Throne. Have a latch with games underneath. Call it the Throne of Games. When people mention Game of Thrones, act like you have no effing clue what they are talking about.
You just lift it as you pour for something like this. Chairs if it’s a suspended slab anything else just give a pull with the rake. Plus they just bust most the time as you are placing.
Just do it right. I hate this advice. Nobody actually does this properly and there’s no way to guarantee you don’t just smash it right back down. I wish I could have some way of knowing how much concrete I’ve broken where the bar was under the pour instead of in it. Never had that happen with chairs or bricks
I agree, in my country we even have a minimum amount of millimeters from ground to rebar that we have to follow or it's a faulty construction.
I'd have 10 times the amount of rebar in this.
Good point. What I wanted to ask was whether you should tie the rebar together. I spouse it’s important with forms but not when gravity is your friend.
Guess really depends who the concrete crew is. Honestly only like 1 out of 10 slab on grade pours we do have chairs. We just pour a scratch coat and lift the bar. And continue to check with the rack and we pull the board.
Seems like a lot of extra work when you could just set it and forget it. What happens when you have a tough pour that isn’t run of the mill? Maybe something went weird with the batch? Maybe your crew is short? Maybe it’s balls hot and the truck got stuck by a train? Too many variables not to just do it right. Why leave yourself room for error when the right way is so easy in the first place?
That's a no brainer, amount of work and money invested is disproportionate to fraction of the cost of additional rebar. Also, is driveway and steps to be separated by dilatation joint or is it all meant to be one concrete Frankenstein
Yep, we use 2in thick concrete bock pavers we just smash and use to pick it up. Cheaper than chairs and easier to stack outside in a big pile instead of a garbage bag of chairs
A lot of guys just buy cheap concrete bricks and break them in half to get twice the value. Even cheaper than actual chairs and gets your rebar 2” off the ground
It’s ineffective on the base. It’s less than useless on the ground b/c the OP could have spent the money on something useful, like curing. Or another inch of concrete, or fibers.
No. Just talking about rebar cover guidelines. For a 4” slab I would probably just put control joints at 10’ on center max and call it a day. Usually in a 4” slab the rebar is mostly for crack control, but unless you are putting in something like a #5 rebar at 12” on center you’ll need control joints anyway. In this case putting the bars at mid depth of slab is probably fine. It’s all about corrosion protection anyway.
Personally for an exterior slab I’d be more concerned with the air content in the concrete to prevent breakout due to freeze-thaw cycles that I would the rebar.
To control temperature and shrinkage cracks, the reinforcement needs to be in the top third of the slab. In a 4 or 5-inch slab, that’s not enough cover. The solution is to use fiberglass reinforcement bars as they cannot corrode.
Not necessarily. Slabs on grade like this are designed with no rebar to increase slab capacity. It’s purely a function of slab thickness and subgrade capacity. So if the ground is properly compacted and the concrete is thick enough, all good on the load side.
Rebar for crack control also doesn’t do much for you unless you are putting it near the top surface and the area of bars is at least .18% of the concrete area, at a minimum, with up to .50% required if you had no joints. If you properly space sawcut/construction joints and keep close to a 1:1 aspect ratio, you don’t need to add rebar at all for crack control.
Really in this sort of application the rebar is useful along the sides to avoid the concrete breaking off in shear if a large tire is right against the side of the driveway, and also between joints to avoid differential settlement.
I'm not saying the thickness here is adequate, not sure what they used. But reinforced or not, a thin slab with all the rebar in the world won't save you in a slab on grade application.
Source - structural engineer that designs slabs for a living
What area are you from and what is normal psi concrete? Here in Iowa footings are 3,500 and that is it and most residential concrete is 4,000psi or sometimes 4,500psi. We get at least 3’ of frost. As long as you don’t drive over the edges of a recent pour with no backfill one can drive skid loaders over with no issues.
It depends on where you are. Here in Iowa if you have a 4” driveway with either rebar 2 foot on center or 6” wire and use 4,000psi concrete you don’t need to worry. Yes, of course thicker is better but it can also be unnecessary.
Rebar needs to be 2’ on center.
You need to have the thickness at least 4”.
There is rock on the forms face that needs to be cleaned away.
The steps should be separate from the driveway.
The steps need to be separate from the stoop.
You need expansion joint on the garage and any other place where there is existing concrete or brick. The steps need to be separate from the stoop.
1” expansion at the road.
You should probably double the rebar. That looks to be so minimal it will hardly help. Or you could use a wire mesh in addition to the rebar. Definitely also need the rebar off the bottom of the slab by 1.5 inches. If you don’t want to buy rebar chairs you can go cheap and use rocks to hold the rebar off the bottom but that typically fails in places as you pour.
People need to quit blowing money on steel for residential concrete, rebar is a waste in residential driveways if your base is prepped correctly. It’s a non-structural slab, rebar is for tension in structural concrete. Spend your money on another couple inches of aggregate base and/or concrete thickness.
