Slabtek Structural Slab - Part Two

Once inspections were completed, we were finally able to pour the concrete slab.  We used 4,000 PSI concrete which is more structurally stable and allowed us to pour a thinner slab.  In total we used 40% less concrete than a traditional structural slab.  The higher PSI also has a greater crack resistance and richer, darker gray color which is benefical to us since the slab will be exposed.

The slab was poured, hand trowelled and machine trowelled on the same day.  The entire process took approximately 10 hours.  Considering that this is the finished floor of the home, a super smooth finish was important.  Marshall Bailey and his crew did an impeccable job.  After approximately five days the slab was post tensioned by stretching the cables and bolting them to the slab.  The bolts were recessed in the side of the slab and the holes were filled with concrete grout.  One week after the slab was poured it was ready to be raised off the ground.

In the images you can see that there are 3" diameter discs approximately every 10 feet.  This is where the slab lifting mechanisms are located.  A pole is attached to the device and each turn raises the slab 1/4".  We had approximately 4 workers turning at once throughout this process to raise the slab 5" off the ground.  Once the slab was raised the discs were filled with concrete grout and leveled off.  We considered placing a round piece of stone in these holes as an accent and we may still do so in the future.

The slab being hand trowelled shortly after being poured

Our nice smooth machine trowelled slab

<>

 

The slab cantilever over the back edge of the hill