Opinions Matter

c/concrete-finishers

6

the_anthony•1d ago

Spent $400 on a power trowel blade pack that barely lasted a season

I bought a set of expensive aftermarket blades from a rep at a Texas job site thinking they'd outlast my usual cheap ones, but they chipped bad by month three on a warehouse floor pour. Meanwhile, my buddy swears by the same blades and says I must have gotten a bad batch or hit something wrong. You guys think brand name blades are worth the cash or is it all luck of the draw?

11

miles_sanchez•2d ago

Just realized I was overworking my concrete for years

I was out on a job in Tucson last summer finishing a driveway and a retired finisher walked by. He watched me for a minute and said I was 'working the cream to death' and it finally clicked. I had always been so paranoid about getting a perfect finish that I was going over it way too many times with the float and trowel. Has anyone else had a moment where an old timer pointed out something obvious you were missing?

0

parkerp80•3d ago

Trowel handle snapped on me mid-pour yesterday

I was finishing a driveway in Phoenix yesterday afternoon, about 80 square yards of 4000 psi mix, and my Marshalltown bull float handle just cracked right at the threads. Thankfully I was still in the floating stage and not finishing, but I had to run to the truck and grab my old wooden handle. I rigged it up with some duct tape to get through the job, but man it threw off my rhythm and the owner was watching me. The handle was only about 3 years old and I treat my tools decent. Has anyone else had a handle fail like that on a modern trowel, or was mine just a fluke?

14

walker.max•5d ago

Vent: Heard a homeowner say broom finish is "lazy work"

I was at a job site last week and this guy walks up, looks at my broom finish on a driveway, and tells his wife it looks like I took the easy way out. I told him flat out, a proper broom finish takes timing and feel. You go too early and it tears, too late and it won't stick. Has anyone else had a client badmouth a standard finish like that?

17

pat_schmidt60•5d ago

My $40 light pole float gave out on the third pour - what a waste

I bought one of those cheap plastic light pole floats from a supply shop in Des Moines to help level a 50 yard driveway job and it cracked under the wet concrete by the second wheelbarrow load. Tried to patch it with duct tape on site but it just sank and we had to rework the whole grade by hand. Anyone got a brand of those floats that actually holds up for more than a day?

16

ryanh56•5d ago

Old timer on a job in Denver taught me something about finishing concrete in the rain

I was working a big driveway pour in Denver last spring and this guy named Frank, must have been 70 years old, just watched me panic when the rain started. He said 'son, stop fighting the water and work it into the surface, it'll give you a smoother finish than any trowel.' I tried it and honestly the slab came out perfect, no pitting at all. Anyone else ever get a weird tip from an older finisher that actually made your life easier?

20

hannahs45•8d ago

Dropped $140 on an edger attachment that barely paid off

I bought a walk behind edger attachment for my skid steer last month for $140. Thought it would cut my walkway time in half on a big driveway job in Phoenix. It worked okay on straight sections but the radius turns were a nightmare and I had to go back with a hand edger anyway. Ended up taking just as long overall. Has anyone else tried one of those and figured out the setup better?

28

mark361•8d ago

Just wrapped my 500th square foot of stamped concrete this week

I hit 500 square feet of stamped concrete on a single patio job here in Cleveland, and I realized I've never kept track of my totals before. How do you guys log your work or track your numbers on big projects?

15

lee72•12d ago

Why I quit using a bull float on driveways and never looked back

I used to bull float every single driveway pour for 10 years straight, thinking it was the only way to get a decent finish. Then about 3 years ago I helped a crew in Austin that only used a roller buggy and a fresno, no bull float at all. The guy showed me how the buggy gets the cream up faster and you don't trap air pockets like a float can. Now I only use the bull float on really big slabs like warehouse floors, but for residential driveways I switched to the roller and fresno combo. My finishes are flatter and I save about 20 minutes per pour. Has anyone else dropped the bull float for smaller jobs?

20

jamesf26•14d ago

Old timer at the supply yard told me my mix was too wet

I was pouring a patio in Phoenix last July and a guy who's been doing this since the 70s watched me mix and said 'that's gonna crack in a week, too much water.' I brushed him off but sure enough three days later I had hairline cracks everywhere. Has anyone else had to totally re-learn their water ratio after getting called out like that?

16

rowan_roberts49•16d ago

TIL why you should wet cure instead of just spraying and walking away

I always thought wet curing was overkill. I'd just spray the slab down once and call it good. But last month on a driveway pour in Austin, I had a customer call me back cause the surface was dusting bad. An old timer told me to try burlap and keep it wet for 5 days straight. I did it on the next job and the finish came out way harder and smoother. Anyone else notice a big difference with proper wet curing?

25

park.abby•18d ago

Appreciation post: That bull float I almost threw away saved my butt yesterday

I used to hate my magnesium bull float because it felt too light and I thought it was garbage compared to the heavy steel ones. But I got stuck on a big driveway pour in Elmira yesterday where the concrete was setting up faster than I expected. The heat was brutal and I couldn't keep up with the hand tools fast enough. I grabbed that old magnesium float out of pure desperation and it glided over the surface like butter. Finished the whole thing in about 20 minutes flat when I thought it would take me an hour. Now I gotta ask has anyone else found a tool they hated at first but ended up relying on later?

15

kelly_nelson95•20d ago

Pour came out rough on a driveway last Tuesday but I fixed it

I was finishing a 12x30 driveway in Des Moines and the mix started setting way faster than I expected. The temp dropped quick and I couldn't keep up with the broom finish. Ended up with these deep groves that looked terrible. So I grabbed my magnesium float and went back over the whole thing while it was still green. That smoothed out the marks, then I used a light broom pass at the end. Came out flat with a nice consistent texture. Has anyone else dealt with a mix that goes off on you like that?