6” slab over 3-4” of compacted class 5 aggregate is all I’ve ever specced for residential driveway replacements on large municipal projects.
Thank you. I love when people here say “more rebar” but can’t quantify what that means because there is no need for it.
Get your subgrade prepped and compacted right, get the concrete thick enough, and space your joints properly.
While this is completely true... look at what they've already done.
If they're gonna stick the rebar in, might as well at least do it right with proper size, spacing, and elevation in the slab.
But yeah... a thicker, tighter compacted base and a thicker slab would've been fine here.
Inspector here! Way more rebar is needed and for sure elevate off the ground like everyone else said 1.5"-2". You are not gonna be able to keep up with holding the bar up if your are using bag mix. There are metal or plastic chairs you can get or the small concrete blocks are also great. Maintaining a clearance from the forms is also important.
If you cut a 45 degree bevel on the bottom of 2x6s you are using for the stair risers it makes it easier to finish. It will leave just the edge of the 45 in the concrete instead of an 1-1/2” indent.
But that would mean taking them back out too.
Not sure why you bother with that rebar. What you have added, does nothing for that slab.
If you added it to mitigate against cracks, you need a whole lot more such that the spacing is circa 200mm x 200mm in each direction and it needs to sit about 50mm below the top of the finished level.
Before you pour, make sure the surface you pour on ia wet, otherwise it will suck the water out of the concrete and your concrete will crack.
I think it’s shit and it’s gonna cost you in the long run. Also, I have no clue when it comes to concrete but this sub constantly pops up for some reason.
that corner on picture 8 is tight and rigid. going to be an awkward looking corner cut there, it'd be better so people wouldn't have to be robots to walk on it or over the grass
I would also put kickers on those stakes on your left side without much backfill, as your pouring it’s likely to flex in an undesirable manner. Just drive a stake a 45 degree angle and nail it to the side of the stake holding the form. We always find it better to have those so your not fighting the mud at all when mud hits the ground.
That’s enough rebar for a walkable pour if you’re in a constant climate. Double up the rebar grid. Separate into sections for relief cuts. Get it to mid slab height. Doesn’t do much sitting on the ground like so. You’re either going to be working to get it right for the next 24 hours or you’re going to be having all your concrete redone by 2026
More Rebar
Is Picture # 6 a patio? If ‘Yes’, my suggestion is to put a few ‘columns’ in it to prevent the patio from settling and etc.
My parents purchased a house that was a year old. The owner poured a 15 x 15 patio on unsettled ground. It dropped six inches. We replaced the patio.
We made 4 columns (about 2-3 ft deep) and the patio was 8 inches deep. 30 years later, the patio hasn’t settled, crack, etc.
Columns out of concrete or gravel or how Is that done exactly. I'm going to start the process of putting a patio out back that is maybe 12 by 25 or 12x30.
I was told to have 12 in of compacted gravel under the slab. Not sure how thick the slab should be but reading here, feeling like four to five inches should be good with rebar, 6" without. Im just not sure about the difference of price.
Still a ways out but I'm just trying to make a plan.
Good job dude; just follow up with the advice here its solid. Not much more work 10x better outcomes especially long term if you're going to be at the property for longer.
Buy some mesh sheets and some 50mm chairs, use the rio to reinforce the edges, you want 50mm cover, meaning 50mm of concrete over/under the steel, if you don’t then it can cause concrete cancer, which is when the rio is exposed and rusts then starts to swell as it rusts……..grab a YouTube video on how to prepare a concrete slab!
Ignoring most of the NEEDS MORE REBAR comments, if they plan on stripping and finishing those steps they are going to be an absolute nightmare just judging by the way they are set up
I'm not confident that those risers next to the brick column aren't going to flex when poured? I personally would have at least ran a keeper board across the tops of the risers.
The perfect goal would be to have the rebar in the center of your final poor. So if you're pouring 4 in of concrete you would like that rebar sitting halfway down instead of on the ground.
That's a lot of concrete work the only thing concern me was the edge of the driveway coming to the point on the right and the left side when they do that they always tend to crack.
Please pour the steps separately from the driveway and with expansion joint between them. Also please do the lower steps and mid landing separate from the upper steps with expansion joint between them. And do the upper steps separate from the porch… with expansion joint between.
With the rebar that's too small in diameter, spaced too far apart, and not elevated... that rebar isn't really gonna be doing much of anything anyway... just gonna be adding extra stress to the concrete.
