How to Pour a Concrete Slab from Start to Finish!! DIY Concrete Prep and Finish

Hello my talented friend, Thank you for showing me the process of pouring concrete on the ground for a structure to be built in the garden. Thank you for showing the details. Good job. Preparation of the ground and a well-explained step-by-step work. See you. Greetings.

[@KomarProject]

Thank you so much friend

@@KomarProject You're welcome. See you. Greetings.

[@genxer74]

half way through and I love how this guy goes over the common problems of every day DIY and teaches you how to spot it and solve it.

[@BillSW]

Nice video. A few suggestions: * (3,4,5) triangle is too small given the large sides you have. Consider using other larger Pythagoras dimensions like (5, 12, 13) or (8, 15, 17) to be extra sure the corner is 90 degrees. If you used these larger dimensions you would have caught those 2x4 that were not straight. * Another tip is measure the length of the diagonals (opposite corners). The two diagonals should be the same length if all corners are 90 degrees * (BONUS MARK) If you did everything correctly then: diagonal x diagonal is equal to length x length + width x width (D*D = L*L + W*W)

[@KomarProject]

These are all great tips Bill!!!! Awesome that you posted them for others to reference !! Many thanks !

[@johnnyhopkins7297]

Bonus tip figure the diagonals beforehand and use two tapes to lay it out right the first time.

[@ajamesbertman]

Just curious - if you used the entire pad for the shed framing, would you do footings?

[@Paul_Hanson]

Any multiple of 3,4,5 works. In this case 12,16,20 would be a good fit to the 12x24 dimensions. Also, since Pythagorean numbers other than 3,4,5 have been mentioned, here's my favorite: 119,120,169. This translates to 9 feet 11 inches by 10 feet with a diagonal of 14 feet 1 inch.

[@Paul_Hanson]

One other note. You should probably make sure that your reference string line is level. Otherwise you will be measuring a right angle in a plane not parallel to ground level. To understand that think of looking at a cube from different angles. Its outline is not always a square. If viewed from a certain angle the outline of a cube becomes a perfect hexagon which indicates that the right angles formed by intersections of the cube's faces can be made to look like 120 degree angles by projecting them onto a plane that is not parallel to one of the cube's faces. So if the right angle you have measured does lie in a plane parallel to the ground it might not be a right angle when projected onto the ground plane. However, it is enough to guarantee that only one of the strings is level because then you know that even if the right angle you measured doesn't lie in a plane parallel to the ground, its projection onto the ground plane it will still be a right angle.

[@terryguin9529]

Cut your form supports off flush with top of form to make screeding easier

[@helderlage]

FANTASTIC! an excellent example of the practical application of the Pythagorean theorem.

[@KomarProject]

I keep telling my kids that they will always use math. They laugh at me lol

[@darrellscott7980]

Angle grinder and a diamond cup wheel will clean them corners up. Nice job. Looks good.

[@KomarProject]

Thanks Darrell. I just bought a diamond wheel for a grinder and was hesitant

[@darrellscott7980]

@@KomarProject I’d recommend a face shield. Don’t apply a lot of pressure, let the wheel do the work. Wet the concrete down first. It’ll cut down on dust and help prevent chipping since it will help keep the concrete from heating up as much.

[@air7tv]

If the concrete is only a day or so old you can use a cheap gritty sanding disc in your angle grinder, just wear a good mask and if possible have an assistant with a vac 😂

[@MrTakoyaki1]

Wet concrete is a strong alkaline chemical solution it can cause some gnarly burns. Best to keep yourself covered whole working with it. Loved the video!

[@KomarProject]

Omg yes. After a he pour I googled it and concrete burns is actually a thing. Never knew that

[@ryeboy2u]

I always use a roll of plastic underlayment, to prevent the water in the concrete from soaking into the gravel or ground to quickly. Some guys use this and some don't. However I always do, and I have poured a lot of concrete on small projects. In my trade i have installed thousands of tons of rebar, I worked as an ironworker all my working years; both rebar and structural.

[@fdort3971]

I've never done this before but I remember seeing plastic laid. It makes sense to me to stop the cement running off. At the same time...with no plastic it fills in the cracks around the gravel...I'm conflicted...lol

[@charleswatkins5628]

Chuck Watkins I just watched your video twice and I really enjoyed watching the how to do demonstrations portions. I'm in the middle of my ground preparation so I found all of your information to be very helpful. Thanks for taking the time and sharing your project. CW

[@KomarProject]

You are very welcome. The only thing I would add is to cut the brace stakes even with your form. Helps the skeeting process

[@HB-600]

Hi! Way late with this reply…but how did your ground prep and concrete pour go??

