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Started By
Message
Driveway reinforcement: just fiber, just mesh, or both
Posted on 11/11/19 at 11:20 am
Posted on 11/11/19 at 11:20 am
Pouring my driveway soon. Concrete finisher asked i was going with fiber or WWM.
I don’t have any experience with fiber?
Thoughts?
I don’t have any experience with fiber?
Thoughts?
6
Posted on 11/11/19 at 11:30 am to Coon
What kind of soil you have? How long has it settled? Any big trees close?
Posted on 11/11/19 at 11:31 am to Coon
What is the difference in the cost of mesh and fiber vs nothing? I bet when you look at the numbers it is a no brainer to add it...
Posted on 11/11/19 at 12:10 pm to Coon
im a firm believer in overkill during construction is never a bad thing, go with mesh and fiber and "know" you never have to worry about it cracking
Posted on 11/11/19 at 12:37 pm to keakar
4000 psi concrete and highway mesh. Fiber is a a bunch of poo poo.
This post was edited on 11/11/19 at 12:39 pm
Posted on 11/11/19 at 1:08 pm to keakar
I’m not 100% positive but I believe you aren’t supposed to use mesh and fiber in the same application.
Posted on 11/11/19 at 1:12 pm to fishfighter
No big trees
Soil is very hard (high clay content)
Looks like wwm is about $1100 for my project.
The extra fiber would be about $400
So approx $700 delta there.
I have $1500 left in my budget for a pump but can probably back down and put that towards WWM.
Soil is very hard (high clay content)
Looks like wwm is about $1100 for my project.
The extra fiber would be about $400
So approx $700 delta there.
I have $1500 left in my budget for a pump but can probably back down and put that towards WWM.
Posted on 11/11/19 at 1:49 pm to Coon
You can do either or both, but your likeliest point of failure will be the crew placing the concrete. Ride them like zorro or have your gc there. If it’s a large job, spend the $500 and hire a QC guy to ensure it’s done right.
The crews do not want to move it the concrete the hard way if there is no pump truck, therefore they will put a ton of water in it to make it “flow”. This water will reduce the strength of the concrete.
Your driveway may not be a full 4” in depth when dug out, it needs to be 4” or more deep to have the correct cover over/under the wire mesh.
Also when they put the steel mesh in they will likely not use plastic chairs to hold the mesh at the correct level. They will say things like “ima pull it up into the right spot”. That’s crap.
The mesh needs to be in the middle of the 4” slab. The mesh helps with tension in the span to hold the slab together if it does crack and also helps prevent surface cracks.
The crews do not want to move it the concrete the hard way if there is no pump truck, therefore they will put a ton of water in it to make it “flow”. This water will reduce the strength of the concrete.
Your driveway may not be a full 4” in depth when dug out, it needs to be 4” or more deep to have the correct cover over/under the wire mesh.
Also when they put the steel mesh in they will likely not use plastic chairs to hold the mesh at the correct level. They will say things like “ima pull it up into the right spot”. That’s crap.
The mesh needs to be in the middle of the 4” slab. The mesh helps with tension in the span to hold the slab together if it does crack and also helps prevent surface cracks.
Posted on 11/11/19 at 2:20 pm to eng08
It’s gonna crack no matter what - fiber/wire will help the tensile strength. Compressive strength will come from the concrete mix. A typical 4” thick cast in place concrete pour will crack every 10’. You can place keyway in it or sawcut/tool joint at intervals to reduce cracking - but neither wire nor fiber will eliminate cracks.
Posted on 11/12/19 at 4:34 am to Coon
Fiber does not give tensile strength. At all
Fiber is added to prevent surface cracking during the cure due to shrinkage. Once your concrete is cured, fiber does nothing.
Go with mesh and keep your concrete wet for several days while it cures.
Fiber is added to prevent surface cracking during the cure due to shrinkage. Once your concrete is cured, fiber does nothing.
Go with mesh and keep your concrete wet for several days while it cures.
Posted on 11/12/19 at 11:31 am to Coon
You should do neither. Have your contractor spend more time compacting the soil, if it is a decent soil. If not, have you contractor treat the soil with straight portland cement or lime, then compact.
I recommend not doing the WWM because 9/10 it isn't going to be installed properly. In residential they will lay it out on top of the dirt and pour on top. If they half assed care they will attempt to pull it up into the concrete as they pour, but will still be walking over it pushing it back down. It serves no purpose if it isn't in the middle of the concrete. They can raise it into the concrete with chairs or bricks, but it usually gets walked on and falls off the bricks or chairs.
I don't recommend the fiber, because it will cause you to spend extra money unnecessarily. Unnecessarily, because if the base is prepared properly it will still fail on you regardless. Also, you may not like how the finish turns out with the fibers in it.
Spend more time and money on preparing the base properly and your will have a better product at the end.
I recommend not doing the WWM because 9/10 it isn't going to be installed properly. In residential they will lay it out on top of the dirt and pour on top. If they half assed care they will attempt to pull it up into the concrete as they pour, but will still be walking over it pushing it back down. It serves no purpose if it isn't in the middle of the concrete. They can raise it into the concrete with chairs or bricks, but it usually gets walked on and falls off the bricks or chairs.
I don't recommend the fiber, because it will cause you to spend extra money unnecessarily. Unnecessarily, because if the base is prepared properly it will still fail on you regardless. Also, you may not like how the finish turns out with the fibers in it.
Spend more time and money on preparing the base properly and your will have a better product at the end.
Posted on 11/12/19 at 11:33 am to EveryoneGetsATrophy
quote:
and highway mesh. Fiber is a a bunch of poo poo.
I disagree. Mesh does no good laying on the ground. It needs to be mid-depth of the slab to do any good. The contractor may say “We will pull the mesh up into the concrete as we pour”. But don’t fall for it. The finishers will just step on it and push the mesh back into the ground.
I used fiber in my 250’ long driveway and large patio. It’s been 4 years and not one single crack. Fiber reinforced concrete was $5 a yard more but I didn’t have to pay for mesh either.
Posted on 11/12/19 at 4:48 pm to Emteein
What he said....
All the WWM does is make it easier to pull up broken concrete.
and LOL to whoever said "guaranteed not to crack"
All the WWM does is make it easier to pull up broken concrete.
and LOL to whoever said "guaranteed not to crack"
Posted on 11/12/19 at 6:06 pm to Coon
Go ahead and pour it on a good, firm foundation and pour 5-6 inches of concrete instead of 4 and use rebar.
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