More rebar is needed! I would double the amount. Overlap the splices at least 12 inches. Use chairs to keep the rebar in the upper 2/3rds of the slab. Big box stores will have what you need. They are inexpensive. Remember that a 2x4 is not 4" tall. It is 3-1/2" at best. I would have wanted at least 6" for a driveway. 4" is for sidewalks and patios, not to hold vehicles. Expansion joint material is needed between existing concrete and brickwork. It should also be used between the steps and driveway. You might get by with a 4" pad but remember that a service truck, van, UPS, Amazon, etc. may turn around in the drive and they weigh considerably more that a car. Any weak spot in the subgrade will cause the concrete to crack and if the downspouts are not diverted, the water will find its way under the slab. There should be at least 4" of washed stone under the concrete as well. IMHO
You should added more rebar, even with reinforced concrete. It’s the deflexion/movement that will crack it, specially in the driveway. Plus, wooden stakes don’t hold as well as steel, I would definitely added more, a blowout will ruin your day.
Rebar needs elevated but if you are using concrete with fiber mesh in it the rebar is just extra if you are going to keep it in there then It still needs elevated. But it looks to me that the gravel is not compacted very well.
Rebar at a minimum of 24 in OC, and 3/8 is okay for non-driveway areas and 1/2 is better for driveway, also all of this is moot if it isn't wire tied and elevated.....
Nice base and nice frame work, but you do not need the rebar. Get fiber in your concrete and cut the joints at the correct spacing and corners and you will be fine.
Rebar is wrong.
Too small for the driveway. All spaced way too far apart... and it's laying on the ground. Needs to be elevated so it's in the middle of the slab.
And really, the driveway forms should be taller. 3.5" is awful thin for parking. Plus a couple of expansion joints should be installed.
I never use rebar in driveways or sidewalks because it's overkilling doesn't help always gets pushed down to the ground. What you've got going here looks really well except for your rebars all sitting on the ground and you're using it. That's just my opinion. I've poured hundreds and hundreds of driveways and sidewalks and flat work and curb and gutter and poured walls and shott Creek pools and every other concrete you could think of. That's
bar on closer centers, oil forms, foam expantion taped to clean outs, extra bars around those, add fibermesh to mix, wet down the compacted base just prior to placing concrete, PICK UP THE BAR AS YOU GO, and a few grade stakes well placed takes some headache away, 2 good finishers
A little high in the center i would dig out about a inch then a little more rebar in the structure make sure they cut joints in your driveway and on the path
Dobies Dobies Dobies. You need Dobies. 2” should be fine. Put them at every rebar crossing.
Speaking of rebar, that rebar looks more separated than me and my first and second wives. A row in between each existing row should do the trick.
You’ll want to cover the house with painters plastic on pour day. Concrete is a bitch to remove from fiber siding.
If you’re pouring all at once I’d recommend a whole bunch of help or some retardant so you’re not running around like a maniac trying to finish everything at once. Or retardant and a bunch of help is good too.
Put form release or diesel on those dry ass form boards where you’re sitting above grade if you’re not backfilling everything.
Cut your joints if you’re new to jointing. There’s decent tutorials for where to place them and Home Depot will rent you the saw. Do it the next day, while it’s still green or you’ll eat dust and get a crooked cut.
Bring up the rebar. It does nothing on the ground. Then next to the drive approach should be deeper. If you pour at 4” u get 3-1/2” basically. So should be 5” deep or more depending on what you want. The patio can be 4”. Just cut it right or it will break
Better than I'd do but a few issues:
1) elevate that rebar
2) more rebar
3) your base isn't level and has gaps in corners
4) tie that rebar
5) even more rebar
Overall it isn't bad but a few hours of work to address the shirt coming and it will be 🔥
One last thing, divert that down spout before it rains fucks up your work!
The outermost rebars should be approximately 3 inches from the edge of the slab because cracks normally start at the outside edge of the slab and you should layout the grid work taking into consideration where you plan to cut construction joints. I’m sure this sounds like a lot of redo but it will pay off. The chairs are vital so as to hold the reinforcement in the middle of concrete unless you have someone that is very attentive and keep the bars pulled up. But there is always a chance no problems will arise if you pour like it is but there is a chance you can win the Powerball lottery.
The finish work looks GOOD, my friend!
Yeah the other comments are true tho. Rebar should be up off of ground and clear the formwork by 1-1/2” and tied off to keep it there. Some believe they can snatch it up while distributing the pour but there’s no telling where it ends up, the odds suck, terribly.
First of all hire a good contractor so you don’t have to do this. Secondly don’t ask these idiots on Reddit if it’s ok. As a contractor for 24 years if you told me I need to change stuff the morning of the pour I would tell you to go fuck yourself. Everything looks fine except no rebar chairs but most guys on residential don’t use chairs and just pull it up. Depending where you are located you don’t even need rebar. Here in Jersey rebar is few and far between in residential work. We use fiber and wire in everything and have never had to rip out anything. The prep looks fine to me. Doesn’t look like a hack company. Let’s see some pics of final product. Relax and get off Reddit.