[@SchysCraftCo.]

Turned out very well there Bart. Keep making. God bless

[@KomarProject]

Thanks so much Jared!!!

[@KrisFerdy]

You should upload more often... Been waiting for a full fledged video for a long time... Keep up the great work... And do keep us posted... 😉

[@KomarProject]

Thank you !! This video took a bit more time to produce. But I have a few more on their way for sure very soon

[@brucemartini2288]

I cant wait to try my 1st slab ever😏

[@HB-600]

Have you tried it yet?? Curious to see how your experience was. I’ve learned that everything looks a lot easier…until I try to actually do it 😂

[@michael_house]

Better done than perfect. :D Great video. Thanks for putting the work in.

[@KomarProject]

Thanks mi

[@gerggerggy7757]

Exactly. Sometimes agonizing over perfection keeps the project from getting finished or even started. Shoot for perfection, but dont beat yourself up if its not.

[@charleswatkins5628]

Just saw your reply today. IT ALL WENT VERY WELL! I used my compact tractor to remove the grass/ put in 3 inches of gravel/ rebar added/ supported the frame/ had four strong friends show up to run the mixer and dump in the 72 60 pound bags. 8'X12 slab finished in 4 hours. All of the pre-work was done before my friends showed up. CW

[@OmegaWalple]

why not use a garden rake instead of the shovel to move the gravel around?

[@KomarProject]

You can. I did in some instances

[@carriestrong591]

The tool that worked best for me, believe it or not, was a garden hoe! Same physical action as a rake, but you can move more aggregate, like a shovel…. try it next time. ;😀👍

[@deanlang3894]

Another great video Sarge. 👍💪🇨🇦

[@KomarProject]

Thank you sir !

[@mauronovara4830]

Excellent ! I´ll try it in the far Argentinian Patagonia. Cheers !

[@ludwigvonrothbard1207]

Amazing video. Thank you for taking the time to produce it.

[@icephoenix111077]

I really hope you got your friends some beers after this.😀

[@LetsTalkCarpentry]

Great video! Only thing I’d change is how you ran your strings. Spray paint is 2” wide. Try using a small stake or something to mark your measurement instead to be accurate. Also 3,4,5 is a small triangle compared to your overall distances. Id use 9,12,15 and use 3,4,5 to double check if necessary. Turned out awesome though thanks for sharing, you gained a new subscriber!

[@prakashambastha7530]

Thanks for this detailed video.One question, how did you make sure form is dropped by 1/8th of inch every foot? Did you any reference point on both opposite ends to measure the slope? Thanks again!

[@TheBarnick6]

Run a string line level and measure then measure from the string how much you need dropped

[@daytonafuntim]

Super helpful! Thanks!

[@KomarProject]

Very welcome Daytona

[@ramiygr.3629]

Very informative. What would you recommend if I should place my prebuilt shed on compacted gravel, Bassrock or on concrete? Is there an advantage of one over the other?

[@Queen-jc8fd]

Thank you.

[@KomarProject]

Thank you

[@drpc98014]

any thoughts on doing a dry pour for same pad size?

[@angelamoll7348]

Do they make a concrete putty that you can roll on the outside to help with the edges?

[@TheCyleRitchie]

no plastic under the concrete?

[@HB-600]

Just curious, why plastic under the concrete?

[@ontisitsemanyeneng3154]

It's for protecting the foundation against moisture build up.

[@farayra33]

Good job well done

[@johnlebeau1]

You live in Naperville- not Chicago. Big difference, good job

[@quejm]

How has this pad held up? You are absolutely correct, you need to be doing the screed work and the floating as you go. Because you got behind, the finishing process was done all wrong, you should not be throwing water all over the surface of the concrete! The sections where you are hand floating, the surface is a mess... Yes, you can save money doing concrete on your own, but the process is not something you can learn quickly. You need many years of experience to do it right. And if it is done wrong, it probably won't hold up.

[@ajamesbertman]

Would you do footings if he made the shed the full size of the pad (10x12 or so)?

[@quejm]

@@ajamesbertman It depends on the application. What type of shed are you putting on the pad? If it is just a standard shed with 8 foot walls ("Tuff Shed" style) it is not necessary. However, if you are doing anything taller, or maybe something with a garage door, you should definitely put in footings. The nice thing is that you can pour the footings/foundation at the same time that you pour the rest of the pad. You just have to dig a trench with the rebar and pour that in when your pour the pad. Its called a monolithic pour. There are plenty of videos on KZbin with advise on how to do that.

