Severe weather as winter makes concrete prone to damage like cracks. After the ice got thicker and heavier, it would cause the concrete slabs to bear too much weight and moisture.
Now you wonder, what could you do to prevent the damages to the concrete when winter came?
Tips To Follow To Protect Your Concrete Floors
Ensure that you will not let snow from outside melt on the floors inside during winter. The enter season gives extreme change to dense materials like concrete. Such changes are why cracks suddenly appear on floors, especially when you observe that no activity occurs on the flooring.
Here are a few concrete care tips you can follow during the cold seasons and protect the slab from moisture and excess water.
- Add carpeting to the floor to minimize the cold on the slabs
- Use thick wool mats to place along the entrances of the home to prevent snow from scattering inside
- Use separate footwear that you use inside from the ones used outdoors to avoid snow inside the house
- If you had poured concrete mix, use a cloth to absorb the excess moist to help in curing
What Happens If Concrete Freezes?
You could still have concrete flooring projects waiting to get finished. Now freezing seasons are coming, and you are wondering what could happen. For cutting concrete, it would be pronto bleeding. Bleeding occurs due to excess liquid that the concrete mix excrete while waiting to cure. The chemicals that bonded the mix had probably disrupted, thus letting the liquid components out.
For existing concrete slabs, the common effect of freezing would be cracks and expansion, which you will find out more about below.
What Temperature Is Too Cold For Concrete?
It depends. If you got curing concrete, then too much cold would help a curing concrete dry fast. Below 39 degrees Fahrenheit will lead to weak concrete.
On the other hand, existing concrete will endure winter’s coldest Fahrenheit. However, there are instances that too much cold below freezing would cause cracks in the concrete. But that would only happen if installers did not put expansion joints on the slabs.
Does Concrete Expand When Cold?
In connection with the previous point, concrete does expand when cold. Expansion is a number factor why cracks occur.
Can Concrete Cure In Freezing Temperatures?
You could still have concrete flooring projects waiting to finish by winter approaches. Thus the concrete would need time to cure fully because of the absence of heat.
Can You Pour Concrete In 30-Degree Weather?
Technically you cannot pour concrete flooring when it’s below 30 degrees. Experts would only pour concrete when the weather s; at 40 degrees to 60 degrees.
If the temperature goes below that range, the concrete chemicals will be hard to blend well and adhere to a surface. It won’t cure properly and might disrupt the curing process if it takes too long. It would only cause you to repeat the process and throw away the failed concrete.
Why Does Concrete Rise In Winter?
Concrete rise due to the cold air pressure. This is also another way to describe the concrete floor’s expansion.
So when it rises, it also tells you that expansion joints are absent or are not enough; thus, instead of extending horizontally, the concrete finds another way up.
So it rises due to vertical expansion.
