DRY POUR Concrete Pad 12x20 done in 6 Hours!

[@lenalove8138]

What a likable guy, thanks for sharing! Sometimes we want to do projects ourselves not because we don't have the money to do it professionally, but to know, at least for me, that I did it with my own hands.

[@joeteejoetee]

Bravo SIR: You are an inspiration!

[@daveisnothere]

Nice to see another dry pour. I have a few of them planned myself. No rebar or metal reinforcement?

[@StationSt]

Not on this one. Its only 3 inches think and will never support anything more than a lawn tractor. The substrate was pounded extremely well and should stay put when it cracks.

[@daveisnothere]

@@StationSt I like your honesty... "when it cracks" haha

[@StationSt]

Haha yup, all concrete cracks. Just a matter of when.

[@Gokywildcats11]

That looks like deer hunting country

[@chintasrvvegankitchen7761]

I've used DRY POUR method 6 times and it's great, if you faithfully follow the watering schedule, you can't go wrong. Well I didn't anyway. :) So much easier on me, I'm 68.

[@chess-qc3de]

Very good job ! Do you think it is possible to do a 20 x 24 dry concrete slab for a 2 car garage?? I have never seen it yet but it would be such an easier and cheaper way

[@StationSt]

@chess-qc3de to me, a slab is a slab, but honestly I just have no clue about supporting vehicles over time. I suppose if you make it a minimum of 4 inches thick and form it properly with rebar, why not. But don't take my word for it

[@mmxm1972]

I did a 8x10 slab a year ago. Reinforced with concrete mesh, super thick gauge. It's held up well. My neighbor did the similar size by "Professionals" for 3k+. His is already cracked 😂. Both are 4inch thick. But my slab only cost me $120 or something. I can't really remember how much my total was but definitely did not pass $200.

[@StationSt]

Lol that's great. I had 85 bags for my slab and drive my tractor on it and the edges are still crisp when the first thing concrete bros say is they'll crumble.

[@pizzadave9812]

Lol yep everybody's an expert...​@@StationSt

[@tiffanym4202]

I find the dry pour intriguing and will need a 12x20 pad at some point for my off grid property workshop. If not for the sawdust and dropped screws, I could just use gravel. Still, it looks like a lot of work. I think it makes sense to try a smaller pad first and get quotes for a wet pour for the larger pour. At least then there's a way to compare the diy labor vs professional pour vs $ spent.

[@StationSt]

@tiffanym4202 agreed. I tried smaller ones first. Also, the 50 pound bags are much more manageable but there will be more of them. The cost difference was what floored me lol no pun intended.

[@NickC341]

I need a 20 x 20 4' patio ... A contractor just quoted me $13,000 in California! These people are absolutely nuts. I told him it was a simple job not a highly engineer driveway.... This is giving me such inspiration. I was getting depressed.. I need to have a slight slope, so that water moves in one direction away from my house. How easy is it to get an angle on this??

[@StationSt]

@NickC341 i sloped this patio an inch or so away from the building so it's very easy to pitch. Just set up your forms to slope where you want and the concrete will just stay where you want it.

[@StationSt]

@NickC341 additionally, that is a large dollar amount for a simple slab. This is why "concrete bros" hate dry pour for simple slabs, they don't get the cash!

[@gulfsouth6231]

I've heard you and others say the reason to mist first is to create a crust on top to prevent dimples from the water spray when you flood the pad. However, if I don't care about the dimples, can i go straight to flooding the pad? Also, would the dimples help with traction on a 1ft high ramp to a shed for a riding mower and a few other wheeled items?

[@StationSt]

To be honest, the surface on a dry pour is not smooth. Even with a mist, it like a course sandpaper finish. I would not flood the pour as you will expose the aggregate and it with be really rough and rather unsightly in my opinion. If you can spare a couple hours after you give it a good mist, then you can flood at your hearts content

[@hardhitterradio3430]

THANKS MAN!! All the way from Houston, TX

[@StationSt]

Thanks for watching!

