Can You Pour Concrete In Winter In San Diego?
If you take the right precautions, you can pour concrete in the winter. To begin, keep the sub-base from freezing. Second, utilize a concrete mix designed for cold weather that includes warm to the hot mixing water. Third, keep the concrete from freezing by covering it with curing blankets.
Will Concrete Cure?
Cold temperatures allow concrete to cure. If you keep it from freezing temperatures, it will cure.
Concrete produces heat as it cures. This is referred to as “heat of hydration.” A chemical reaction occurs when cement and water (two concrete materials) are combined together.
This chemical reaction generates heat, which initiates the curing process. When it’s chilly outdoors, the chemical reaction slows down, and less heat is produced. The concrete will still cure despite the fact that the curing process will be significantly slowed.
What Temperature Is Too Cold?
We are not sure if there is a specific temperature at which concrete cannot be poured. What we do know is that if the sub-base is protected from freezing and your concrete mix contains hot water, you can pour while the temperature is below freezing.
When pouring concrete floors in temps below freezing, we use insulated curing blankets, styrofoam, and occasionally poly and hay to protect the sub-base. To keep the earth from freezing, use one or a combination of these methods. Concrete should never be poured on freezing ground.
We always utilize an accelerator in my concrete mix, which is normally a 4000 psi mix with 150°F hot water. Either flake calcium chloride or a batch plant liquid accelerator.
In low or sub-freezing temperatures, pouring on top of styrofoam keeps the concrete warm and speeds up the curing process.
To be cautious, we wouldn’t pour concrete in temps below 35 to 40 degrees Fahrenheit if the concrete mix doesn’t contain warm or hot water.
You should be able to pour even with chilly mixing water if the morning temperature is at or around 35°F, and the prediction is for temperatures to rise into the 50’s before falling down to 35 – 40°F that night. In this scenario, we would add an accelerator to the mix to help it heal faster.
Conclusion
Call an expert of San Diego Concrete at (619) 383-2500 to get the concrete services job done correctly anywhere in San Diego, CA.
