though the
centre of the pour may have been (but who can say?) OK, the top of the
pour on each mold that got filled in such weather, was flaey and
required a lot of subsequent maintainance.

I rather think that had the firm been made to remove the affected
sections the job would never have been finished. I imagine they will
fail sooner than the rest due to the overseers compromising. But that
is conjecture.

The point I am trying to make to the OP is that if you make the pour
and the concrete fails, you will have to take off any subsequent
building, dig up the concrete and pay to have it removed, re-lay more
concrete and re-erect the building. All for the sake of waiting a few
days or even weeks.

Stop hoping and start thinking. How much is such a scenario going to
cost if there are services to be taken into consideration too? And how
much is it going to cost you to wait?

You can get around it by setting straw or sawdust smouldering on top of
it if the weather is cold enough for frost, as such weather is usually
accompanied by calm air. It's a method used in orchards for millenia. I
have even seen it used on pig farms where the porkers were kept
outdoors in tin sties.

hang on a tad .... look at my words ...
Concrete (normal mixes anyway) should not be laid when frost is present

To infer that the concrete mix used for sea barriers is a 'normal mix'
is incorrect.

I have laid a slipway, where we had only 4 hrs between tides - no
problem, but we used a specific mix for rapid hardening & suitable for
continued salt water immersion ... not in any way a normal mix for
domestic concrete.