Driveway addition cost?


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Old 08-14-06, 08:30 PM
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Question Driveway addition cost?

Hi,
(3 part question...)
1. Anyone have an estimate per cubic yard (in the midwest) for concrete? I'm thinking of doing fiberglass reinforced. Will that help prevent the surface from flaking?

2. I'm doing an area that's approx. 180 sq ft. What's the recommended depth for car traffic?

3. At what point do I go with an actual truck delivery instead of buying Quikrete at home depot?
 
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Old 08-14-06, 08:40 PM
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You're looking at 2.25 cuyds of concrete at 4 inches thick. No way do you want to bag mix that much. It's not as consistent and it will leave you sore for weeks. Besides the Ready Mix is probably close to the same price. In my midwest area a cuyd of fiber concrete is around $90.
 
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Old 08-15-06, 07:18 AM
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Driveway addition cost?

If you are thinking of taking the typical fibeglass and mixing it into concrete - forget it. Been done, failed and is dead. That is the reason fibre reinforced concrete is produced in plants with special materials under controlled mixing to eliminate the problems of under-mixing and over-mixing. Plain fiberglass will deteriorate in short order. That is why other materials are used.

You asked when the point comes that you go with an actual truck delivery instead of Quikrete - usually when someone figures the real cost for a driveway. If that is not it, it comes when they look at the time trouble and fuel just to get the raw materials, mix the concrete into large enough volumes to make reasonable size sections. If you are looking at the cost, uniformity and quality are probably no factors.

Concrete at $90 a yard is a bargain. Add a surcharge of $30 per yard for a short load and you get $120/yard or $270 for the project ($0.04/pound mixed and delivered when you want it). That is all at once so you can concentrate on your base, forming, reinforcing mesh and placing all in one short day.

I just had a 220 sf exposed aggregate poured and I used 5000 psi air entrained concrete. I used 6x6 wire mesh and broke the 22' x 10' area into 2 - 11' x 10' areas.

Don't try an untested experiment (fiberglass) yourself. If everything is not the way you want it, you will never be happy.

Quikrete is a good product, but there are times to do it right if you don't have the experience and need the quality for durability. You will never mix concrete as good as you can get from a plant.

Dick
 
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Old 08-15-06, 03:32 PM
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???

What idiot would try to mix their own fiberglass into concrete???
 
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Old 08-15-06, 03:54 PM
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Driveway addition cost?

You were mentioning it when you talked about fiberglass concrete and mixing your own using quikrete.

Fiber reinforced concrete was developed by mixing fiberglass strands in the field into concrete to increase the tensile strength and minimize cracking. It was also used in a pre-proportioned mix sold in a bags by Owens Corning under the name of "Block Bond" for surface bonding applications. The same product is sold under a number of different names.

After a short period of time, it was discovered that the fine strands were not thick enough for concrete and caused mixing problems. The concrete also ate away at the fiberglass, so an alkalai resistant glass was tried. Steel fibers were also used.

The concept of site mixing and proportioning was not consistant enough for good results.

Since then, most fiber reinforced concrete uses polypropelene or othere types of fibers in different diameters, configuration (twisted, etc.), lengths and composition. The correct term for this type of concrete is "Fiber reinforced concrete" and is not limited to any type of fibers.

Many contractors like to use it for driveways, but it has not become common for municipal or commercial construction. Most contractors prefer to use wire mesh (EWW 6x6) and control joints for slabs large enough to have shrinkage crack, but some will use both to eliminate the dreaded cracks.

Dick
 
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Old 08-15-06, 08:42 PM
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Cool ha ha

No-there's no way I'd do a move like that! Concrete is touchy as it is! We already moved from a house that had a 3 year old driveway that was 35% flaked off. Ugh. We're sealing this new one asap to help prevent that. Hope it helps.
 
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Old 08-16-06, 02:24 AM
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Degradation of finished concrete surfaces can be caused by a number of reasons. You could get a bad or 'hot' batch of concrete. The concrete may have been poured too wet which makes the concrete much easier to work with when placing but weakens it's many strength factors for it;s longevity. The concrete may have been finished and then allowed to freeze or be exposed to too much rain way too early. No question that road salts can erode concrete sufraces of driveways especially if one by habit parks a car in the same spot each day and allows road salts to drip in the same old spot.

bs5
 
 

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