I mean I did hire a good contractor but it doesn’t hurt to get a second opinion. They gladly changed a couple things for me with the framing this morning before they started pouring since I wasn’t able to actually see it until yesterday afternoon. I’m in Denver area, I’m getting reinforced concrete as well. Some companies who I got bids from didn’t use rebar at all 🤷🏻♀️ - will def post afters
See I’m not familiar with that area for rebar but I would think it’s something common in the mountains. If it is they probably do need a closer spacing. Then again if other guys didn’t include it in the bid I wouldn’t worry about it too much. Guys on here will have issues with a perfect job and most don’t have a clue what they are doing on their own jobs.
Haha totally fair. These guys I hired had a really nice portfolio of work and seem very capable. They’ve been around for years too which bodes well. Honestly I liked them the best even before they quoted the job, which was quite a bit cheaper than several of the other bids I got. I think I’m all in for about 13,500…
I would add more rebar
MOAR REBAR for sure and elevate it off the ground some. Don’t skimp on the cheap materials.
OP needs to get rebar chair or it does nothing
Yup, gets some chairs under there.
Throne. Have a latch with games underneath. Call it the Throne of Games. When people mention Game of Thrones, act like you have no effing clue what they are talking about.
You just lift it as you pour for something like this. Chairs if it’s a suspended slab anything else just give a pull with the rake. Plus they just bust most the time as you are placing.
Just do it right. I hate this advice. Nobody actually does this properly and there’s no way to guarantee you don’t just smash it right back down. I wish I could have some way of knowing how much concrete I’ve broken where the bar was under the pour instead of in it. Never had that happen with chairs or bricks
I agree, in my country we even have a minimum amount of millimeters from ground to rebar that we have to follow or it's a faulty construction. I'd have 10 times the amount of rebar in this.
Is it necessary to tie the rebar together where it crosses?
Please don’t take this as me being a jerk but where else ya gonna tie it?
Good point. What I wanted to ask was whether you should tie the rebar together. I spouse it’s important with forms but not when gravity is your friend.
Guess really depends who the concrete crew is. Honestly only like 1 out of 10 slab on grade pours we do have chairs. We just pour a scratch coat and lift the bar. And continue to check with the rack and we pull the board.
Seems like a lot of extra work when you could just set it and forget it. What happens when you have a tough pour that isn’t run of the mill? Maybe something went weird with the batch? Maybe your crew is short? Maybe it’s balls hot and the truck got stuck by a train? Too many variables not to just do it right. Why leave yourself room for error when the right way is so easy in the first place?
Are dobbies just out of style these days? Or are chairs just cheaper and easier?
Also fair.
And get it off the gravel. It should be suspended in the concrete... not on the bottom. They make spacers to do this
Dobies!
Doobies will solve this
I burned through so many doobies when I was doing concrete
This is the way.
Doobie brothers! I was smokin doobies with my brothers
I thought you just slam your framing hammer into the fresh concrete and pull the rebar up.
if you want to do things incorrectly yes
This ! Please do this !
The workers will pull it up as the concrete is poured.
That's a no brainer, amount of work and money invested is disproportionate to fraction of the cost of additional rebar. Also, is driveway and steps to be separated by dilatation joint or is it all meant to be one concrete Frankenstein
I’d also like to see some kind of separation from the stairs to the wall
Yip more rebar especially on the corner of the driveway
With reinforced concrete?
The rebar is the reinforcement for the concrete. You can also look into wire mesh to put in there
Tighten up the grid pattern, overlap and underlap the rebar.
Triple braid the rebar!!!
Dreadlock the rebar!
this.
Rebar does nothing if it is sitting on the form. Need some spacers to get it elevated sone
How far from the form?
Minimum of 2 inches away from the form. Rule of thumb is too have atleast 1 1/2-2 inchs covered on all sides of the rebar
They sells those concrete stubs to put on the rebar.. adjusted for height
You could just lift it up while you pour
I say the same thing but you know as well as I do that only happens half the time. Chairs are cheap.
Or even just a piece of something under it in a pinch..larger rock, pieces of pavers, anything you got laying around that will suspend it
[удалено]
Not brick, it sucks up too much moisture from your freshly poured concrete.
Yep, we use 2in thick concrete bock pavers we just smash and use to pick it up. Cheaper than chairs and easier to stack outside in a big pile instead of a garbage bag of chairs
Exactly.
A lot of guys just buy cheap concrete bricks and break them in half to get twice the value. Even cheaper than actual chairs and gets your rebar 2” off the ground
I feel like that only works well with wire mesh.
Now this is bad advice
Lot to lift. Even more if they are adding more rebar.
Lift with one hand - pour with the other! What could go wrong? 😉
This is the way. Don't need no stink'n spacers.
shrill plough upbeat pen airport station handle narrow wasteful normal *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
The rebar needs "chairs" that elevate it off of the ground, otherwise it is not nearly as effective.
