A Reinforcing Question

gregferd

If you are going to reinforce a 3/4" to 1" slab of mortar, so it don't crack, that will actually be underwater a lot of the time what is the best material to use. Gots to be rustproof. Thanks

Tom R

I could be wrong, - - but I don't think anything's going to stop it from cracking, - - how big is it and what are you using it for??, - - What's it going on top of??

Tscarborough

He wants to coat a PVC pond liner to protect the liner, but I don't think it is a good idea. I have always laid a cushion of pea gravel.

Dik Redi

no i may be wrng on spellling bee , but ill say it as it sounds maybe someone will have right spelling ,,,, but ive seen and worked along side a pool crew doing GA-NITE,, its a spray on Crete,, wrks grt.

Tscarborough

Gunite. You are making the effort, Dik, S!

Dik Redi

thank you Tscar,, not in that field so did`nt pay attention to spelling ,,only chit/chatting with pool workers did i learn the name and process of it .

POOLMANinCT

v-16 & cement

__________________
......Less with the jaw & More with the paw.....

Dik Redi

V-16?? is that vermiculite??

POOLMANinCT

yup

__________________
......Less with the jaw & More with the paw.....

Dik Redi

thought so lol i helped my old bosses brother out ,, we mixed it in a barrel mixer even lol,, type 2 and that V-16 ,.. troweled on and bamm that was 8 yrs ago , no problem,,,

gregferd

vermiculite? don't that stuff pose a heath concern

Tscarborough

No. One particular mine was contaminated, but it has ceased production.

concretemasonry

You won't find 3/4" structural gunite and you need reinforcement.

Vermiculite concrete is very weak and is very sensitive to mixing and pumping if pumped/blown. Not for amateurs.

You need something like steel (no fibers) to give you structural tensile strength. With vermiculite you also run into freeze/thaw durability problems.

__________________
Dick

Engineer, designer and consultant recently active domestically and internationally on construction and design in about 35 countries.

Tscarborough

What you can do is lay your gravel bed, then stack rock up the sides, even using faux stone. This is a concrete pond, but I loose stacked the rock around edges for habitat and looks.

POOLMANinCT

pumping & shooting v16 is not recommended, as the material is damaged.
verm & cement is a a flexible pourous substrate. freeze famage occurs when verm "winters over" with less than a foot of H20 on top.
it is the ideal substrate for a liner, even it it did suffer freeze thaw damage, you still have a "shaped" & non abrasive subbase.
it is merely a "prepared bottom" material & not too hot structurally. no steel is used with it.

I just reread original post
3/4" slab just isn't happening. you would be better off trowel "dead sand"

ray

__________________
......Less with the jaw & More with the paw.....

Dik Redi

agreed 3/4 no good,, the one i helped on was a clay shaped base and we troweled i believe 6" thickness no sure ben awhile ,no rebar, but a 6 inch square 5'x10' panels may have ben used

POOLMANinCT

wow 6inches....
overdig.......

__________________
......Less with the jaw & More with the paw.....

Dik Redi

may have ben 3 or 4" ,, but the 5'x10' panels i mentioned is wire, forgot too mention