Old timer told me to wet cure for a full 7 days and I thought he was crazy

Had this older finisher, probably 65 years old, who kept yelling at me to keep the concrete wet with burlap for a whole week after pouring. I was fresh out of trade school and thought he was just stuck in his ways. Figured modern mixes didn't need all that babysitting. So on my first solo driveway job over in Arlington, I skipped the wet burlap after 2 days because I had another pour scheduled. By month 3 that driveway had hairline cracks all over the place and the surface was dusting like crazy. Had to rip it out and redo it for free basically. Now I wet cure every single slab for a full week no matter what and I haven't had a call back since. Any of you guys ever try a quick cure and regret it later on?

2 comments

2 Comments

tylerw721mo ago

Wait, you had to rip out the whole driveway and redo it on your own dime? That's brutal, man. I bet that old timer had a good laugh when he heard about it (probably still tells that story at the shop).

spencer_ross1mo ago

Ha, yeah @tylerw72, you're probably right. I just picture him at the parts counter telling anyone who'll listen about the sucker who didn't measure twice (spoiler: it was me). At least I can say my driveway looks great now, even if my wallet's still crying about it.