Had a bad pour on a sloped driveway in Tacoma last Tuesday

We were finishing a steep driveway pour, maybe a 15% grade, and the concrete truck driver dumped way too much water into the mix before we could stop him. It was a hot day and he said it was to help it flow, but it turned the whole load into soup. Started running down the slope before we could even screed it properly. My partner grabbed some bags of sand-mix we had in the truck for patching and we dumped them in, mixing by hand right on the slab to try and stiffen it back up. It was a messy 20 minutes of panic shoveling. We got it to hold, but the finish was tougher to work and took longer to set. What's your go-to move when a load shows up way too wet?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_felix5d ago

Check the slump yourself before the pour even starts. A lot of drivers will just assume you want it soupy if you don't say anything, especially on a slope. That quick test saves you from the whole panic fix later.

leet325d ago

Had a pour in Spokane last year where the driver added a full extra 10 gallons before we waved him off. We keep a few bags of Portland cement in the service truck for exactly that mess. Dumped two bags in and had the guys mix it in with shovels right on the slab, just like you did. It's a rough fix and the finish will never be perfect, but it's better than watching it run down the street. Now I stand right by the chute the second the truck shows up.