Concreting large areas

[hail hail]

Anyone here do any concreting large areas. Weve done many a foundation, raft foundations and footpaths. What im wanting to know how are you leveling in your large areas. for example, a 15x8m square area. We shutter it up and to get our levels inside, we run a few 4x2s every 3-4m apart from back to front and have them leveled with timber underneath. Wed fill in the area with concrete while tamping down onto the timber to level it off. Once level, we'd take out the 4x2s and the timber underneath then fill in these areas and take our levels off the already leveled concrete.

I know this is an old skool way of doing things but its always been how i/we've done it and its never let us down. Its always covered our wages, got the job done so ive never questioned it untill now. Im sure there is a better way of doing this and was searching on the net(as ya do) and found concrete screed chairs. They look ideal for what im looking however, when theres heavy guage dpc or radon barrier underneath, how can these be used? If not, what other method can you recommend to speed hings up?

 

[roryston]

Mix it up wet it'll level itself

 

[malc]

when we screed large areas we use spots, pieces of timber about 12 inches long. we mix some screed to bed then on, then level then with a lazer level. as we screed with a 3m straight edge the spots are 3m apart. we then lay a screed between the spots then rule off to the screeds.

 

[vfr12]

Anyone here do any concreting large areas. Weve done many a foundation, raft foundations and footpaths. What im wanting to know how are you leveling in your large areas. for example, a 15x8m square area. We shutter it up and to get our levels inside, we run a few 4x2s every 3-4m apart from back to front and have them leveled with timber underneath. Wed fill in the area with concrete while tamping down onto the timber to level it off. Once level, we'd take out the 4x2s and the timber underneath then fill in these areas and take our levels off the already leveled concrete.

I know this is an old skool way of doing things but its always been how i/we've done it and its never let us down. Its always covered our wages, got the job done so ive never questioned it untill now. Im sure there is a better way of doing this and was searching on the net(as ya do) and found concrete screed chairs. They look ideal for what im looking however, when theres heavy guage dpc or radon barrier underneath, how can these be used? If not, what other method can you recommend to speed hings up?

That's exactly how they do it on our site using the scaffolders tubes.

 

[zolco]

You will have to break it up into manageable sections so you can reach it with a bullfloat after you temped it or you have to get a machine to level it for you

 

[hail hail]

Mix it up wet it'll level itself

I've seen some horrendous jobs with not using guides/levels.

 

[Builderboi]

In my house redid the whole downstairs floor used self leveling concrete was down in 50 mins and bang on bit more pricey but no other labour required

 

[roryston]

I've seen some horrendous jobs with not using guides/levels.

Yeah and me mate, guy I know who used to do all the council pathways and drives used to always say it, looked absolute dog shite when finished

 

[zolco]

When we were doing warehouses had a crew coming down from Scotland, 3 guys in a 7.5t truck, they had a little tractor with self levelling blades on almost like bicycle wheels guy was just pushing the concrete about till the lorries come and go, then they had 3 sit on powerfloats they could easily finish a 1000sqm a day polished up, all we had to do is just cut the expansion gaps in a few days later. They made it look easy. They made a grand job always, but they were s**t at shuttering tbh. But their finish was bob on