concerete patio

[John Bruh]

Ok so I've read a few DIY concrete patio articles and I understand most of it.

 

The patio will be 5" thick with #3 rebar. So I should dig up 6" to make room for an inch of compactable gravel.

 

I also understand that I will have to have a correct grade to prevent water for settling against the house. So for every foot the grade should be 3/4" lower.

 

Now my question (which is probably a dumb one) is since at the bottom of the grade it will be a couple inches lower should the gravel just compensate for the grade (meaning should I put more gravel at the bottom of the grade working up to keep a level surface for the patio)?

 

I want to do this project myself so I also have a few more questions. Where is the best place to get concrete delivered? Meaning like who's the cheapest? When it comes time I will call around yo compare but if you guys could give me a few ideas it could save me time.

 

Also does Lowe's or home depot rent plate compactors? What do they charge if you have rented one?

[John Bruh]

Also would it be just as good to use wire mesh and bolsters or rebar

[jeffro]

not volunteering anybody here, but i think sam would be your man. PM him.

 

physics would prohibit your plan on making a grade. the concrete, with any liquid is going to settle flat, even if you have 2" of gravel on one side, and 1" on the other. the concrete will just be thinner on one side.

 

as for the rest, i have no idea, and i prolly shouldnt even be posting in here.

[John Bruh]

not volunteering anybody here, but i think sam would be your man. PM him.

 

physics would prohibit your plan on making a grade. the concrete, with any liquid is going to settle flat, even if you have 2" of gravel on one side, and 1" on the other. the concrete will just be thinner on one side.

 

as for the rest, i have no idea, and i prolly shouldnt even be posting in here.

 

Sam wants more than I want to spend. And I don't care to do some labor and get experience.

 

How would physics prohibit a grade? The concrete will not be thinner if I laid more gravel at one end compared to the other. There will be 5" of concrete. And concrete will not just settle flat you have to finish it with floats. Also have you ever even see a concrete driveway up a hill? You shouldn't of posted.

 

 

Anyways to get back to my main question is that what I should do. Just more gravel at the end farthest away from the house (allowing both runoff and to make the surface flat)

[Clifford Automotive]

Physics wont make graded concrete lay flat. I have slopped plenty of patio.

 

John, Im not sure about 1in of gravel. But Im no expert either. I have always done at least 4'' of gravel. Start your grade at the dirt.

 

 

Shoot Tom an email, tell him I referred you. He doesnt lay concrete for a living, but is a concrete engineer. He does ODOT supervision type of stuff. I do know he does it on the side. Just have your questions in order before you send him an email.

 

tom@ohioconcrete.org

[Tractor]

Yeah 1" of gravel isn't likely enough. I've always seen my dad do at least 4" as well.

 

I used to see rebar a lot more, but now days I do see a lot of wire mesh being used instead. Since its just a patio wire mess would be fine. rebar is better in places where

if/when the concrete cracks you still have a large piece of steel to hold things in place.

[evan9381]

not to knock sam completely, but if you want, i can give you the guy who did my patio's info if you want. when sam came out to my place and i told him what i wanted (stamped concrete), he told me the stamped would be a good bit more...i told him that was fine, thats what wanted...when he got back to me with a quote it was for a swirl finish...the guy i ended up going with did it for about $200 less than what sam told me for a basic swirl finish, and i got the stamped finish i wanted

 

614.596.9742 - shawn kirk ...tell him evan wyant with the house near easton sent you...

 

but i got it through this guy for $8 sq/ft. i think he used at least 4" of compacted limestone, but i didnt go out with a ruler, so i could be wrong...could be more, could be less. i know theres prob 10" on the far corner because the yard slopes down a little bit. im also pretty sure he said the grade was 1" for every 4'. i dont get water pooling up at all.

