HOW TO POUR A SMALL CONCRETE SLAB - from the Drill Your Own Well Series

[dramey03]

wow, didnt realize it would take so much for such a "small" area

ive been told it may come out better if you pour all you need at once, i guess it sets better then doing a batch at a time, but i understand that can be hard with 1 man and 1 bucket and ya gotta do what ya gotta do

[bytmeh]

good work mate, way to DIY !!

[trailKING651]

Looks great. Now I'm ready :-)

[dawmlw]

@trailKING651 Good luck!

[bozzza69]

That is a really nice job

[magocybernetico]

was that really concrete mix? it looks to me like Mortar mix

[dawmlw]

@magocybernetico It was Sackcrete - premixed cement. The aggregate was too big for mortar mix. (I think)

[zimsjeep]

Nice job. Just for future reference, you should always use a concrete edging tool to put a finish edge around the perimeter. This will prevent chipping and cracking on the edges of your slab.

[dawmlw]

@zimsjeep Thanks!

[84randomdude]

Thanks for the info!! I will be pouring new concrete pads for my A/C units in the future. This helped a lot!!

[medichc]

Hi, where did you get that water hose nozzle?

[84randomdude]

@medichc You can usually buy them in hardware stores. Lowe's sells them.

[Slitherous1]

you mention the pump was cycling . this is usually because your tank does not have enough pressure in it . you can use a tire gage to check the psi fom the snifter valve .

the tank should have a psi rating . usually about 20-25psi . it is also possble that your tanks bladder has a hole in it .

[dawmlw]

@Slitherous1 The tank had 25 psi and the pump was still cycling. The larger tank cured the problem.

[lita8611]

Nice job! What size and how deep is the slab? Is it 24" by 24" and what size wood did you use? I agree blue was an awful color against that brick wall. Thanks: )

[chasehav2014]

you should of put some rebar in the concrete and it doesn't hurt to wet it frequently when it is drying especially when its hot just a little feather for your hat

[TheSovietBears]

amd how would one remove the wood forms? would of been nice to see ya cut them off =/

[dawmlw]

@TheSovietBears Dig around the edges just a bit and pry them apart and then pull them off. It is the easiest part and I didn't cover it. Sorry.

[wanabepunkrocker]

A nice finishing touch would be to paint the white PVC pipe the same color as the tank, almond.

[qhack]

FYI, you could have knocked it down to a single bag of Portland cement if you had used an aggregate in the mix. Most slabs are a ratio of 1 part cement, 2 parts sand, and 3 parts gravel.

[johnny102marvin]

@qhack It looked like to me he was using MORTAR mix instead of concrete mix. I didn't see any rock in that mix.

[dawmlw]

On page 2 of the comments and questions page on the site I posted several additional pictures. I hope this helps until I can make a video.

[jacknj777]

Dawmlw - You DIDN'T make a video on how to make and install the handle for the drill. If you could make a video on it, that would be great. Thanks for everything so far. : )

[dawmlw]

Good luck!

[pipergsnow]

thanks! I am going to benefit greatly in this info.Gonna go pour me a slab.....

[dawmlw]

Yeah, she was right [again]...

[mrdizz916]

Nice video. I think that your wife has a good taste in color. You know that us men are color blind! :)

[dawmlw]

That happened somehow after my wife complained about the stunningly beautiful ocean blue color of the tank. I thought it looked fine but the word, "hideous" kept coming up.

[freakshow2000]

you forgot the step where that blue tank turned tan..........nice job