Concrete sidewalk- Rebar?

[MushCreek]

I'm going to pour a small sidewalk out the door of our walk-out basement, 40" wide by 10' long. I'm going to pour it in two sections, as my truck (and back) can't handle more than half of the concrete at a time. Basically, two separate 40" x 60" sections. Should I bother with rebar? I do have some sticks left over; just not sure if it's worth the bother. If so, how much?

 

[jh87]

I’ve done a couple sidewalks, I usually run two pieces the length of the sidewalk about 6” in from the edge, then cross pieces 24” apart tied together at the intersections. I’m not a professional concrete contractor though, just personal experience.

 

[Retroman]

Sidewalks typically don't have rebar but it wouldn't hurt. come in 3" to 4" on each side and one down the middle then 24" on the cross bars. Since your doing two pours you should drill holes in the header form and leave 18" long pieces sticking out of your first pour and tie the three pieces in the second pour onto them to carry the construction joint the two pours created.

 

[MushCreek]

Wouldn't the rebar tend to rust at the joint? I know it would help keep the two sections together, but we don't have frost in the ground here to move them around.

 

[Chuckster in NJ]

No rebar needed for a sidewalk or small landing..... Save it for another project.

 

[BD1]

Wouldn't the rebar tend to rust at the joint? I know it would help keep the two sections together, but we don't have frost in the ground here to move them around.

They have green Rebar. It's epoxy coating so it won't rust .


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[rlitman]

They have green Rebar. It's epoxy coating so it won't rust .


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Epoxy just holds the rust in, and accelerates it.

Rebar is for the most part protected from rust where it is embedded sufficiently, except in salty environments.

Most projects I see like this use wire mesh and not rebar.

 

[Retroman]

You could use a joint sealer where the pours meet, Rust isn't a issue for the most part here in the desert, I have worked in a few underground concrete vaults that house the pumps for the man made lakes in some upscale housing developments where the rebar is severely corroded from the constant moisture and it really does a number on the concrete.

 

[Zmann]

When I do sidewalks in small sections like that I drill holes in the end form and use rebar to tie into the next pour.
if rust is a concern you could rattle can paint the protruding rebar after you took the form off or like mentioned seal the joint and prevent soil washout and freeze lift at the same time
then again I live in AZ so if I seal a joint it is just to prevent soil erosion or keep critters out lol

 

[MushCreek]

For that matter, I could put a 10' piece of rebar all the way through the next section. Just cut up the temporary form piece between sections before doing the second pour. I've got a dozen 10' sticks of rebar just taking up space.

I'm in humid South Carolina, and the walk will be on the north side of the house, which stays damp much of the time. The joint would be under a roof of sorts; I put roofing tin on the underside of my deck to keep it from being a mess under there all of the time. Still probably much damper than AZ, though.

 

[karoc]

The place that I purchase for my future retirement has sidewalks with out rebar and the edges is where all damage is done. I believe that maybe the previous owner may have drove over it for some reason which is why it broke. So if you never plan to drive over it or haul heavy load I would say no worries

 

[BD1]

Epoxy just holds the rust in, and accelerates it.

Rebar is for the most part protected from rust where it is embedded sufficiently, except in salty environments.

Most projects I see like this use wire mesh and not rebar.

How can epoxy hold in rust when it's coated on new clean made Rebar ??

I've worked on many jobs where specs specified "Epoxy Coating " for all Rebar.

Most of all the poured concrete parking garages are all green Rebar.
The Interstate used all green on miles of roadways.


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[sberry]

It aint a parking garage or bridge deck. A chunk of rod wont hurt if you want, simply cut a few pieces and float them in after pour and before finish.

 

[bp460]

There are stainless steel rods used specifically for pinning sidewalk sections together so they don't shift in the future due to frost. I see them used mostly in larger projects around public buildings.

-Brad

 

[Zmann]

How can epoxy hold in rust when it's coated on new clean made Rebar ??

I've worked on many jobs where specs specified "Epoxy Coating " for all Rebar.

Most of all the poured concrete parking garages are all green Rebar.
The Interstate used all green on miles of roadways.

I have read a bit on the epoxy coated not being all that.. no expert here ,,
like coating a vehicle frame to prevent rust ,, once rust/moisture finds its way in it is trapped and won't evaporate and goes unchecked

 

[Zmann]

bp460 are the SS rods you use smooth or like rebar texture ?

