Most people, starting construction and having neither experience nor proven skills, are called professionals and fully rely on them. But often, having free time and some of his own, hardened and cherished ideas, a person wants to build his own corner. And let it be a small house on a recently purchased plot, a long-planned garage, or at least a chicken coop using a read technology! There is a desire to build this “monumental”, but something dear to the heart, do-it-yourself construction, and that’s the point. This is where you are faced with cardinal issues.
The foundation is the main thing
Whatever the size of the building, if it is assumed that it will stand for more than one season, but at least a dozen years, it must have a foundation. And it is faster, more convenient and more reliable to make it concrete. And here a very significant question arises: "And, in fact, at what temperature can concrete be poured?" Nobody wants to translate the material in vain or, even worse, spoil the base of the building.
Regulatory conditions
In any technical documents, you can read that the lower bar at minus twenty and the upper bar at plus forty-five Celsius remain border indicators indicating at what temperature concrete can be poured. Moreover, any non-stupid person understands that the best conditions would be something in between. If we take into account the mutual effect of concrete during solidification and air temperature, we can say that the most favorable will be degrees from +5 to +15. Higher - it is permissible, although not before the tropical heat, in the summer it will be necessary to make concrete more liquid, given the evaporating moisture. But in the winter ...
Extreme conditions: frost
In cold weather, according to physics, water in a concrete solution freezes, and concrete ceases to harden. If he did not have time to do this before turning the water into ice, he would not become hard, even if he managed to warm it up. As freezing water increases in volume, it breaks the bonds in concrete, and it becomes heterogeneous. Frozen reinforcement also does not add optimism, since the ice on it prevents it from grasping with concrete, and as a result they do not form a single whole. In winter, the question of at what temperature concrete can be poured becomes irrelevant, since it can jump within 5-15 degrees during the day, and constant freezing-thawing for the foundation is also dangerous.
How to deal with the cold
At the same time, in winter you can perform concrete work if you know how to pour concrete in the cold. The main thing is to follow certain rules, and the fill will turn out no worse than on the most favorable days. The first condition is to properly deliver good, right concrete. Experienced builders are advised not to be greedy and use a concrete pump. The second is the maintenance of already poured concrete. At a minimum, when pouring into it, it is necessary to add frost-resistant additives and attend to the formwork with insulation. In the future, it is possible to advise the heating of a concrete site. With enough effort, you will not care at what temperature concrete can be poured. You can always!
Extreme conditions: rain
Many builders concreted into dampness, which combines with coolness, is even more convenient than in dry and warm weather. They say that concrete sets more evenly. In addition, if you have to work in a deliberately rainy time, you can increase the resistance of concrete to water with special cement. The second secret of how to pour concrete into the rain successfully is to cover the area with polyethylene so that the solution does not erode.
Unfortunately, no tricks will save from the rain, so concrete work will not lead to heavy lingering rains in open spaces.