c/concrete-finishers

Overheard a guy at the supply yard say 'just broom it flat' like that's all there is to it

Was picking up some Cure and Seal at the Maxwell Hardware yesterday and this younger guy told his buddy that finishing is just brooming it flat. I wanted to hand him a rebar and tell him to try walking a slab in 90 degree heat. Has anyone else had to bite their tongue when someone makes it sound that simple?

My pour on Thursday went sideways when the truck showed up 45 minutes late

I had a 4 yard slab to finish for a shed pad up in Nashua. The driver said they hit traffic but I think dispatch just messed up the order. By the time I got the mud down it was already 85 degrees and the sun was baking it fast. I had to work the edges double time with a magnesium float just to keep it from setting before I could get my bull float across. Anyone else deal with hot weather pours where the timing gets thrown off by a late delivery?

Dropped $300 on a fancy power trowel attachment and it barely saved me any time

Bought that spiral pan attachment for my walk behind trowel back in March from a supplier in Denver. Guy swore it would cut my finishing time in half on warehouse floors. Used it on three jobs now and honestly my old standard pans do just as good a job. The spiral thing leaves these weird swirl marks if you don't catch it at the perfect moment. Anyone else had buyer's remorse on a tool that was supposed to be a game changer?

Burned a 20 foot section of sidewalk last Tuesday because I didn't wait for the bleed water to evaporate before floating

Came back an hour later and the surface was all scaly and rough so I had to grind it down with a cup wheel, has anyone else had bleed water wreck a finish on a hot day?

Finally stopped using a trowel machine on small jobs

I used to haul my 36 inch power trowel out for every job no matter the size. Now if it's under 500 square feet I just hand finish with a fresno and it takes way less time. Has anyone else found a cutoff point where the machine is more trouble than it's worth?

Spent $200 on a power trowel float kit and wish I hadn't

Bought a set of those aftermarket float blades for my Whiteman last spring thinking they'd save me money over OEM. They wore down unevenly after just 3 jobs and left grooves in the finish. Has anyone had better luck with a certain brand of replacement blades?

Had a slab crack because I refused to wet cure it last August

Job in Nashville, 95 degrees, everyone told me to spray it down every few hours. I stuck by my methods and let it dry natural. Crack showed up on day 3 - cost me a $400 callback to patch it. Anyone else think wet curing is overrated or am I just stubborn?

I still think hand troweling beats power trowels for small slabs

Been finishing concrete for about 12 years now. On a 12x12 patio last week in St. Louis I used a power trowel and got a decent finish but it just didn't have that same tightness as hand work. Power trowels leave tiny swirl marks if you don't catch them right. Hand troweling gives me way more control over edges and corners without bringing in a separate edger. I know most guys swear by power trowels for speed but for residential work under 300 square feet I'll take hand work any day. Anyone else find power trowels overkill for small jobs?

Rant: That crack repair took me 8 hours when it should have been 2

I had this driveway job over in Oakwood last month where the homeowner wanted me to fix some hairline cracks before they got worse. I figured it's a simple fill and seal job, maybe a couple hours tops. But what I didn't realize was that the previous guy had used some kind of silicone caulk that had hardened and wouldn't bond with anything new. I spent 4 hours just grinding out all that old junk with a diamond wheel, then another 2 hours cleaning and prepping the surface right. By the time I actually got to apply the polyurea patch and finish it, I had already burned most of the day. Has anyone else run into old repairs that just won't cooperate and take way more time than they should? What do you use to strip out old sealant faster?

Had a slab crack on me in Phoenix last month because I didn't wet cure for 3 days

Caught myself floating a slab wrong for 8 years until a guy in Greenville set me straight

I always used a straight 2x4 to check my grade before pouring, but this old timer on a job outside Greenville pointed out I was dragging it instead of lifting and dropping it. He showed me how the drag was actually smoothing out high spots instead of finding them, and my finish work got way better after that one change. Have you ever had some random person call out a habit you thought was fine?

Tried using a hand trowel from Big Lots to save $30 and it left grooves like a damn plowed field

I figured hey, steel is steel right? Bought a $8 trowel from Big Lots for a small patio pour last Saturday. That thing flexed like a wet noodle and left these ugly ridges I had to grind down for two hours after it set. Learned my lesson: cheap tools cost more in time every single time. Any of you guys swear by a specific brand that wont break the bank but actually works?

Had to choose between a 4x8 footer float and a 6x10 for my driveway job last week

I picked the bigger one for speed but the edges were a nightmare to manage alone in 90 degree heat anyone else fight with oversized floats on residential slabs?