[@ajamesbertman]

​@@quejm First, thank ya for giving your thoughts here! I'm familiar with the monolithic concept and done it a couple times, but those decisions were not mine to make - I just did the work. I'd like to build something of my own "tuff shed" like you mentioned with a crete floor (10x12x8 most likely). No garage door though. I'm also putting a fence up and will be auguring some post holes soon. I was curious if using the auger to also dig a few piers around the perimeter of the pad would be worth while to meet in the middle of the monolithic footings and just a flatwork pad. Can I get your thoughts on this?

[@jamibeckham4544]

How many yards is this?

[@fdort3971]

@KomarProject thanks for the lesson. I'm about to do this for the first time. I'm second guessing myself left, right and center..lol. I can't afford a professional but I don't want to screw it up. I'm making a workshop with a 6 foot round room entrance into a 20 foot x 40 foot rectangular room. I have to worry about a 2 foot deep frost line. (Nova Scotia). Height I'm unsure of the height yet. I've been accumulating free building supplies from marketplace and roadside riches. My goal is a wedge shaped roof (higher in front) because of snow. The lower side inside will be 8 feet. With my crappy math (sorry...not a math genius) how thick should my slab be please? I'll be making a woodworking business so somewhat heavy machines. How does the 2 foot frost line affect the process? Do I or don't I line under the gravel with vapour barrier? I've seen both ways.

[@mazarykorn1721]

в підтримку каналу 👏👍👌

[@ProblemsolverCaroline]

Every single time I hear your surname I'm smiling because is a Polish obviously ;)

[@brucemartini2288]

amount of friends you get, depends on how many cases of beer you have🤣

[@christophertaylor3001]

A monolithic slab has a footing dug deeper around perimeter with min 1/2 inch rebar.

[@newvilla8115]

Thanks, how do you level in relation to the horizon.

[@miken2604]

doing a pickleball court...how do i make sure its level

[@ajamesbertman]

How did this hold up so far?

[@HB-600]

Still going strong!!

[@jellybeansupra]

awesome, thank you!

[@KomarProject]

You're welcome! And thank you !

[@chancesellers5425]

You really need to round the edges because sharp edge concrete has a tendency to crack easier just get a concrete grinding wheel and round those corners as good as you can

[@KomarProject]

Your totaly right. I think I found a technique for it. Should I do a video on it ?

[@chancesellers5425]

@@KomarProject Absolutely I think if someone else runs into the same issues a help video would really be awesome 👌😎

[@chancesellers5425]

@@KomarProject I really injoy your channel love the content you put out please never stop thanks 😊

[@HB-600]

Why do sharp edges cause easier cracking?

[@Parabellum-X]

Why didn't you place Visqueen down instead of all of that gravel?

[@funtyes1970]

i like watching his videos but he need to upload more videos at least 1 video a week like most youtubers do , just saying. great video and good job on Concrete slab

[@HB-600]

Have you seen his new videos?? They’re pretty cool!!

[@robertelliott44]

They sent you a hot mix ! Not really your fault ! Shouldn't harden up so fast !

[@angelamoll7348]

Hi! What kind of doggo is Stella?

[@Kid617]

So you did a 2inch pad and driving equipment on here thinking I need 4 inch base and 4inch concrete for my work shop😅😊

[@jamesmoore8156]

I had to...😂😂😂😂😂

[@TheDrew2022]

Stella: Brown merle Mini-Aussie I'm guessing?

[@OmegaWalple]

The wife and I are arguing about how old Stella is, can you tell us how old she is?

[@KomarProject]

Hahahaha almost 4 months lol

[@HB-600]

So who was closest?? You or the wife? :)

[@OmegaWalple]

@@HB-600 I think I was but this was 2 yrs ago and I've slept a lot since then

[@joeyoliver579]

You need a tractor. It would do EVERYTHING for you. Compared to your back, they're worth every dime they can cost.

[@HB-600]

Does the John Deere lawn mowers with a small trailer attachment count?? 😅

[@YanajRettun]

12x24 cost you $1754 ($6 a sqft?!?!?) I have contractors that would do it for $6 per sqft… this was pricey

[@HB-600]

Where are you at that that’s the pricing you could get?

[@printer1105]

Too close to the fence , can't get a riding mower in there. ...bad layout from the start. Slump on Crete was great.

[@bobhmail7161]

Good video to learn how not to do it.