 

you may have been the guy i PMed a while back about this, but im not sure

 

anyways, pics below is what i had done, total cost was $3200 even for around 400 sq/ft (16x20 rectangular area of patio, 2x3 bump out for grill, 10' circle off the corner with 3' empty center for fire pit), guy came when he said he would, did everything on the days he said, everything was on schedule as stated. framed it out on day 1 and laid and compacted gravel, day 2 concrete was poured and stamped, and day 3 it was finished...also, i asked him about the rebar, and he said he could do it for more $, but it wouldnt be necessary with it just being a patio, and not going to be taking that much weight (foot traffic, table, grill, etc. nothing like a car/boat parked on it). had it been a driveway, yes, but a year later, mine is still fine. i think theres either 3" or 4" of poured concrete...im still a bit buzzed to remember off the top of my head

 

old thread with all the pics -

http://www.columbusracing.com/forums/showthread.php?t=70955&highlight=patio

 

shitty night pics once it was finished

 

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y267/evan938/IMG_2769.jpg?t=1251948714

 

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y267/evan938/IMG_2772.jpg?t=1251948714

 

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y267/evan938/IMG_2773.jpg?t=1251948714

[Big Chief2011647545501]

^ Thats some pretty nice work for a damn good price I must say

[John Bruh]

also, i asked him about the rebar, and he said he could do it for more $, but it wouldnt be necessary with it just being a patio, and not going to be taking that much weight (foot traffic, table, grill, etc. nothing like a car/boat parked on it).

 

 

Did he use the concrete with fiberglass in it? Or just regular old concrete?

[SpaceGhost]

That is sweet, makes me want to tear out our old deck and do that instead of re-building or repairing the old one, love the fire pit!

 

Evan, What did you do to contain all the gravel around the edges? Plant flower beds? Can you post a recent pic?

[John Bruh]

Physics wont make graded concrete lay flat. I have slopped plenty of patio.

 

John, Im not sure about 1in of gravel. But Im no expert either. I have always done at least 4'' of gravel. Start your grade at the dirt.

 

 

Shoot Tom an email, tell him I referred you. He doesnt lay concrete for a living, but is a concrete engineer. He does ODOT supervision type of stuff. I do know he does it on the side. Just have your questions in order before you send him an email.

 

tom@ohioconcrete.org

 

I emailed him. Thanks

[Archie]

I'd go rebar over mesh. Everytime a CM/GC wants to put mesh in anything, I usually recommend using fiber or placing a light mat of rebar. I'd call up whoever you're getting concrete for and see how much it is to add some fiber.

 

The only thing you need to consider is the number of bars and the spacing... #3's should be good, I got a shitload of #4's laying around and maybe even some supports if you're interested.

[John Bruh]

I got a shitload of #4's laying around and maybe even some supports if you're interested.

 

How much?

[Archie]

How much?

 

How big of an area are we talkin about?

[John Bruh]

probably 16x20

[CRAWDAD]

.75" per foot is a little steap! 16' = 12" drop. I believe city code is .25" per foot for sidewalks. That should be good enough for your water run off. Plus it will only be a 4" drop and would be such a noticeable of a slope.

 

Just sayin

[schmuckingham]

Sam and his father George did my driveway, wont use anyone else ever again.

[evan9381]

Honestly, ive been so lazy i havent done anything to hide the gravel yet. Plan was mulch for this year but i never got the time to order it and lay it all down...it doesnt look as bad as those pics though because the grass grew back in where it looks like the concrete is like 3' out into the yard

[wnaplay1647545503]

I am not reading all of this thread, concrete is easy, dig down enough if you want gravel, you can add wire if you want or get a mix with fiber in it, its stronger than wire and costs less than actual wire. Put your forms higher on the side you want the concrete to fall from and pour. You dont necessarily need gravel, or go 5" for just a patio either.

[I Eat Rice]

I do paver patios quite a bite being in the landscaping business. You ever think of going with that instead of crete. I have always thought the paver patios look better especially when you go with fire pits and all that fun stuff just my 2 cents though being I don't know what your budget is. To answer a few of your questions I would go with a little more base gravel than an inch. An inch is not going to do much to prevent wash out and all of that fun stuff. I was thinking more along the idea of 4 or even a little more. That will pay off a few years down the road when it would have cracked or settled. Also like a few others your grade seems a little steep. When standing at the end of the patio that grade may be noticable to some peoples eyes and your not going to want that. A patio that looks like a ramp wont give you the look you want. Really you dont have to worry so much about how much grade it is as long as when you lay a level on the patio it shows that you will have the flow that your looking for. But if your stuck on using measurements 1/4 inch grade may be more what your looking for.