Crews keep mistaking a wet slab for a ready-to-finish slab, and I learned it the hard way

Abby Martinez · 2026-10-19T10:15:04.921964+00:00

I watched two guys hop on a 20x30 pour behind a shop in Reno, sun was out, surface looked dry, so they started floating. Ten minutes later it tore up like wet mud. The slab was still bleeding underneath. They were finishing by how it looked, not by what the concrete was doing. The surface dries off way before the concrete is ready, and out here with the dry air and afternoon wind, that happens fast. We ended up waiting another 40 minutes and the finish came out clean once they let the bleed water go and stopped working it early. Anyone got a feel for the right timing when it's hot and windy like that?

Vivisector

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Crews keep mistaking a wet slab for a ready-to-finish slab, and I learned it the hard way | Concrete Finishers - Vivisector