c/concrete-finishers

4

kellygrant•6d ago

Vent: Power trowel vs hand finishing on a 40 yard pour

Last month I bid a warehouse floor. 3000 square feet of slab, 6 inch thick. Thought I'd save a few bucks and do it by hand with my crew of three. We were out there for 12 hours straight, backs screaming, joints not nearly as flat as I wanted. This week I did a similar job and rented a power trowel. Night and day. Flatter finish, half the time, way less heavy lifting. Never going back. Has anyone else switched to power trowels and regretted buying a cheap one?

0

felixhenderson•7d ago

Tried a power trowel on a big warehouse slab in Tampa last month and now I'm spoiled

My old crew always hand finished everything because the boss said power trowels leave swirls, but this guy let me use his for a 40,000 square foot floor and it came out flat as glass in half the time. Has anyone else switched over and never looked back?

2

morgan.jason•7d ago

Spotted a cool broom finish at a park in St. Louis last weekend

I was walking my kid at Forest Park and saw this huge stamped concrete pathway that had a broom finish so smooth and even, it made me stop and run my hand over it (kind of embarrassing, honestly). Has anyone else ever found themselves inspecting random concrete jobs when you're supposed to be relaxing?

2

abbyp61•8d ago

Warning: I think we're overthinking broom finishes on residential driveways

I keep seeing guys out here doing these super tight broom finishes on driveways in our area, like they're trying to make it look like a piece of fabric. But I worked a job last spring next to a guy who just did a light drag with a cheap push broom, and six months later his driveway had way less cracking than the one I did with all that careful combing. Is the tight finish actually causing more stress points or am I just missing something? Anyone got a concrete reason to keep doing it the hard way?

1

troychen•9d ago

Had a builder tear into my broom finish last summer - he was right

I was finishing a driveway in June over in Oakdale and this older builder walked by during my final pass. He watched for a minute and then said my broom lines were too deep and uneven, that I was pushing the broom too hard on the wet spots. I got defensive at first because I've been doing this for 7 years and thought I knew better. But I stepped back and looked at it from his angle and honestly the texture looked rough in sections where I had rushed. So I changed my approach on the next job - started using a wider broom with softer bristles and I time my passes way more carefully now. The finish comes out way more consistent and I don't have those random deep gouges anymore. Has anyone else had a random critique from someone that actually improved their work?

17

betty_perry24•11d ago

That old concrete guy who yelled at me for using too much water

I was on a driveway pour last Tuesday in Austin and this older finisher named Ray came over from the next job site. He watched me mix a batch and told me straight up, 'you're drowning the mix, it's gonna dust in six months.' Honestly, he was right, I was adding extra water cause it was hot out but he showed me how using a spray mist instead changes everything. Has anyone else had a veteran just walk up and call them out on something basic like that?

4

patricia32•12d ago

Pro tip: tracked the cure time on my last slab and learned the hard way 28 days is not the same as 7.

I checked the PSI data from a local supplier's spec sheet and was stunned to see the strength gain curve barely moves after day 14, so why do we still tell homeowners to wait a full month before parking on it?

2

henry_ross•13d ago

Just realized hand troweling vs power troweling on garage floors is night and day

I did a 2 car slab in Phoenix last week using just a hand trowel like I always did, took me damn near 6 hours to finish it smooth. Buddy talked me into renting a power trowel for a similar job yesterday and I got it done in under 2 hours with way less joint lines. Has anyone else fought the switch from hand to power and regretted waiting so long?

10

brookeellis•14d ago

Had a long talk with an old timer in Atlanta last weekend

Was finishing up a driveway in the Buckhead area and this retired guy named Roy came over just to watch. He saw me using a power trowel and asked why I didn't hand finish more. Said he learned from his dad in the 60s that hand troweling gave better control for even light catches. Got me wondering if I rely too much on machines for flat work. Any of you still do big pours by hand or is that just nostalgia talking?

22

phoenix_singh25•14d ago

Went back to a 2x4 screed after using a power one for a month

I rented a power screed for a driveway apron in Nashville last week and it left a wavy surface I spent hours trying to fix. My granddad used to say a 2x4 screed with two guys who know their rhythm beats a machine every time. Anyone else find old school hand methods still give a flatter finish on smaller pours?

15

nina_hall48•15d ago

Added too much water to a slab on a hot day and paid for it

I was pouring a 12x16 patio in Phoenix last August and thought I was being smart by adding a little extra water to keep it workable. The mix got soupy and by the time I finished, the surface started dusting and cracking along the edges. Learned the hard way that more water just makes weaker concrete, especially when it's 110 degrees. How do you guys handle mix consistency when the weather is brutal?

30

miles_robinson20•15d ago

Bought a $40 power trowel float plate and it gummed up in 20 minutes

I grabbed a cheap float plate off Amazon last Tuesday for a 400 square foot garage pour and the damn thing started dragging wet concrete right away. Ended up spending an extra hour hand finishing because it left grooves everywhere. Anyone got a brand of float plates that actually sheds clean on cooler pours?

12

ericcraig•16d ago

Was dead set against using that spray-on bonder for old concrete...