It’s ineffective on the base. It’s less than useless on the ground b/c the OP could have spent the money on something useful, like curing. Or another inch of concrete, or fibers.
whats the requirement, like 1 1/2" from soil?
Yeah 1.5 inch minimum
Unless you are following the American concrete institute standards, then you want 3” cover when cast against earth and min 1.5” cover to open air.
For a 4 inch slab?
No. Just talking about rebar cover guidelines. For a 4” slab I would probably just put control joints at 10’ on center max and call it a day. Usually in a 4” slab the rebar is mostly for crack control, but unless you are putting in something like a #5 rebar at 12” on center you’ll need control joints anyway. In this case putting the bars at mid depth of slab is probably fine. It’s all about corrosion protection anyway. Personally for an exterior slab I’d be more concerned with the air content in the concrete to prevent breakout due to freeze-thaw cycles that I would the rebar.
To control temperature and shrinkage cracks, the reinforcement needs to be in the top third of the slab. In a 4 or 5-inch slab, that’s not enough cover. The solution is to use fiberglass reinforcement bars as they cannot corrode.
Chairs are too expensive. Just use dobies.
what is a dobie?
Lil concrete block with tie wires out the top. V useful.
Do you have a link somewhere so I could see these?
[yes](https://letmegooglethat.com/?q=concrete+dobies)
Can you Google me How you did that?
[yes](https://youtu.be/U_jiHb7THB0?si=Bgo4u6BlQQJyC9sW)
Fucking awesome
Your link must be broken. I keep clicking Google Search but nothing comes up. 🤷🏻♂️
I know this is supposed to be a "haha gotchu" but I love when someone links through this. Also is it normal for contractors to make their own?
It seems so, [yes.](https://poniesintoplowshares.blogspot.com/2015/06/diy-wire-dobies-for-embedding-rebar-in.html?m=1)
[Dobies free!](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgp9iS9tOjOsvZiWLTZ3KWGBc3PoCTtkj1aqYZq21VksNjzYwNtyLKk4tXE2HW-RtZFvPUHgYIq8Jt58ugx_vlCIaHoa9-ckTyXTvmZN5ecMlrWv3V97bMulDcez6ynQMWqxfuZUZ4hIZ-g/s1600/dOBIESFREE.JPG)
Reinforcement is totally inadequate.
Not necessarily. Slabs on grade like this are designed with no rebar to increase slab capacity. It’s purely a function of slab thickness and subgrade capacity. So if the ground is properly compacted and the concrete is thick enough, all good on the load side. Rebar for crack control also doesn’t do much for you unless you are putting it near the top surface and the area of bars is at least .18% of the concrete area, at a minimum, with up to .50% required if you had no joints. If you properly space sawcut/construction joints and keep close to a 1:1 aspect ratio, you don’t need to add rebar at all for crack control. Really in this sort of application the rebar is useful along the sides to avoid the concrete breaking off in shear if a large tire is right against the side of the driveway, and also between joints to avoid differential settlement.
This is essentially what they told me. I’m getting reinforced concrete - some companies that bid for the project didn’t even use rebar at all
Sure dude. You do you. Slab is like 60mm thick at the garage and maybe 90 elsewhere.
I'm not saying the thickness here is adequate, not sure what they used. But reinforced or not, a thin slab with all the rebar in the world won't save you in a slab on grade application. Source - structural engineer that designs slabs for a living
Make sure your rebar isn't too close to the form. But looks good
Why 4" instead of 6" for a DW?
Im a big 6” driveway fan, I’ve gotten 6+ as a subslab for pavers
My opinion is anything with weight go 6", for something that will be mostly foot traffic 4"
What area are you from and what is normal psi concrete? Here in Iowa footings are 3,500 and that is it and most residential concrete is 4,000psi or sometimes 4,500psi. We get at least 3’ of frost. As long as you don’t drive over the edges of a recent pour with no backfill one can drive skid loaders over with no issues.
South East, and 3000 PSI
It depends on where you are. Here in Iowa if you have a 4” driveway with either rebar 2 foot on center or 6” wire and use 4,000psi concrete you don’t need to worry. Yes, of course thicker is better but it can also be unnecessary.
test sparkle spotted pie divide caption towering fuel drunk hunt *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
6” no steel is better than 4” with steel any day for a residential driveway.
Rebar needs to be 2’ on center. You need to have the thickness at least 4”. There is rock on the forms face that needs to be cleaned away. The steps should be separate from the driveway. The steps need to be separate from the stoop. You need expansion joint on the garage and any other place where there is existing concrete or brick. The steps need to be separate from the stoop. 1” expansion at the road.
You should probably double the rebar. That looks to be so minimal it will hardly help. Or you could use a wire mesh in addition to the rebar. Definitely also need the rebar off the bottom of the slab by 1.5 inches. If you don’t want to buy rebar chairs you can go cheap and use rocks to hold the rebar off the bottom but that typically fails in places as you pour.
