getting ready for new concrete!

[bmxdukie]

Hey folks,
well the process is moving along well on my garage reno.
The boy and I are in the process of removing the exsisting floor.
It was poured right on the dirt back in the mid 60's.
I have a finisher coming to replace it. But I need to do the prep work.
Should I just have him pour on the packed dirt?
Or should I dig it out and put in crushed gravel?
Thanks for all info and thoughts.

 

[bmxdukie]

Pics

 

[75gmck25]

Question for you - What did you use to break up the old floor into the chunks in the picture? I have a similar plan for my own garage and I'm trying whether to break up the old floor myself to save some of the cost.

Thanks,

Bruce

 

[bmxdukie]

Bruce,
I had an electric jack hammer.. it worked great but on this board I read to pry up the edge of the concrete and hit it with a sledge hammer.. THAT is the easiest. No rubble in small pieces to pick up.
Just fairly big chunks.

 

[James-W]

We used sand for a base in the garage, but many people use gravel or even crushed rock. Whatever you use, it needs to be compacted extremely well.

 

[36truck]

What kind of dirt & how thick is it under the slab? If it's not clay you should be fine using what's there. If you want you could use a gravel base from 6" to a 12" thick under the slab. Compaction is a huge part of making your concrete hold up with out cracking. Make sure you have the right moisture content to get it to pack right.

 

[bmxdukie]

It was clay and some gravel..
the original owner poured in different pours.
So I put 6" of gravel down.
Plate packing tomorrow.

 

[36truck]

Water it good first then let it surface dry.

 

[bmxdukie]

Water before packing?

 

[36truck]

The soil needs moisture in order to compact right. If it's too dry it wont pack. TOO wet and the compactor will want to go straight down in the mud.

 

[bmxdukie]

Had the finisher over tonight..he said it looks good and will pour and finish on Friday am!

 

[bmxdukie]

Got everything out!
Plate packed every night this week for an hour or so each night.
Raised hight of garage door.
All is ready for tomorrow at 7:30 for the truck and crew.
Here is the packed gravel.
I will take pics when the project is moving ahead.