[@ganboldbayantsagaan2560]

Thank you for sharing your experiences. We understand you're missing some clips. Your video has encouraged me to do my own dry pour! 👍❤️

[@StationSt]

@@ganboldbayantsagaan2560 good luck with it!

[@SteveSnowGO]

Did you put rebar in the concrete?

[@StationSt]

@@SteveSnowGO no, 3.5" thick and nothing heavier than a tractor on it. No call for it.

[@ijellecristobal]

how bags of concrete was used?

[@StationSt]

85 bags

[@Ballinonabudget777]

Thank you so much sir❤I’m doing this myself at the same size also

[@StationSt]

Good luck! Take your time as those bags are heavy!

[@vincentnix582]

The engineer at OK State U showed the more water that is poured over the dry concrete the harder it will set but still will be 1/2 of the compression strength, compared to wet pour. About 3,000 lbs. for the wet pour and 1.500 lbs. for the dry pour.

[@StationSt]

@vincentnix582 yes true, takes a lot of water the thicker it is.

[@edmund2j]

Thank you for doing this. Makes me more sure and confident now with my next project and save me lots of $ to boot. Sub.

[@StationSt]

@@edmund2j I appreciate that! Good luck with your project.

[@anothertime2023]

Glad to see another Kentucky homestead channel! I got the same on my videos last year. I have done three slabs and they are all holding up perfectly! ❤

[@StationSt]

Thats great to hear!

[@haunday2094]

Did you lay it level or at an incline?

[@StationSt]

Slight slope away.

[@sherita4404]

I've had extra bags of that same concrete stored it in my "dry shed" and had a roof leak right on said concrete the concrete solidified to hard concrete shaped like the bag so...why not try a dry pour slab im sure it works for simple concrete pads used for walking across.

[@ken.korchak]

Thank you

[@tinamercier1512]

Im doing a 10x12. How long do i have to wait before removing the frame....an can walk an put my furniture on it

[@StationSt]

I soaked it 3 days then it was fine to move around on. I didn't do anything real heavy on it for a week or so.

[@samuelhenry9959]

You did good 😊

[@StationSt]

@@samuelhenry9959 thank you!

[@WoWdem101]

Hey brother! Did you use all 100 bags? Looking to do a 12x16 so trying to get a guestimate on how many I would need for 80lb bags

[@StationSt]

Depends on your thickness. If you want a 4 inch slab, it'll take 107 bags. The bottom of my slab space wasnt consistent so i used 85 bags. I google concrete calculator and calculator.net comes up. Use that for the math. Good luck!

[@ryank9910]

I love it!

[@StationSt]

Thank you!

[@benjrtofilau9627]

Thanks brother

[@terrymorton9941]

He just lobbed it! Hahah no messing here get lobbing...

[@terrymorton9941]

He doesnt care if its perfect, love it, its tidy its yours who cares lol

[@StationSt]

Damn right, it's attached to a garage not the entrance to a mansion. Serviceable and still looks ok

[@terrymorton9941]

@@StationSt great vid i loved the lobbing haha

[@cryptothedawg1160]

I dig your attitude and passion brother!

[@StationSt]

Thank you!

[@mehill00]

Thanks for the video, despite the missing footage. The thing that frustrates me is the people who shit-talk dry-pouring for things that it isn’t trying to do. I think I’ve seen folks mock how watering it every hour will take them longer at the site, but the point is dry pouring is for diy’ers who want something a step or two up from gravel and don’t want to deal with the time pressure of mixing all that concrete and floating it before it begins to set up. That’s a stressful and error-prone process for inexperienced folks. You can go over the dry mix many times to get it smooth. Except for the possibility of rain, you can stop part way through and finish it later. If you bought the wrong amount there is no panicking need for more bags immediately. I would never use it for structural work…only if gravel would almost work but I want something better, without spending the extra thousands that come with getting a truck and a crew to do a professional slab. Cheers.