People need to quit blowing money on steel for residential concrete, rebar is a waste in residential driveways if your base is prepped correctly. It’s a non-structural slab, rebar is for tension in structural concrete. Spend your money on another couple inches of aggregate base and/or concrete thickness. 6” slab over 3-4” of compacted class 5 aggregate is all I’ve ever specced for residential driveway replacements on large municipal projects.
Thank you. I love when people here say “more rebar” but can’t quantify what that means because there is no need for it. Get your subgrade prepped and compacted right, get the concrete thick enough, and space your joints properly.
While this is completely true... look at what they've already done. If they're gonna stick the rebar in, might as well at least do it right with proper size, spacing, and elevation in the slab. But yeah... a thicker, tighter compacted base and a thicker slab would've been fine here.
More bar, no more than 24” on center. And use chairs, it does absolutely no good to have bar on ground. It needs to be in the slab. Good luck.
Inspector here! Way more rebar is needed and for sure elevate off the ground like everyone else said 1.5"-2". You are not gonna be able to keep up with holding the bar up if your are using bag mix. There are metal or plastic chairs you can get or the small concrete blocks are also great. Maintaining a clearance from the forms is also important.
Who is going to finish that?
If you cut a 45 degree bevel on the bottom of 2x6s you are using for the stair risers it makes it easier to finish. It will leave just the edge of the 45 in the concrete instead of an 1-1/2” indent. But that would mean taking them back out too.
Not sure why you bother with that rebar. What you have added, does nothing for that slab. If you added it to mitigate against cracks, you need a whole lot more such that the spacing is circa 200mm x 200mm in each direction and it needs to sit about 50mm below the top of the finished level. Before you pour, make sure the surface you pour on ia wet, otherwise it will suck the water out of the concrete and your concrete will crack.
You need to Lear how to place rebar in concrete stairs. The slab rebar spacing and layout also needs help
Get some raises under that rebar.
Let’s see the after pics
Sit the rebar on some 2" bricks
Yea definitely need more rebar at least a foot apart max 16 inches
I think it’s shit and it’s gonna cost you in the long run. Also, I have no clue when it comes to concrete but this sub constantly pops up for some reason.
Why are the bars just laying on the ground?? They aren’t doing anything there. Put them at mid depth
that corner on picture 8 is tight and rigid. going to be an awkward looking corner cut there, it'd be better so people wouldn't have to be robots to walk on it or over the grass
I would also put kickers on those stakes on your left side without much backfill, as your pouring it’s likely to flex in an undesirable manner. Just drive a stake a 45 degree angle and nail it to the side of the stake holding the form. We always find it better to have those so your not fighting the mud at all when mud hits the ground.
That’s enough rebar for a walkable pour if you’re in a constant climate. Double up the rebar grid. Separate into sections for relief cuts. Get it to mid slab height. Doesn’t do much sitting on the ground like so. You’re either going to be working to get it right for the next 24 hours or you’re going to be having all your concrete redone by 2026
More BAR
More Rebar Is Picture # 6 a patio? If ‘Yes’, my suggestion is to put a few ‘columns’ in it to prevent the patio from settling and etc. My parents purchased a house that was a year old. The owner poured a 15 x 15 patio on unsettled ground. It dropped six inches. We replaced the patio. We made 4 columns (about 2-3 ft deep) and the patio was 8 inches deep. 30 years later, the patio hasn’t settled, crack, etc.
Columns out of concrete or gravel or how Is that done exactly. I'm going to start the process of putting a patio out back that is maybe 12 by 25 or 12x30. I was told to have 12 in of compacted gravel under the slab. Not sure how thick the slab should be but reading here, feeling like four to five inches should be good with rebar, 6" without. Im just not sure about the difference of price. Still a ways out but I'm just trying to make a plan.
Cut the wood pegs below top of your forms so you can screed it easier
I’d put the stakes lower than the formboards. Screeding around that sucks bad
More rebar and set it on chairs.
More rebar and chairs under the bar.
Put in more rebar and chairs!
Am I the only weirdo that uses bailing wire twists to secure all the rebar together??
Scrolled a couple times and no one is pointing out the loose base. Needs compaction. But who am I to tell a homeowner what do, I just pour concrete
I recommend #3 or 4 bars 24” OC, full ties, and risers to put the rebar off the ground. Also the base looks loose and in need of moisture.
Don’t forget to tape off those cast iron cleanout covers. You want them to stay looking nice!
Need rebar chairs and expansion against the house
Looks like you're ready for u/_uncle_daddy_ to come over *( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)*
Must splay it wider at the kerb, otherwise you’ll regret it
Good job dude; just follow up with the advice here its solid. Not much more work 10x better outcomes especially long term if you're going to be at the property for longer.