27

kai_park•20d ago

Old timer on a job in Austin showed me a broom finish trick I still use

I was working a big driveway pour in Austin about 3 years ago. This guy who must have been 70 came over and watched me struggling with the broom. He said 'you're pushing too hard and wetting the surface back out.' He grabbed the broom and showed me to let the weight of the handle do the work and never go back over a pass. He told me to keep a spray bottle of water on my belt to mist the broom bristles every 3 or 4 passes. That one tip saved me from redoing a whole slab because of drag marks. I still think about that every time I finish a flat surface. Has anyone else had a random guy on site teach them something that simple?

12

the_tessa•23d ago

Appreciation post: the $20 magnesium float I almost didn't buy

Picked up a cheap magnesium float from a local supply yard in Phoenix last month just to see if it was worth the hype over my usual steel. First use on a 400 square foot patio, the finish came out way smoother and I finished 20 minutes faster than normal. Anyone else find that a different float material changed how your slab turned out?

17

blakem13•24d ago

Paid $400 for a power trowel attachment that did nothing my hands couldn't do better

Bought one of those helicopter blade add-ons for my walk-behind last spring. Saw a guy on YouTube using it and thought man that looks slick. First job with it was a 40 yard pour over at the old warehouse on Maple Street. Thing wobbled like crazy left these swirl marks I had to hand finish anyway. Took me twice as long to clean up the mess. Called the supplier and they said I was probably using it wrong but come on. Sold it on Craigslist for 150 bucks. Anybody else try those attachments and actually get them to work right?

27

blake_bell29•25d ago

Swapped my steel trowel for a magnesium one about a year back

I used to think heavier steel gave me better control on flat slabs, but my wrist was shot after every 8 hour pour. Picked up a 36 inch magnesium float from a crew out of Denver and the weight difference let me finish a whole driveway without stopping. Anyone else notice a change in their arm fatigue after switching float materials?

12

daniel593•26d ago

Wet curing vs. curing compound - I used to think compound was a shortcut

Spent 10 years swearing by spray-on curing compound until a spec job near Portland required wet burlap and soaker hoses for 7 days. That slab came out with half the cracking I normally see, and now I'm questioning everything I learned.

6

dakota_nelson43•27d ago

Old foreman told me my broom finish was backwards in Tulsa last month

I always dragged the broom toward me but he said push it away to keep the lines cleaner. Tried it on a 40 yard driveway and the texture came out way more even. Anyone else get taught the wrong way and had to unlearn it?

22

willow407•27d ago

Hit 10,000 square feet of flatwork in one month for the first time ever

I've been finishing concrete for about 8 years now, mostly driveways and patios in the Phoenix area. Last month I somehow landed three big jobs back to back, a 4,000 sq ft warehouse floor, a 3,500 sq ft driveway, and the rest from a couple of smaller walkways. I didn't even realize I passed 10,000 square feet until I added up my pour sheets at the end of the month. That number surprised me because I usually top out around 6,000 or 7,000 in a good month. The warehouse floor was the hardest, we had to use a laser screed and a power trowel for that one. My helper was dead tired by week three. Does anyone here track their monthly yardage or just go by job? I'm curious if 10,000 is a normal milestone or if I'm just working too hard.

20

ruby450•28d ago

Learned a trick for smoothing edges on a hot day from a old timer in Phoenix

I was out on a job in Phoenix last August, air temp was 112 degrees and the concrete was setting up fast. An old timer named Mike saw me struggling with my edger leaving drag marks. He told me to dunk my edger in ice water for 30 seconds before each pass. I tried it and the cold metal smoothed the edges like butter without sticking or tearing. Saved me at least 2 hours of extra grinding later on. Has anyone else tried something like that for hot weather pours?

8

laura189•28d ago

TIL I hit 500 pours without a single cold joint and it felt like a big deal

I been doing flatwork for about 5 years now, mostly driveways and patios. Last month I wrapped up a big slab in Reston, Virginia and my helper pointed out it was my 500th pour since I started keeping track. That number surprised me because I never thought I'd make it that far without messing up a seam. It mattered to me because cold joints used to be my biggest fear when I started out, and now I just know when to work fast and when to wait. Has anyone else ever counted their pours or hit a milestone like that?

18

anna_fox7•1mo ago

Had the worst pour of my life last Tuesday, but it changed how I handle joints

We were doing a 30x40 shop slab, about 5 inches thick, out near Springfield. Everything was going smooth until the pump guy started having issues and we got a cold joint right down the middle. I was so frustrated I almost just troweled over it and hoped for the best. But my foreman stopped me and made me saw cut and seal it properly right then. Took forever but the owner came by yesterday and said he couldn't even find the joint. Has anyone else had a bad pour that actually taught them something you still use?

18

linda500•1mo ago

PSA: Check your forms before the truck shows up

I was on a driveway pour in Des Moines last Tuesday and didn't notice the form board had a big crack in it. The concrete blew out the side and I spent an hour cleaning up a mess that could have been avoided with 30 seconds of inspection. Has anyone else had a close call because of a bad form?

21

rose_hart•1mo ago

Spent 4 hours trying to fix a broom finish that got rained on

Poured a driveway off Maple Street last Tuesday and the weather report said clear skies. Sure enough 20 minutes after we finished a quick shower came through. I spent the next 4 hours trying to get the broom lines to match back up. Ended up having to grind the whole section down and redo it. Has anyone found a good trick for saving a broom finish when rain hits?