Switched from magnesium to aluminum floats on my bull floats last month

I used to lug around magnesium floats that felt like they weighed 20 pounds after an hour, but swapping to aluminum dropped that weight in half and made finishing big slabs way easier on my shoulders. Has anyone else tried different float materials for long pours?

Question about finishing a driveway with weird timing

I had a driveway job last month where the concrete started setting way faster than I expected. It was a hot day, about 92 degrees, and I figured the retarder I mixed in would buy me more time. Turns out the water I used was warmer than I thought, so I only got about 45 minutes of workable time instead of the usual 2 hours. Had to rush the broom finish and it came out okay, but not great. Anyone else run into this and what do you do to test water temp beforehand?

Tried hand troweling vs power trowel on a 500 sq ft garage slab

I'm working a residential garage in Phoenix, about 500 square feet, and I decided to hand finish the whole thing instead of using my power trowel. BIG mistake. My arm was dead by the second pass and the surface ended up with these little waves that I had to grind down. Next day I brought out the power trowel for a similar sized pad and it came out glass smooth in half the time. Any of you guys ever stubbornly do something the hard way for no good reason?

Had a wet pour go sideways on me in Sacramento last Thursday

I was finishing a 30x40 slab for a backyard patio and we got hit with a surprise rain shower about 20 minutes after the pour. The water pooled up in one corner near the house foundation, and the surface started getting all pitted and rough. I had to grab a push broom and a squeegee to move the water off before it set any harder, then I hit it with a light trowel pass to smooth things back out. The finish wasn't as perfect as I wanted, but the homeowner came out when the sun came back and said it looked fine. I told him I'd throw in a free sealer coat to make up for the rough spot, and he shook on it. Has anyone else had to deal with rain on a fresh slab? What's your go-to fix when the weather shifts on you?

Pro tip: A bad pour in Spokane taught me to always check the subgrade myself

I was on a big driveway job in Spokane about two years back. The crew before us prepped the base, and the foreman said it was good to go. We started pouring, and halfway through, the whole slab started to sink on one side. It was a mess. Turns out they didn't compact the fill dirt right under a corner. We had to stop everything, jackhammer out wet concrete, and redo the base. Lost a full day and ate the cost. Now, I don't care who says it's ready, I walk the whole area with a level and a probe bar before a single truck shows up. It takes ten minutes and saves a disaster. How many of you guys trust the prep crew, or do you double-check everything too?

Hot take: I used to think a 2x4 and a level was a fine screed for a small patio until I watched a guy in Phoenix use a laser and a magnesium straightedge.

Now I rent that laser for every pour over 100 square feet, but has anyone found a cheaper way to get that same kind of accuracy?

My uncle told me to always add a little extra water to the mix for a smoother finish. Big mistake.

He swore by it for years, said it made the concrete 'buttery'. I tried it on a small patio job in Akron last spring. The pour looked great at first, but after it cured, the surface was weak and started dusting up within a couple months. Had to go back and apply a sealer, which the homeowner wasn't happy about. What's the best trick you guys use to get a smooth finish without messing with the water ratio?

Finally got a clean finish on that sloped driveway in the rain

Had a pour scheduled for a steep driveway in Tacoma yesterday, and the forecast called for showers. The choice was to postpone or try a faster set mix with a plastic sheet ready. We went with the fast mix and kept moving. Finished the bull float work just as the drizzle started, then got the plastic down quick. Anyone have a go-to mix for wet weather pours on a grade?

Found out I've been using my bull float backwards for three years

Was finishing a garage slab in Boise last Tuesday. My apprentice just stared at me and finally said, 'Boss, why are you pushing it?' I always pulled the float towards me to smooth. He showed me the proper push technique. The finish came out way flatter. Anyone else have a basic tool habit they needed to unlearn?

Serious question, a homeowner in Dallas told me my broom finish looked 'too perfect' and lacked grip.

Now I always make a second, slightly heavier pass with a wet broom to add texture, which seems to work better for their patios.

Honestly, seeing guys skip the bull float and go straight to the mag on a 20x30 slab in this heat is why I keep getting callbacks for patch work.

Tbh, the surface skin sets up way too fast without that first pass to bring up the cream, and I learned that the hard way on a driveway in Phoenix last summer when the homeowner pointed out all the bird baths a week later.

Got schooled on a job in Phoenix by a guy who's been finishing since the 80s

I was working on a big commercial slab out there last month, about 5000 square feet. The foreman, this older guy named Ray, saw me setting up my magnesium straightedge. He just walked over, shook his head, and said, 'Kid, you're gonna get a wave right there if you don't wet that thing down first.' I'd never heard that before. He showed me how to dip it in a bucket of water and wipe it before each pass. It completely changed how the edge cut through the concrete. My finish was way smoother after that. Anyone else have a simple trick like that they learned from an old timer?