Decorative Concrete Forums and Decorative Concrete Contractor Locator

Home > Forums > Acid Stain Forum > concrete contract

concrete contract
ga99	04-25-2008 09:54:06
Member Posts: 4 Joined: 04-09-2008	Have chosen a contractor for the new concrete pad. I will wait on staining for now. He offers no warranty. Is there anything that I should look for in the contract or expect. I know that some contractors that I checked out had warranties on the concrete cracking. Is this something I should be concerned about? He plans on taking the top layer off and leveling and grading. He will not use any fiberglass or rebar. Is this o.k. It is about 8x26 under a deck.

suntacsys	04-25-2008 11:33:27
Member Posts: 1160 Joined: --	you look'd at his previous work & chose him over others who includ'd a warranty ? ? ? if i were you, i'd be concerned,,, don't see where anything i could offer would be useful now. best [the original] scratching-head yic-yac

ga99	04-25-2008 16:58:30
Member Posts: 4 Joined: 04-09-2008	The other one that I looked at was twice the cost. That is why I did not go with them. I am looking at$1400 versus $2500 for just the slab. But again, I guess I am #$@@ it cracks.

suntacsys	04-26-2008 02:49:39
Member Posts: 1160 Joined: --	all conc cracks & we can control those cracks by placing joints resulting in cracks where WE want them rather'n random cracking as conc's wont to do often. best [the original] slicing-thru yic-yac

usconc	04-26-2008 05:43:46
Member Posts: 823 Joined: --	bottom line is you get what you pay for. if you want nice concrete that's going to last a long time, and not crack significantly, or spall, then pay the extra $1,100. this is an investment. you're going to have it for a long time. that extra money most likely is going to ensure a low water to cement ratio (thus good concrete strength), a nice finish, proper air entrainment if you are in northern climate, and limited if any cracking. it would probably also ensure a return visit by the contractor for any repairs that might be necessary. on a small patio, cracking can be avoided entirely by using fiber and replacing one bag of the mix with expansive cement. check out system k from cts. but there is no way a cheap contractor would ever use this system. again, you get what you pay for. if this is important to you, and you want good concrete and peace of mind, then pay the extra money and get a good contractor.

art	04-26-2008 05:47:16
Member Posts: 586 Joined: --	There are two truths about concrete, it gets hard and it cracks. Anyone that gives a warranty on cracking is either crazy or up to no good. Cracking is caused by many reasons, some can be somewhat controlled some not at all. You can minimize cracking by using a strong concrete mix, proper substrate preparation, proper reinforcement , good finishing procedures and correct control joint placement, but even is everything is done according to guidelines there is still a good chance your concrete will crack anyway, what a good contractor will do is to tell you how he will attempt to minimize cracking and you should ask all the bidders how they are going to handle it and go from there. Sometimes, you do get what you are paying for. Art

Site Sponsors