Foundation wall cure time
#1
08-30-17, 05:21 PM
Foundation wall cure time
Correct me if I'm wrong, but shouldn't a poured foundation wall be allowed to cure for a minimum of 7 days before backfilling? Ideally 28 days above 70F? My builder wants to backfill after 3 days with soggy clay soil and without bracing the walls. It's not a basement, but there will be a slab on grade about 4 feet above the exterior grading. I insisted they brace the exterior wall and wait at least 7 days before backfilling the inside, then removing the exterior bracing after 30 days.
#2
08-30-17, 05:27 PM
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28 days for a full cure, is what I was told by someone who tests concrete, in some type of lab setting. However, I doubt that any builder would wait that long.
#3
08-30-17, 05:45 PM
I don't expect them to wait 28 days to backfill the exterior, but at least 7 days for the interior before they dump a bunch of heavy wet clay, aggregate, tamp everything l, then pour a slab on top. I don't see why they couldn't wait the full 28 days for the exterior though. It won't hold anything up. BTW, at 70F, concrete cures to about 75% after 7 days.
#4
08-30-17, 05:50 PM
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As I said in one or more of your many threads about your project, I don't trust that builder & I'm willing to do a background check on him. He has been questionable since day 1.
#6
08-31-17, 10:03 PM
Arrived home today and immediately noticed the forms were not right. They are off by as much as 5". And several of them are bent which is making the corner out of square and straight walls wavy. Wtf!? Oh, and the brick pattern isn't right. It has vertical lines in the brick and doesn't match my existing foundation. Do they still make brick forms with the wood texture (whatever it's called?
#7
09-01-17, 05:14 AM
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Do you remember a TV show in the 60s called Mack & Myer For Hire? It was 2 handymen who did jobs but no matter what, they became a fiasco. I think that's who you hired. How much longer?
#8
09-07-17, 08:32 PM
The walls were finally poured today. Looks pretty good from what I can tell (forms will be removed tomorrow). I took the day off to ensure all measurements were correct before the concrete started flowing. Question about curing...is it advisable to spray down the walls a couple times a day the same way you do a slab? Or is it not effective because it's a vertical surface?
