-> for this? Do we just bop down to Home Depot and get some
-> "premix" (??) and pour it into a form we make with 2x4s?
Bagged concrete is about the most expensive way to go, but considering
where the slab has to be, it's probably the best way.
Throwing some chicken wire, rabbit wire, rebar, or whatever in the
forms won't hurt a thing. It'll probably crack anyway; nothing to worry
about. The hardware stores have crack-patching compounds if the
aesthetics bother you.
-> What tools do we need to mix, level and handle the concrete?
A 10-gallon or so washtub (plastic or metal), a bucket of water to
swish tools or hands in to clean them, something to mix the concrete
with (a small camp shovel is perfect), and a board wider than the form
to rake the slab level. It's pretty low tech.
You might try filling the washtub with water out in the yard and seeing
if the two of you can handle it; you'll have to pick it up and dump it
in the form. The water isn't as heavy as concrete, but it's close
enough. You can probably handle something on the order of 200 pounds
between you, but by the third or fourth load it's going to be heavy, and
there's no reason to wreck your back. Same thing for moving the cement,
which comes in 80-pound bags - a $20 hand truck can always be used for
something else later.
Get some of those heavy rubber dishwashing gloves. Even though cement
is semiliquid glop, it's abrasive and will make your hands raw if you
dig through enough of it.
You'll get clouds of cement dust when you dump the bags and start
mixing. Cover anything that might be damaged by abrasive grit. If you
can rig some sort of ventilation it'll help keep it out of your eyes and
clothes.
-> So much for a relaxed New Year's vacation.
Nah, it can be fun. Most beginners mix the cement too dry, so it sits
there in little piles. Mix enough water so that it's more like oatmeal
or molasses; it should slump flat in a few minutes. The range of water
between dry and liquid is very narrow. Add a little water or a little
cement until it's the right consistency.
Cement is the basic material, "concrete" is cement with rocks and sand
in it as a filler. Either will work for your application. If you use
concrete, most of the rocks and sand will have settled out into the
bottom of the bag, so you'll have to stir it up dry before adding water.
In general, it's a pain in the ass to work with compared to cement.
Drive plenty of stakes in to brace your form; side load can be higher
than you think with a few hundred pounds of semiliquid cement. Cement
wants to be free. Where the floor doesn't quite match up with the
forms, use dirt, paper, cardboard, aluminum foil, or whatever, or cement
will slowly ooze through the cracks. If you have a leak, no problem,
just work some paper or foil down there and stop it up.
Mix, pour, clean the tools - don't let the cement dry on anything you
want to keep or you'll have a hell of a time getting it off later - then
throw all your clothes into the washer and run them through, or you'll
wind up with stiff spots where there was a lot of cement dust.
- Dave "Live to flame, flame to live" - DOD #978
/// unsubscribe/change address requests to majordomo@autox.team.net or try
/// http://www.team.net/mailman/listinfo
/// Archives at http://www.team.net/cgi-bin/wilma/shop-talk
|