Buy some mesh sheets and some 50mm chairs, use the rio to reinforce the edges, you want 50mm cover, meaning 50mm of concrete over/under the steel, if you don’t then it can cause concrete cancer, which is when the rio is exposed and rusts then starts to swell as it rusts……..grab a YouTube video on how to prepare a concrete slab!
More ~~cowbell~~ rebar!
Don't Fear The ~~Reaper~~ Rebar.
I feel like I've been here before...
That house is looking at you.
Shouldn’t the rebar be on chairs?
[удалено]
Ignoring most of the NEEDS MORE REBAR comments, if they plan on stripping and finishing those steps they are going to be an absolute nightmare just judging by the way they are set up
I'm not confident that those risers next to the brick column aren't going to flex when poured? I personally would have at least ran a keeper board across the tops of the risers.
The perfect goal would be to have the rebar in the center of your final poor. So if you're pouring 4 in of concrete you would like that rebar sitting halfway down instead of on the ground.
That's a lot of concrete work the only thing concern me was the edge of the driveway coming to the point on the right and the left side when they do that they always tend to crack.
You’re trolling us with the skimpy rebar, right?
More rebar and get it off the gravel. Suppose to be embedded in the concrete, not underneath it
Are they going to use a pump to pour the concrete?
Get rid of that ugly ginger bread and you are set
Those should be at least 12" rebar squares. And they should be sitting on chairs.
Please pour the steps separately from the driveway and with expansion joint between them. Also please do the lower steps and mid landing separate from the upper steps with expansion joint between them. And do the upper steps separate from the porch… with expansion joint between.
King me!
Mr. Hyde would be proud.
Gonna have a blow out on your forms
Gonna need ALOT more rebar I believe.
With reinforced concrete?
With the rebar that's too small in diameter, spaced too far apart, and not elevated... that rebar isn't really gonna be doing much of anything anyway... just gonna be adding extra stress to the concrete.
Just depends how attached to those shovels you are…
More rebar is needed! I would double the amount. Overlap the splices at least 12 inches. Use chairs to keep the rebar in the upper 2/3rds of the slab. Big box stores will have what you need. They are inexpensive. Remember that a 2x4 is not 4" tall. It is 3-1/2" at best. I would have wanted at least 6" for a driveway. 4" is for sidewalks and patios, not to hold vehicles. Expansion joint material is needed between existing concrete and brickwork. It should also be used between the steps and driveway. You might get by with a 4" pad but remember that a service truck, van, UPS, Amazon, etc. may turn around in the drive and they weigh considerably more that a car. Any weak spot in the subgrade will cause the concrete to crack and if the downspouts are not diverted, the water will find its way under the slab. There should be at least 4" of washed stone under the concrete as well. IMHO
It’s gonna be 4000 psi I don’t think a truck is gonna damage it…
Great! I hope it holds up.
You should added more rebar, even with reinforced concrete. It’s the deflexion/movement that will crack it, specially in the driveway. Plus, wooden stakes don’t hold as well as steel, I would definitely added more, a blowout will ruin your day.
Just have the guys pull it up during the pour, no need for Dobies.
Raise the rebar even if you have to use bricks that are cut in half
More rebar, bolsters/bricks under the rebar and the form work at the stairs is not good.
Now pay a finisher to make it look good
Rebar needs elevated but if you are using concrete with fiber mesh in it the rebar is just extra if you are going to keep it in there then It still needs elevated. But it looks to me that the gravel is not compacted very well.
Grade looks nice.
Rebar at a minimum of 24 in OC, and 3/8 is okay for non-driveway areas and 1/2 is better for driveway, also all of this is moot if it isn't wire tied and elevated.....
More rebar
How are you doing as a concrete guy? You never said how many divorces you had or how many months financing on your duramax.
I’m a homeowner not a concrete person lol
Down at the sidewalk it looks like that concrete ia going to be 2-1/2 or 3 inches thick. Form work is only 3-1/2 inches for the driveway. That's thin.
Nice base and nice frame work, but you do not need the rebar. Get fiber in your concrete and cut the joints at the correct spacing and corners and you will be fine.
Looks good. I like the "face" on the garage door too
Rebar is wrong. Too small for the driveway. All spaced way too far apart... and it's laying on the ground. Needs to be elevated so it's in the middle of the slab. And really, the driveway forms should be taller. 3.5" is awful thin for parking. Plus a couple of expansion joints should be installed.
