What makes concrete cure faster

As long as the surrounding air can hold more water vapor, evaporation continues. Admixtures or the right balance of water can greatly help decrease drying times. There are a few things you can do before you pour the concrete that will speed up the drying process:. Once the slab has cured, enclose the space as soon as possible to protect the slab from absorbing any additional moisture.

While protecting the slab from additional moisture is important, there are a couple of other factors that affect drying after the pour:. The ambient relative humidity is important because it controls whether water can evaporate from the slab. Enclosing the space allows you to use HVAC to control ambient conditions.

In heating mode, they lower the relative humidity by raising the air temperature. HVAC systems are also a great way to get air circulating around the concrete and thereby reducing drying time. To really speed up concrete drying time, enclose your slab and ensure the HVAC system is on. Some facilities have central dehumidifiers that can be used to speed up the drying process. You can also rent portable dehumidifiers and even fans. The only way to know if the concrete is dry is to test it.

The test uses sensors — inserted into the concrete at specific depths — to measure the relative humidity of the air trapped in the concrete. The single-use L6 sensors are factory calibrated and easy to use. Unlike reusable probes, the L6 sensors never need recalibration. At some point, the slab will be dry enough to receive the floor covering. Another alternative is to add water-reducer — this substance will give the mix greater fluidity without hampering it with excess water.

Hard trowelling should be avoided — the increased pressure can cause several issues. High intensity trowelling can cause densification of the concrete, collapsing air pockets and vents, and therefore preventing the moisture from easily evaporating when drying — thus, extending the drying time.

Curing requires moisture to be encouraged, and one way of ensuring this is to lay a plastic sheet over the laid concrete mix to prevent the moisture from escaping. This will also stop additional moisture from entering, thus slowing down the drying time even more. Weather not working in your favour?

Create your own heat by artificial means e. If you do choose to use a heater, be careful not to overheat the wet concrete mix — a gentle amount, however, should give your concrete the boost it needs to speed up the drying time. Both processes go hand in hand, and the tips listed here can assist with both.

This helps in evaporating out the moisture through the surface of the concrete. This process is most commonly used in the building industry. Use a Dryer or a Heater: If the weather is acting against the drying time of concrete, use heaters.

But never overheat the concrete mixture as it may end up creating more problems; just heat in the right intensity. You can also use heating mats for this purpose. Wrapping Up: These were some of the pre-pouring and post-pouring tips to improve the drying time of concrete. Since the natural drying time is not always good enough, these tips become necessary to set it quickly and attain the desired strength.

Apart from this, readymade concrete delivery Brisbane is also available which has the right amount of chemicals added to it!

Pre-Pour Tips Follow these pre-pour tips to fasten up the concrete drying time: 1. Post-Pour Tips Follow these post-pour tips to fasten up the concrete drying time: 1.

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