 

[bp460]

bp460 are the SS rods you use smooth or like rebar texture ?

They are smooth.

-Brad

 

[brownbagg]

we do sidewalk for a living, we have never used rebar, just weld wire mesh. you can alway drill dowels or short rebar at existing concrete to control any settlement, curn and gutter get one #5 but that just for car running on the curb

 

[Zmann]

They are smooth.

Sounds perfect for salt areas and easy to buy a rod and cut to size

 

[egdede]

You could use a joint sealer where the pours meet, Rust isn't a issue for the most part here in the desert, I have worked in a few underground concrete vaults that house the pumps for the man made lakes in some upscale housing developments where the rebar is severely corroded from the constant moisture and it really does a number on the concrete.

It is amazing what rusting steel can do to concrete under the right circumstances.
I see old concrete pilings split open from the inside at many So Cal beaches. You can see many have newer rebar. I bet the guys who poured those newer ones thought they'd last longer than they did.

Cured concrete is the byproduct of a chemical reaction. Different batches of concrete are NOT the same. The 6th street bridge across the LA river had to be torn down decades before the others will have to be:

From Wikipedia: During the construction of the viaduct in the 1930s, an onsite plant was used to supply the concrete for construction. However, the quality of the concrete turned out to have a high alkali content and led to an alkali-silica reaction (ASR) which created cracks in the concrete and sapped the strength of the structure. It is the only one of the historic LA River bridges to suffer from ASR.

 

[larry_g]

I have rebar in my sidewalks because I've been known to drive on and across them with larger equipment than your lawn tractor. I also have my walks flush with the adjoining driveways or lawns so that I can mow or drive across without 'bumping' .

It works for me because I'm not one to spend time edging and manicuring.

lg
no neat sig line

 

[rlitman]

How can epoxy hold in rust when it's coated on new clean made Rebar ??

I've worked on many jobs where specs specified "Epoxy Coating " for all Rebar.

Most of all the poured concrete parking garages are all green Rebar.
The Interstate used all green on miles of roadways.


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That’s the argument made for using epoxy coated rebar in the 1980’s. We know better now, now that we have experience with how it holds up (and fails) over time.

 

[MushCreek]

It would be difficult to get a vehicle on this walk; it's going to be under my deck. Technically possible, but I don't know why anyone would.

Our FL house had cast concrete windowsills on the outside. Each had a piece of rebar in it, and each one eventually split open and had to be replaced. The whole sill just crumbles away from the rod. I got good at building little forms in place and making new sills.

I guess this walk doesn't really need reinforcement. It's just to make a cleaner entry from the back yard instead of the dirt/gravel mix that's there now. It will also make it pretty much handicap accessible. Getting rid of the 4" step up into the house will be nice when I'm moving stuff in/out with a handtruck. There will still be a small step, about 3/4". There's about a foot of footing that I'm going to cover in concrete, so that will keep the house end from ever sinking. As I said, no ground frost to worry about here, either.

 

[ConCretin]

You have to love the passion on the GJ. I saw this post this morning but figured it was an fairly easy question and ya'll have heard enough from me on the matter so I thought I'd leave it to others to respond. 22 posts later we've gone from epoxy coated bar, stainless bar and even painted bar and just about everywhere in between. Where else would people take the time to examine such a simple matter so thoroughly. I don't know where the world be be once all of us are gone. Cheers!

 

[kaffine]

Could go with basalt rebar don't have to worry about rust.

 

[rustyjames]

I've worked on many millions of dollars worth of government projects and have never seen rebar in a sidewalk.

 

[IBEW702]

View media item 107583View media item 107584
I used rebar on mine.

 

[p00p]

I used chainlinked fencing & for the heavier traffic areas used rebar. Didn't need to, but I wanted to.

 

[Retroman]

I used chainlinked fencing & for the heavier traffic areas used rebar. Didn't need to, but I wanted to.

Been in the concrete cutting & demo business 35+ years toughest piece of concrete I ever tore out was a guys backyard patio with chain link fencing in it!!

Should have sawcut it into 2' x 2' pieces but that's how you learn

 

[NUTTSGT]

More than likely I wouldn't but hear we do get frost heave. If I was worried about that, I would probably try to pin sections together so as to not get a heaved edge for someone to trip over.