[@StationSt]

You make great points. Yes concrete guys always think people are going to be parking tanks on a 3 inch slab!

[@ExperimentLife]

Finishing concrete is very easy. And the working time is hours. I just don’t see the appeal of making a huge ugly pad with dry pour. I can understand making a tiny insignificant concrete pad of entrance. But still even for a small pad at that point why not just mix the concrete. I don’t know. It just doesn’t seem like a great option but it’s your time and money and you can do whatever you want. I mixed and poured a small pad and the whole thing took me about 30 min. And it took 2 hours before the surface was drying and workable enough to finish the surface.

[@PatinaBlue62]

Can I lift my semi truck with my jack

[@StationSt]

@PatinaBlue62 it's a 3" thick pad, id reserve that for something triple thick

[@PatinaBlue62]

@@StationSt thanks 🙏

[@FreightRunna8]

Just mix it all that space to do the job right.Why cut corners?

[@lmbcvt]

Do it yourlazyselfers love to cut corners

[@TheHerbinfarmer]

The only people who tell you not dry pour are professionals who do it day in and day out lololol....people, smh

[@StationSt]

@TheHerbinfarmer and don't forget all the people who pretend to be professionals and sit in their arm chairs and troll just to be an a-hole.

[@mv4463]

$4-6k just for a parking pad... its the only reason id do it myself. Neighbor had his done by a contractor. And not even 6mo later its cracked and chipped. Myself i dont need pretty .. i need strong 💪. Its just for parking suv's that sit . I will paint a sealer afterwards.

[@sterlgirlceline]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

[@rogue_farmz3764]

Don’t ever wanna pour on vegetation ither will created a void and should have expansion between building

[@eyecatchingcreations]

Thats like 6 grand for a fuckin pad

[@StationSt]

I spent $450. Driven my tractor over it, off the edges and its not crumbled or cracked.

[@johnlocke3481]

Im glad this works for this gentlemen, but please don’t do this. Watch comparison videos of wet vs dry side by side. Dry pour is never a good idea. Even for small low traffic areas at best the edges will all be chipped away because the edges just crumble right off. at worst, you have no metal wire/rebar for tensile strength so anything heavy will crack it

[@LouieLouie505]

“… dry pour is never a good idea….” Never? I did my walkways, fence posts and porch on my house 25+ years ago. Still there. Dry pour is perfectly fine for many uses.

[@MaxPower-1000]

​@@LouieLouie505 In fact most concrete has instructions right on the bag for doing dry pour for fence posts. They don't recommend that for much else. But just goes to show, you can't say never.

[@lmbcvt]

I thought about this and chose not to do it I mixed my concrete in a garbage can with a 1/2 in drill and a drywall padel it came out perfect I believe the concrete EXPERTS and not YT do it your lazyselfers watch YT videos posted by PROFESSIONAL EXPERTS on how to do your own concrete work and carefully consider with common sense and wisdom what method you choose to use for your project A Do it once B Do it right C Never look back and wonder

[@LouieLouie505]

“…lazyselfers….” Oh brother. How is hauling multiple 60-80 lb bags, then on your knees screeding being lazy? What’s lazy is paying someone to do it.

[@rogue_farmz3764]

Oh I’ll talk about it and barly show he says , looks like way too much work. I wouldn’t do that in a dog house

[@RiverVapor]

I’m one of those dudes who does concrete and you’re right. I’ll tell you all day long how dry pour is weak as hell. Good luck in 2 years after the weather wastes all your time and money 😂

[@slu2072]

Weak in what perspective? For cars, a patio, for people just walking on it? Yeah it’s weaker but I’m pretty sure it has plenty strength for these purposes.

[@RiverVapor]

@@slu2072 He said he’s driving a tractor over it. I guarantee it breaks up.

