New poured driveway discolored
by
Rick
+5
Had extended driveway , and slab poured on the side of house three weeks ago, and it still has dark grey mottled spots through out as you can see. This was poured when the temp was very high over 100. I am very concerned that even after 30 days this is not going to look right. I have not contacted the contractor yet, wanted to get some advice, but I really am concerned. Any info. will be appreciated.
Sorry but honestly this is a situation where the contractor has to give you advice.
Have you been instructed to keep wet right after the pour? What were your after care instructions? I have done this to several houses myself. It will cure but just takes time. Each area of the country has their formula that works best. Where I live here in So. CA, in the summer the concrete guys will only pour at first morning light and then keep watered down several times a day to avoid cracking during the drying process when temps are high. It will dry out, just needs time and patience. Call your concrete contractor with your concerns - this was a chunk o cash, you need to have it look good!
Hello Rick, I agree with Janet. Contact your contractor sooner rather than later. Yes, temperatures play a part in curing concrete. Hope this helps you. Good luck.
This was caused by the heat. The uneven drying form the hot temp. The contractor should have adjusted the time of pour to a cooler time of the day and as above continued to wet it down to have a more even dry.
I definitely plan on talking to the Contractor, but was hopeing for other professional advice first as I expect him to say it will dry out in time, I just never have seen any take this long with half of it still dark grey. I was told to sprinkle it down several times a day for the first four or five days which I did, and yes they poured this very early in the morning, but am concerned if it should of even been poured with it getting up to I believe 107 that day. I do feel better if any of you have experienced a similar pour taking this long for it to turn from dark grey to its normal color.
Some cement companies will ad a curing agent to speed-up set-up process. If it is not blended properly, it can leave "splotchy" stains similar to what you show in your picture. Large, commercial construction will often use this because it saves them time, and the concrete eventually gets covered-over anyway.
We had a massive patio poured, and friends helped work the cement. We experienced what appears to be similar, splotchy areas. Rather than break up and repour, you can get a contractor that will do an overlay of textured finish stampcrete (for shapes; brick, etc) or acrylic lace, which is a form of "cool deck". We, at the time, had a guy doing some other masonry work and chose to have him do a herring-bone pattern with brick pavers. But then, we didn't have a contractor to hold accountable, as it appears you have. Good luck!! Oh, and the prior comments were correct: contact your contractor quickly!
Check out Miracote line of products for thin overlays. Easy to apply, durable cement latex that will last. your local mason supply yard can show completed projects and physical samples
Hi Rick, aside from the splotches, it looks really well done, how about putting a coat of stain over it to make it look more uniform?
https://www.homedepot.com/c/ah/how-to-stain-concrete/9ba683603be9fa5395fab9015a2889f