A new concrete driveway, patio, or walkway on your property is a great improvement to your home's value and usage. But before any large project in your yard, you will need to make sure you have made the necessary preparations completed for a smooth installation. Here are some recommendations to help you with your next concrete project for your property. 

Prepare the Site

As part of the preparation for a new concrete slab, you have made plants for its intended install site, but you need to physically prepare the area. This includes removing any existing soil or vegetation to provide space for a solid foundation of gravel or other drainage materials and a slab of your desired thickness. 

If you are planning for a concrete slab three inches in thickness, for example, you will need to remove enough soil for the slab's thickness plus the layer of drainage gravel, which can be anywhere from two to four inches in thickness. The gravel also needs to be compacted to form a durable layer that is not going to move or shift. This layer allows for moisture below your concrete to drain from the area and not sit below the concrete to cause foundation damage with erosion or freeze-thaw heaving.

Calculate Pour Time

Once the concrete truck arrives at your property with your ready mix concrete, you will need to make sure you have calculated the time it will take to pour the concrete into the forms. Depending on the size of the job this can be anywhere from 30 minutes to several hours. The method of which your concrete truck is going to unload the concrete to your worksite will also account for how long it takes, for example, if you use a concrete chute, a concrete pump and pipe or if you pour the concrete into a couple of wheelbarrows and move it onto your pour site. 

It is important you make sure to be prepared for the pouring of your concrete so you can get it into the forms, smoothed, and ready to cure. You don't want to end up taking too much time pouring and finishing the concrete at the risk it will cure too quickly, resulting in poorly-formed concrete and an uneven concrete surface.

If you are planning to pour several yards of concrete, such as for a concrete driveway, make sure you have a helper to assist you in the smoothing and finishing of the concrete. While one of your pours and pushes out air pockets, the other one can level smooth the concrete and finish its surface.

If you need help with a concrete project, contact a concrete company in your area.

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