Pouring the slab.

After much scurrying about in preparation, the day finally came when we poured the slab. This was the only job in which I was an observer only. After watching the process, I have come to the conclusion that pouring a large concrete slab is not a job that can be done either single handed or by a crew of amateurs. There is simply too much work to do all at the same time - placing the concrete, raking, screeding, trowelling...

Continuing with the theme of unusually hot weather last summer, by 9 or 10 am these guys were already being beaten down by the sun.

Prior to starting the pour, I was warned by the contractor that because of the heat of the day I would be running the risk of having the slab crack as it cured. Not knowing if cooler weather would ever materialize in the near future (it didn't until september) I elected to go ahead with the pour. We started the pour first thing in the morning so that the concrete wouldn't set up too quickly and make the finishing difficult.

To help reduce the potential for cracking as the concrete cured, I was told that I should set a sprinkler to water the concrete. Watering the concrete would help to keep the surface of the slab relatively cool and give it the time it needed to properly cure. Sounds good... but sprinklers need water pressure to work - water pressure can be difficult to come up with when you don't have access to a municipal water supply. And even if I did have the pressure to run a sprinkler, my well wouldn't support the rate of water consumption that would be required to water the slab for 48 hours straight. What I ended up doing was hauling in water with my truck 175  gallons at a time, then watering the slab with a utility pump connected to a garden hose. To prevent the water from completely evaporating, I had to go out and spray down the slab every half hour or so on the first day. The next day I was able to get away with watering the slab about once an hour. Despite my best efforts, there ended up being a few hairline cracks in the slab. Oh well.

Watering the slab over the course of two days consumed 5 tanks of water which I pumped out of a nearby river. At 175 gallons per tank that is aproximately 875 total gallons of water consumed - which is a lot of water! You gain an appreciation for how much water it takes to do "simple things" when you are forced to haul it yourself.

Undone - The Guess Who