Tried the $55 bag of SikaLatex on a busted up driveway in Phoenix last Tuesday and now I'm kicking myself for the 3 years I spent grinding and patching the hard way, anyone else have a product they ignored forever that actually works?

16

charles720•16d ago

Had to choose between a $400 walk-behind trowel and trying to do it by hand...

Was finishing a 60 yard driveway in Austin last Tuesday. Foreman said rent the power trowel or pay for a helper. I went with the helper because I figured my arms could handle it. Big mistake after about 30 feet my forearms were shot and the finish came out uneven. Owner noticed and made us grind and reseal a section. Cost me $200 in materials and an extra day. Anyone else burn themselves trying to save a buck on a rental?

22

casey818•18d ago

Tried a power trowel on a small patio slab and the finish came out wavy

I figured I'd speed things up on a 10x12 patio last weekend by using my power trowel instead of hand finishing. Thought it'd save time but the edges got wavy and the surface looked like a frozen lake. My foreman walked over and said 'you gotta keep it flat or it'll ride the high spots.' Learned my lesson the hard way. Any of you guys run into this when using power trowels on smaller pours?

22

kimw57•20d ago

Warning: I used to just eyeball my mix ratios until a slab failure taught me a hard lesson

For 5 years I'd just toss in extra water if the mud felt stiff, never measuring anything. Last summer a $3,000 driveway I poured in Phoenix started cracking within 3 months because I kept making it too wet. Now I use a slump cone every single batch no matter what and my callbacks have dropped to zero. Has anyone else had a mess up that forced them to change their whole routine?

20

jordan_hill•20d ago

Had a concrete pour go sideways on Tuesday and almost lost $700

I was finishing a driveway near Austin, plain gray mix, nothing fancy. Showed up at 6am like usual, everything looked fine. But the mix came in way too wet, like soup almost. I had to cut water and add dry mix on the fly while the driver was giving me attitude on the radio. Took two extra hours just to get it to a workable slump. By the time we finished the broom finish, the sun was beating down hard and I spent another hour fighting crust on the edges. Total nightmare. Has anyone else had a ready-mix driver mess up your whole schedule like that?

24

anthony763•20d ago

Can we talk about how much fiber mesh adds to the price of a load?

I was looking at my quote from the supplier last week and noticed fiber mesh tacked on an extra $15 per yard. Never really added it up before but that's like $300 on a 20 yard pour. Does anyone just skip it on flatwork or is that asking for trouble?

23

abby_cooper•23d ago

Tried a magnesium float finish on a garage floor and it backfired

I used a magnesium float on a 400 sq ft garage slab last Tuesday thinking it would close the surface tighter, but it ended up sealing too fast and trapping air bubbles underneath. The finish came out patchy with little craters that I had to grind down and patch the next day. Has anyone else had trouble with mag floats on certain mix designs?

1

olivermason•23d ago

Hit 100,000 square feet of flatwork last Friday. Didnt even realize.

Poured a warehouse floor in Cleveland. 40,000 square feet. Owner wanted F-min spec. We hit it. Got me thinking about numbers. Checked my records. I've done 102,000 feet this year. That blew my mind. Anyone else keep a running tally of their yearly yardage?

20

iris_schmidt•24d ago

Customer in Austin asked me to stamp a heart into his driveway for his wife's birthday last spring

I was finishing up a driveway pour in Round Rock, Texas back in March. Guy comes out with a piece of paper showing a heart shape. He wanted me to press it into the wet concrete near the front walk. I told him it might chip over time but he didn't care. I used a small hand stamp I had for decorative edges. Took maybe 5 minutes. He slipped me an extra $40 cash. Has anyone else had people request personal stuff like this in their concrete work?

19

danielm80•24d ago

Tried a magnesium float on a driveway pour in Phoenix today

Had a 95 degree day and figured the stickiness would be an issue, but that float actually pulled the cream way smoother than my usual aluminum one. Anyone else found a go-to float for hot weather pours?

27

nina_hall48•24d ago

That $80 'budget' finishing trowel I bought off Amazon last month

Man, I learned a hard lesson about cheap tools. I bought this stainless steel trowel for $80 thinking I was saving money over the $150 ones at the supply house. First job I used it on, a driveway pour in Akron, the blade flexed all wrong and left drag marks everywhere. I spent an extra 2 hours trying to buff them out and ended up having to grind and resurface a 4x6 patch. Total waste of my time and money, I should have just bought the good one from the start. Has anyone else had luck with any of those off-brand finishing trowels or are they all junk?

3

charles_baker28•24d ago

Finally figured out a better way to float my driveways

Used to just trowel and pray with a magnesium float for years, leaving swirl marks I'd try to fix later. Switched to a resin float about 6 months ago after watching a guy in Oregon demo one at the supply house. It glides smoother and leaves a way more even finish with less effort. Has anyone else made that swap and noticed a difference on bigger slabs?

19

iris_schmidt•25d ago

Hit 90 degree weather on a pour last July and the slab set way too fast

We were working a driveway in Phoenix and the mix started going off before we could get it screeded flat. Foreman yelled at me to get the evaporation retardant but by then we already had cold joints forming. Any tips for slowing down set time when the temp spikes like that?