Pea Gravel (rock Finish)

pre-reno

I want to add a pea gravel finish to the top of my new patio, and i was wonering if i added the gravel after i float and trowel it, and then tamp it in. Or do i epoxy the gravel on after it has cured? Any advice would be helpful, thanks in advance.

Same Old

Hire a professional.

dirt diggler

you're talking exposed aggregate??


like the last guy said ... hire it out

pre-reno

Your right, Same old, i have guys that do this kind of stuff for me. Unless your interested? i pay $5.00 an hour. Thanks for the info.

Same Old

Whatever. If you have to ask such a ridiculous question you can't afford to pay me $5 an hour.

pre-reno

Well you did not have an answer. I dont do concrete work, and just thought i would ask a question. (perhaps a stupid question) But i though that you of all people would have an answer. You seem to know it all. So dont get your panties in a bunch. I will ask my subs. thanks again, same old.

tgeb

Pre, the exposed aggregate finish can be doe in a variety of ways.

When we do it I order the pea gravel mix and place the concrete, it is then "floated" and a chemical retardant is applied to the surface.
The following day we wash the cement off of the stones. we typically use a pressure washer and must be careful not to blast it too hard.

I have heard of others who will place and float the slab then "broadcast" stones upon it and then float these stones onto the surface. I do not recommend that procedure as the stones would likely not have a good bond.

The epoxy finish can also be done and I have seen some beautiful epoxy set stone slabs. We don't do these as of yet.
The epoxy finishes that I have seen would be placed on an existing slab and can be placed as a finished floor over wood framing. You can get many different color and finish of stones with the epoxy method.

With ready mix concrete you are pretty much stuck with whatever the plant has to offer.

Good luck with it.

__________________
Tom

www.gebcon.com

pre-reno

Thank you, i have heard about the method where you pressure wash but a vendor was telling me about epoxy and that seemed much easier. I have a small lake, and i wanted to put a patio in to do some grilling when we are out swimming and stuff. I thought that it would match the suroundings. again thanks for the information you were very helpful.

tkle

Depending on cost of gravel.Pea gravel get in mixed in.Three pounds of sugar to 5 gallons of water as a retarder sprayed on top after the float.let set and spray off.

Same Old

Fine.

Ready mix plants can mix just about whatever you want. Even the ones in the middle of nowhere.
Ask the plant for an exposed mix and they'll give you what you want.
You can wash off the same day, but this take a little experience and isn't recommended for a beginner. You can get a surface retarder (sugar water, basically a can of coke) and spray it liberally on the surface after floating. But you NEED to cover it with some 1 mil poly. It is usually brushed on with a concrete broom(the poly).

You can get some really cool effects from wet cuts in exposed work.

Also there are epoxy systems that can be applied after the concrete has set. Goldenlook is one of the industry leaders. Not good for snow areas IMPO.

Both of these should be done by professionals experienced in these finishes. Hence my advice to you, hire a pro.

pre-reno

Thanks, Same Old.

tkle

I'd stay away from the epoxy.It usually peels after a few years.I've helped on exposed,know how to do it,but when I did one on my own,I wasn't happy with it. Like he said,hire a pro.

I've never seen plastic put down.What's the purpose?

Same Old

I believe it controls surface evaporation to ensure the retarder does it's job. You REALLY don't want to miss any areas with the surface retarder. You'll be hiring a sandblaster or ripping out work. When you get it down it's a relatively simple finish, but it has a pretty steep learning curve.

I don't like epoxies either.

lukachuki

Some good info here! We are getting ready to do an 18yard driveway in exposed aggregate but we have never used the retardant. In the past we might've broken it down into 2 or 3 pours so that it doesn't get away from us, but I bet retardant would allow us to do the whole pour at one time. Here in SC we use a buff integral color which works real well with a brown pea gravel aggregate.

Do any of you guys use a commercially available retardant and if so who makes it and what is the name.

Also when in the placing process is the retardant used? After the final bullfloat?

Thanks
Tim Newcome

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"The problem with internet quotes is, you never know if they are authentic." -Abraham Lincoln-

Less with the jaw more with the paw!

POOLMANinCT

i dont offer exposed agg..
when i was a kid i worked for an outfit that did, mix was delivered w/ the p gravel in it...

for smaller jobs mixed on site 1 sand 1 cement 2 wet gravel... order washed stone!!!!! was floated as usual & covered to slow cure,, very light acid wash after a few days,, outcome was always impressive.. saw cut joints

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

lukachuki

Do those of you who do the exposed agg mix your own retardant? TKLE? Is the sugar water solution what you really use? I am about to buy 10 gallons for over $200.00 and would hate to pay that for sugar water.

__________________
"The problem with internet quotes is, you never know if they are authentic." -Abraham Lincoln-

Less with the jaw more with the paw!

POOLMANinCT

just buy it, i dont care for homebrews

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

lukachuki

Yeah good advice. You just never know how sugar varies from place to place.

__________________
"The problem with internet quotes is, you never know if they are authentic." -Abraham Lincoln-

Less with the jaw more with the paw!

woodmagman

Sugar is a natural retarder, the proper mix takes experience. It pays to buy the proper mix....

concretemason

Call your main concrete supplier and ask them for some concrete retardant. It comes in a 5 gallon pail and its colored pink. The reason its colored is so that you can see the consistency of your coat unlike sugar water where you cant see any consistency. You can also use 10 to 1 molasses and water it may be a little more affordable. Mix it yourself with a concrete mixer not a mortar mixer. Use 2 parts mortar sand, not silicone sand or fine sand to 1 part cement and 2 parts pea gravel(washed). Mix it so its about a 6" slump meaning if you place it in a 12" high bucket it will fall 6"'. Make sure your re bar is drilled into any concrete your pouring up against using a concrete drill. tie in the re bar so its at least 2"'s off the side walls. Get the re bar to close to the sides and rust spots cold appear later. Or use wire mesh depending on the size and thickness of your slab. place any fiber expansion board in place first so you know where to cut for re bar slots. Pour in the concrete mixture and hit it with a stinger to work out any air bubbles or something comparable. Screed it with a screed or a 2x4. work out any imperfections with a mag trowel. round the edges with a corner trowel and hit it after its set just enough to where it creams but the steel trowel wont sink it. After that apply your retardant liberally to the top surface. You can wait a full day or about 4 hours depending on the heat and wash it off with a power washer. Make sure you dig a trench on the sides where the excess blow off will go in. Also make sure that none of your blow off goes into lakes river streams or any other place where fish live as the PH level in cement kills them and their eggs. Best of luck to all those do it yourselfers.