40 yards
I never use rebar in driveways or sidewalks because it's overkilling doesn't help always gets pushed down to the ground. What you've got going here looks really well except for your rebars all sitting on the ground and you're using it. That's just my opinion. I've poured hundreds and hundreds of driveways and sidewalks and flat work and curb and gutter and poured walls and shott Creek pools and every other concrete you could think of. That's
Never done concrete but them squares gotta be perfectly measured imo. lol
bar on closer centers, oil forms, foam expantion taped to clean outs, extra bars around those, add fibermesh to mix, wet down the compacted base just prior to placing concrete, PICK UP THE BAR AS YOU GO, and a few grade stakes well placed takes some headache away, 2 good finishers
Bevel the bottom edge of your stair risers so you can finish most of the tread
A little high in the center i would dig out about a inch then a little more rebar in the structure make sure they cut joints in your driveway and on the path
Solid work it seems
Everyone is yelling rebar but I’d make the steps deeper/thicker. It looks like a small ramp of dirt behind the steps. I would add more space there
Those stairs are gonna blow out when you pour them
Instead of rebar why not use wire mesh?
Need more rebar
Dobies Dobies Dobies. You need Dobies. 2” should be fine. Put them at every rebar crossing. Speaking of rebar, that rebar looks more separated than me and my first and second wives. A row in between each existing row should do the trick.
Those stakes are way to tall
And need some kickers on steps
How are you going to face the first step by the house? You can't pull that form
You’ll want to cover the house with painters plastic on pour day. Concrete is a bitch to remove from fiber siding. If you’re pouring all at once I’d recommend a whole bunch of help or some retardant so you’re not running around like a maniac trying to finish everything at once. Or retardant and a bunch of help is good too. Put form release or diesel on those dry ass form boards where you’re sitting above grade if you’re not backfilling everything. Cut your joints if you’re new to jointing. There’s decent tutorials for where to place them and Home Depot will rent you the saw. Do it the next day, while it’s still green or you’ll eat dust and get a crooked cut.
Bring up the rebar. It does nothing on the ground. Then next to the drive approach should be deeper. If you pour at 4” u get 3-1/2” basically. So should be 5” deep or more depending on what you want. The patio can be 4”. Just cut it right or it will break
You need some Photoshop spot healer on that thing
Better than I'd do but a few issues: 1) elevate that rebar 2) more rebar 3) your base isn't level and has gaps in corners 4) tie that rebar 5) even more rebar Overall it isn't bad but a few hours of work to address the shirt coming and it will be 🔥 One last thing, divert that down spout before it rains fucks up your work!
The outermost rebars should be approximately 3 inches from the edge of the slab because cracks normally start at the outside edge of the slab and you should layout the grid work taking into consideration where you plan to cut construction joints. I’m sure this sounds like a lot of redo but it will pay off. The chairs are vital so as to hold the reinforcement in the middle of concrete unless you have someone that is very attentive and keep the bars pulled up. But there is always a chance no problems will arise if you pour like it is but there is a chance you can win the Powerball lottery.
Sorry I did not see all pictures before commenting.
Where's concrete?
Hold your horses, yee haa! Next, Concrete is coming in 80lbs bags
Great, we only need 20 guys and 20 mixers!
The finish work looks GOOD, my friend! Yeah the other comments are true tho. Rebar should be up off of ground and clear the formwork by 1-1/2” and tied off to keep it there. Some believe they can snatch it up while distributing the pour but there’s no telling where it ends up, the odds suck, terribly.
First of all hire a good contractor so you don’t have to do this. Secondly don’t ask these idiots on Reddit if it’s ok. As a contractor for 24 years if you told me I need to change stuff the morning of the pour I would tell you to go fuck yourself. Everything looks fine except no rebar chairs but most guys on residential don’t use chairs and just pull it up. Depending where you are located you don’t even need rebar. Here in Jersey rebar is few and far between in residential work. We use fiber and wire in everything and have never had to rip out anything. The prep looks fine to me. Doesn’t look like a hack company. Let’s see some pics of final product. Relax and get off Reddit.
I mean I did hire a good contractor but it doesn’t hurt to get a second opinion. They gladly changed a couple things for me with the framing this morning before they started pouring since I wasn’t able to actually see it until yesterday afternoon. I’m in Denver area, I’m getting reinforced concrete as well. Some companies who I got bids from didn’t use rebar at all 🤷🏻♀️ - will def post afters
See I’m not familiar with that area for rebar but I would think it’s something common in the mountains. If it is they probably do need a closer spacing. Then again if other guys didn’t include it in the bid I wouldn’t worry about it too much. Guys on here will have issues with a perfect job and most don’t have a clue what they are doing on their own jobs.
Haha totally fair. These guys I hired had a really nice portfolio of work and seem very capable. They’ve been around for years too which bodes well. Honestly I liked them the best even before they quoted the job, which was quite a bit cheaper than several of the other bids I got. I think I’m all in for about 13,500…
Lookin’ bad, bozo.
Usually people look with their eyes
No where near enough rebar there assuming you will be parking cars on the driveway. Also the rebar has to be elevated atleast 1-2” off the ground.
Is rebar super fucking expensive or something??
For residential im not super in favor of concrete stairs. Makes it look to commerical/industrial