[@lmbcvt]

Thank you these do it your lazyselfers with there self imposed "knowledge" are all over YT spouting this stuff I hope people will pay attention when experts like yourself speak up

[@RiverVapor]

@@lmbcvt It’s just common sense as well. Mixing concrete wet evenly distributes the cement in the mix and prevents pockets. The funniest thing is looking at failed dry pour pieces and seeing how dry it is and where moisture never even touches parts of it. I have no problem with diy guys. Just do it right and don’t be lazy. 😂

[@Crunchifyable2]

Yes every time I tried dry pour it was crumbly trash. Everyone can afford like an eight dollar concrete mixing tub, mix it with a garden hose, pour it, repeat. Like this dude is going to have to spend the money on 100 bags probably within two years after vehicles destroy that garage pad. You are getting half the strength for full price. So yes dry pour is a lazy method and it ends up looking like aged concrete.

[@johnkent9582]

Why not just take a little time and do it correctly?

[@StationSt]

@@johnkent9582 you've apparently missed the entire point. Did you watch the video?

[@johnkent9582]

@@StationSt Yes, I watched it. It's irresponsible as heck to tell people this is even half as good as doing it correctly. It's like telling people save time! Just throw shingles on your roof

[@StationSt]

@johnkent9582 well you are entitled to your opinion. When you see slabs, steps, patios and walkways made this way years later without a crack, "incorrect" is not a suitable word. Irresponsible would be telling people to build basement walls this way and yes people have asked.

[@johnkent9582]

@@StationSt Yes, it's just my opinion, and the opinion of the manufacturers. I realize you are for some reason sold on this so I will leave it alone.

[@nilsschear1095]

Nice. It took you three times as long and looks like crap. The only thing that’s been proven is it has about 50% of the compressive strength as wet poured concrete.

[@StationSt]

As always, trolls leave the best comments! Thank you for taking the time!

[@mehill00]

Well 50% strength is pretty generous, but that’s plenty strong for a nonstructural pad, but I doubt it took him three times the effort as it would to wet pour. A solo DIYer without a fair amount of concrete experience and extra equipment, would be hard-pressed to mix up all of that concrete wet for a 240 sq ft pad, spread it and float it before it begins to set up. What I don’t see often is an individual actually demonstrating the solo wet-pour job. They compare a solo dry pour DIYer to a few folks with a truck or enough people to use bags and a small mixer and pour it just ahead while others start to trowel it and float it before it’s all poured. It’s all about being doable by one guy, with reduced time pressure.

[@nilsschear1095]

@@mehill00 Trust me it’s doable with one guy. But I never mentioned effort, it took him three times as long. That being said a mixer from Home Depot is like $50 a day. So with a third of the time a mixer and about the same effort he could have had a much better result. People don’t realize that a proper finish is actually functional, and can drastically extend the life of the slab. This has no finish whatsoever. It’s like making a cake but skipping the frosting.

[@mehill00]

@@nilsschear1095 I’m honestly asking, not trying to argue: how could it take less time to mix and pour 100 bags, say, than to just dump those bags in place? Where’s the time saving? Or are you saying wet pour is faster because you have to water the dry pour into the next day? Thanks.

[@nilsschear1095]

@@mehill00 A pour like that fully finished should take two hours tops. Then you leave it alone to cure. It’s mostly the time he spent coming back and watering. But if you use a mixer the physical labor is almost the same. Dry pour creates a very porous surface, that looks ugly. Your finish is the first line of defense against water intrusion. Water is concretes enemy. A porous surface allows water to flow through the slab, taking cement particles with it and rusting any reinforcing. In a cold area, this water will freeze and expand, creating pressure inside the slab. Eventually it will fail. A proper finish will help the concrete resist water intrusion. Plus there’s a few videos out there where they test the psi of dry pour. It has about half or less the strength. To make a long story short, dry pour it’s about the same labor and cost, but you get an inferior product.

[@Redeyedtrucker2024]

Dry pour every time and save thousands!!

[@jeremylinton6129]

why?