A polished landscape puts the finishing touch on any home. Whether it’s new outdoor furniture, a garden area, or a new concrete poured addition; nothing is more satisfying than the completion of your backyard renovation. In today’s article, we at Stouffville Mobile Redimix highlight a few essential tips on how to care for your newly poured concrete addition.
Decorate or wait?
At Stouffville Mobile Redimix, we are often asked how soon someone can walk on the concrete surface or begin decorating after the concrete pouring process. Although you are eager to enjoy your newly improved landscape, there is a bit of a waiting period before your concrete addition is fully cured. To walk onto your patio, deck, walkway, or other redimix concrete surfaces, you must wait a minimum of two full days. To add décor or outdoor furnishing, for example, a patio dining set or lounge furniture, it is recommended to wait a maximum of 10 days. These recommendations are general timelines. Therefore, it is always best to ask your concrete pouring professional for their guidance for your particular project. We understand that waiting can be challenging, especially when designing and planning a landscape takes some time in the beginning. Let’s look at the glass half full. In the meantime, as you wait for your redimix concrete to cure, you can gather ideas or shop for furnishings and other landscape accessories.
Water your redimix concrete
Weather depending, it is recommended to spray your newly poured redimix concrete with water. The method is known as moist curing. The general industry rule is to spray down your concrete addition as frequently as possible for the first week. The goal is to saturate the concrete addition, which will encourage slow moisture evaporation and contribute to its strength. Just like watering a lawn, the best time to begin the water application is early morning. Watering concrete during high-heat hours is not recommended as it could initiate crazing. Therefore, the first application should be early morning and continued throughout the day. When in doubt, ask your redimix concrete pouring professional for after-care tips.
Protect the surface
There are a few reasons why protecting your newly poured redimix concrete addition is an essential part of the process. Within the first couple of hours of pouring, concrete is in a delicate, soft state. Therefore, having a tarp, heavy-duty plastic sheet or concrete curing blanket on hand can be helpful. For example, suppose rain or strong winds are predicted. In that case, your redimix concrete addition must be protected from heavy rain pools and flying debris. A covering is also necessary to have on hand in the event you are unable to water your redimix concrete as frequently. In this case, you would saturate the area in the early morning and then place a covering. The method of watering and covering can be applied to any new concrete addition, whether it is a flat surface or an upright addition.
Contact Stouffville Mobile Redimix today! We provide mobile redimix and on-site concrete pouring for all your landscaping needs.