Questions tagged [concrete]
Concrete is composed of cement, aggregate (including crushed rock and sand) and water. In homes, it's frequently seen in the foundation, driveway, sidewalk, patio, and stone walls. Note that bricks use mortar in the joints, not concrete.
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Concrete steps sinking
I’m wanting to raise my concrete steps. I noticed there is wood exposed where the steps would be aligned with the house. Do I need to cover the wood with anything before raising the steps?
Should ...
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How Should we construct compost pit which doesn't produce odour or breeding ground for mosquito or termite
I'd like to construct a compost pit near my house which will collect dried tea bags, fruit & vegetable wastes or unwanted food left overs.
I believe over the time , it'll degrade and start ...
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Can I frame basement walls over slab cracks?
I recently bought a home with an unfinished basement and would like to start finishing it to add onto the livable space our of house.
Do I need to repair cracks in my slab before I start framing walls?...
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Is there a polyurethane product that works both indoors and outdoors on concrete and wood? [closed]
I need to seal some stairs indoors and also an outdoor concrete slab that was recently painted. But I would refer to buy a single gallon to get it all done. Oil vs water and which product should I ...
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Help! Is our contractor skimping on us on our basement foundation repair?
Our contractors just finished a job to completely redo one of our basement foundation wall, but we have some questions about the quality of the work.
They assured us it was fine, but is it normal to:
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How many people for concrete pour?
What size crew for monolithic slab pour: 10' x 20' x 5" thick, with 12" wide x 18" deep footer--about 5.5 to 6 cu yds? How many experienced versus inexperienced people are needed? ...
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Can a non-structural masonry wall (e.g. garden privacy wall) be placed on a concrete pier resting on tube-formed footings?
I am wondering if the following would be structurally reasonable for a garden privacy wall, setting aside any local zoning ordinance issues. Three 12" diameter 4000psi tube-formed footings with a ...
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How would you fill this gap between a garage slab and a foundation wall?
This is in my garage so it doesn't have to be the most perfect solution, but I'd like to do something about this ugly gap between the cinderblock wall and concrete slab.
What would you use to fill ...
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Solutions for roof drainage with large amounts of water/ice?
My new shop is 30x60, single sloped the LONG way (water drains along 60 feet). This is making for some large amounts of water coming off the end during storms, which makes washouts on the sloped ...
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Adding laminate to concrete slab, am I planning this right?
Looking to put in Laminate flooring and seeing if my plan is ok or if it needs some correction.
Background
This is a half basement on grade, with about 4 feet underground on one side and walk out ...
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Can I set bricks into my concrete slab as height guides? [duplicate]
I need to make sure my concrete slab is flat and level (with slight fall for water runoff).
I have some spare bricks. I was thinking I could set some of these bricks into the slab as I pour it and use ...
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In What Direction Should This Basement Fan Blow?
Shown is a basement of about 5,000 square feet with concrete floor and walls in a building originally built in 1935, acquired a year ago but with a 22" basement fan that's always been dead. ...
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Can I do anything to brace a concrete wall being broken by a tree?
We are looking to replace the deck that was rotten at the back of our garden but the tree between all the surrounding houses is causing the wall to crack. Is there anything we can do to brace the wall ...
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How do we add removable concrete plinth protection to an existing building
when we build a concrete layer around the house to act as Plinth protection it offers range of benefits such as leading the rain water away from the building and protecting the building foundation, ...
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Horizontal gap between where the tile ends and the door
The gap accumulates leaves when someone walks in. I don't know what we should do. The gap is not the same size from east to west, or north to south. My husband is thinking about just getting another ...
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Will concrete flow up on the outside of form boards?
The trench for our monolithic slab (10' x 20' x 4" slab, 12" wide footer, 18" deep trench) was excavated 3" wider than the planned slab size. Contractor said form boards don't have ...
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Concrete Sealer- Best color choice for a most natural color?
Long story short, I decided to apply some concrete sealant to my driveway in an effort to not have to do as much maintenance to it (Crack repair, pressure washing, etc). My HOA is complaining, as the ...
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What to use to use to get the correct height of concrete base?
I have a concrete slab to pour. Around most of the edge I am using some edging which will give me a solid slab to tap against to make sure the concrete is level (with a slight fall to ensure water ...
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How can I make this step the same level as the floor?
This might be the top of the foundation wall. I believe this doorway didn't exist originally, leads to an addition room. This step is a trip hazard. I got a flooring company quote for this tile but ...
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Concrete Patch Help
I have an area in my basement that we just removed tile from. After removal a large area of it is in need of repair. There are also a few other areas that have some minor holes that need filling.There ...
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How would you repair this concrete block step?
I have a front porch/patio and back made out of pavers surround by large concrete blocks. Sometimes, the edge blocks come loose, especially here which is a very high traffic area. I think the lip ...
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How can I preserve posts protruding through a patio?
I am having a patio poured where there was once a deck. There are 2 large 8x8 posts on piers, and the posts will be about 3-4” below the new concrete surface. They have concealed plate hardware ...
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Are the joints in this concrete path correct?
We had a new patio and a sidewalk around the side of the house poured. Where there is a bend or a corner there is a joint tooled from edge to edge (in green in image). Most are about 8 feet apart, ...
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How can I feed 2" PE pipe through a slab--asking about bend radius? [closed]
I'm trying to set sleeves for a monolithic slab pour. One of the sleeves is intended for running 2" water line. I wanted to use HDPE SIDR pipe aka flexible poly pipe. I can't find bend ratios for ...
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What is the maths formula to determine the size/weight of a pot/anchor that will hold posts for a sunshade under tension?
I want to erect a non-permanent sunshade in my yard. Instead of anchoring it into the building or digging holes (this is a rental) I was going to use large plant pots, with a post in them. I could use ...
