Shoutout to the guy who told me to wet cure my driveway for 7 days straight

I poured a 40 foot slab last month here in Phoenix and he made me set up soaker hoses and keep them running day and night. No cracking at all compared to my last job where I barely wet it for 3 days. Anybody else swear by long wet curing in hot climates?

2 comments

2 Comments

quinn34115d ago

My brother-in-law poured a walkway in Tucson without any wet curing at all and it looked like a dry riverbed inside of two months. I've done the soaker hose method on a 50 foot stretch in Las Vegas and I kept it damp for a full 9 days. The difference was night and day - that slab is still smooth and tight three summers later. A lot of guys skip the money spent on water but it pays for itself when you don't have to rip out a failed pour.

the_elizabeth15d ago

Keep an eye on how the water evaporates overnight versus mid day. In Phoenix I ran my hoses on a timer that kicked on for 15 minutes every hour from 10pm to 6am. The night moisture sits on the surface way longer than the daytime stuff that just burns off. I ended up with a slab that was damp to the touch every morning for a full 8 days. That constant slow soak deep into the concrete beats a heavy spray that runs off the edges. Night curing is the secret nobody talks about.