Question: Robert, I’ve read your articles for years and always heeded advice given. I’ve moved from Santa Clarita — out of state, in fact. I am now in a climate that gets snow and have a question about concrete. I hope you don’t mind that I ask, even though I am no longer a resident. I trust your advice and knowledge. I am in the process of bidding out concrete work and am being told that in this climate, where the ground goes through multiple freeze/thaw cycles annually, that pinning a new walkway to the existing slab is unwise.
The contractor told me that the new walk needs to be able to flex through those cycles, and if pinned then the rebar would in fact, do its job and hold the concrete down. The problem with that is that it ends up cracking the new pour, along the lines of the rebar. They call it “shining” through. I guess you can see where the rebar is, via new cracklines. This goes against all I’ve known in Californa. Are you able to weigh in on this so I can ease my mind before I spend thousands on new concrete? Thank you in advance, for your input.
— Jody J.
Answer: Jody, great question and no, no problem at all. I’m happy to try and help. While I can offer information from my knowledge as a contractor here in California, I am not versed in proper codes or techniques in such a climate. What I do recommend is for you to vet multiple contractors who are all licensed and insured, and ask these questions of each one.
You can even go a step further and go to the building department, asking them what is expected and what works, they’ll be able to offer guidance. Above all, please be sure that whomever you hire, you are certain that they are licensed and insured. Best of luck.
Robert Lamoureux has more than 40 years of experience as a general contractor, with separate licenses in electrical and plumbing contracting. He owns IMS Construction Inc. in Valencia. His opinions are his own, not necessarily those of The Signal. Opinions expressed in this column are not meant to replace the recommendations of a qualified contractor after that contractor has made a thorough visual inspection. Email questions to Robert at [email protected].