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How can I fix my swinging chair to my ceiling?
I have trouble fixing my swinging chair to the ceiling of my living room (1970 house, central europe). The hook is suspended from a hook with a plate that is held in place by two screws. My problem is ...
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Underpinning concrete slab in garage
I am looking at buying a property with a raised section in the garage with a concrete floor. This is a garage entirely seperate from the house. The earth under the end of the slab has fallen away:
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What's the safest way to pour a slab without undermining existing posts
Im working on a 2 story addition that is resting on 6x6 posts. Unfortunately due to timing I was unable to work out pouring a slab prior to our contractor begining our addition project and pouring the ...
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HVAC condensation drain and weird concrete bulge [closed]
Does anyone know why I developed a bulge on my concrete near my condensation drain? And what is that copper pipe coming up from the floor?
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Concrete Pier Question
I am remodelling a home that has an addition built on a slab (assume 4") with 2x4 exterior walls. I want to frame a new floor to raise the surface almost 2 feet. The room is ~16' x ~28' and my ...
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Can foam jacking restore slope to my front stoop?
The stoop in the front door inclines towards the house and guides the water into the crawlspace. The stoop itself is outside the foundation wall of the house and is not fixed to it. The lower part of ...
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stinky stem walls!
Our house has stem walls that have a musty/acrid odor. Looking for advice about possible causes, and what to do about it.
House was built in 1979, is 2-story, bottom story is slab slightly below grade ...
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How to cover concrete foundation curbs in finished basement. Time and money deficient!
I have 11" high x 2" deep foundation curbs running through my downstairs bedrooms. I have a slab foundation, so the curbs are above grade. I've never had issues with moisture (in 10 years), ...
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What's the best way to prepare foundation spalling for repair?
I have some foundation damage that I'm planning to repair using a simple mortar maybe with something added to strengthen the bond to the existing concrete. The damage is from water reaching the bottom ...
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Can a concrete porch be raised about 4 feet?
I am restoring my grandparents 1930s farmhouse. It has a concrete front porch with 2 pillars holding up a roof. It's raised, sitting on cinder blocks, but is about 4 feet below the front door with ...
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What is the best way to cut drywall that is touching concrete slab and can I fill the gap with backer rod?
Updating our late 70s house we bought in 2020 and and after removing tiles, found out the 2018 installed drywall touches the slab.
3 questions:
Is the easiest way to fix this use an oscillating tool ...
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What is the best coloring option to match color for Stamped and normal concrete - have a huge and choppy backyard [closed]
I have a huge backyard and planning to get it Stamped concrete done in some portion but How should I match color of two. Does solid color stain would be good option OR Taking Powder color and cem ...
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How to seal outside where concrete meets home, right product?
Hi and thank you for reading.
I would like to seal the outside of my home from the elements and rain: where the concrete meets the side of my home (painted wood?)
Home Side
Wide Angle
I bought a ...
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Can you resurface concrete treated with silane siloxane?
Concrete Sealant Manufacturers claim that remove silane siloxane sealer from concrete is very hard to do and not recommended since the product penetrates deeply into concrete and chemically reacts ...
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How wet a hole (with rain) is too wet to put concrete anchors in? [closed]
A few weeks ago I drilled 1/4" holes in my patio slab to mount some ~6' tall 4x4s with post brackets and wedge anchors (for a catio - ideally able to bear the weight of jumping cats). But I didn'...
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Is the concrete meant to be this patchy after I've sealed it?
I've used 3 coats of Everbuild 403 CONCRETE HARDENER & DUSTPROOFER on my floor and it's come out really patchy. I can't tell whether I've used too much in places or too little in others.
What I ...
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How to attach sun shade to wood siding with concrete underneath?
I would like to install a sunshade on our apartment patio where one side for the attachments is a concrete wall. The other side for the attachments is a wall that has wood siding with (I think) ...
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How to repair a long crack in my epoxy covered garage floor?
Last summer we decided to get our garage floor coated with epoxy.
We had a section that was cracked (see first photo) and hired a concrete guy to repair it (see second photo). He put rebar every 16&...
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Basement Apartment Tile Flooring Question
I am just starting construction on an 800 sq ft basement apartment. Over the years I have had a number of basement water issues in various properties, and I'd like to avoid this if at all possible. I'...
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concrete sealant for radon
Radon is diffusing up from underlying soil/rocks through my basement's concrete slab.
What is an effective paint/spray application to stop this?
I see RadonSeal (sodium silicate) ads claiming to help ...
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Spray 8 gallons of concrete sealer with plastic cheap sprayer? [closed]
I have 1,000 sq. ft of stamped concrete to reseal. I am planning on buying Armor AR350 sealer (https://www.foundationarmor.com/AR350/) and doing two coats of sprayed coverage.
I would really prefer ...
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What product can be used to fill 'mis-drilled' foundation anchor holes?
I drilled 4x 1/2" dia holes 7" deep into my 8" thick foundation to repair a sill plate, but my inexperienced hands misaligned the new sill with the old by +/- 1/4"
I have the holes ...
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Water droplets through LVP in basement
About two years ago I placed LifeProof LVP in the basement on the concrete floor. Today, after about two days of rain, I noticed some droplets between some of the seems in the room with the LVP. Not ...
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Where to cut the opening for bath vent in crawlspace wall?
My first-floor half bath vents into the crawlspace, which violates the code, and I would like to correct it. A feasible way is to extend the hose from the current vent in the crawlspace to the nearest ...
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Toilet mounted in concrete pad [closed]
The toilet in the basement bathroom was mounted into a pad of concrete. Over the years the concrete has bored out around the screw so the toilet rocks. What could I use to fill the hole?
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