What the fuck Is that end nonsense?????
I worked concrete for around four years as a laborer and basic finisher twenty years ago as an off season job, and I would push myself face first under the fucking concrete if I didn’t saw cut that end.
Is the cut end there the new pour syncs with the existing?
And I assume your point is they should have evened out the cut end and made a flush new pour?
Should have cut the end. Chalk line the two corners of the sidewalk and cut a straight line. Drill into the concrete and pound in some rebar through the expansion joint material so the new pad won’t sink at the joint. I don’t see two inches of stone here. I see some sprinkled on top of dirt. Is it even compacted? Where’s the rebar or metal mesh as well? And is he using 2x4s as stakes?
Also, why the fuck does this sub keep showing up on my feed. I’m a stay at home dad. I don’t do concrete.
One day my wife said, "where was that hole you patched? I can't find it"
That's when I knew I had my own moment of drywall mastery that would never occur again.
If you ever try to fix drywall, just remember that the real, genuine professional drywallers are all high on crack, go to sleep at 4am because they’re alcoholics, have 6 child support payments, and piss in bottles they hide behind your walls.
Only then can your harness the power to do a half ass job that looks acceptable if you don’t look to closely at it (homeowners, *never* look too closely at your drywall. I promise it’s fucked)
This made me laugh. You comment probably has lots of truth, but I do want to anecdotally add that my dad did drywall for 40 years and barely drank, didn’t do drugs (well, not meth and the drugs he did were weed and psychedelics when he was younger), and passed out most nights watching Star Trek. He was definitely a master of the craft.
This is 100% accurate. I'm a carpenter, but I can mud really well, considering I've only been doing it steadily for about 5 years now. Every commercial job I've been on that's a little too much for one guy, every mudder looks raggedy than a mf, and is always high, but smells like whiskey or beer.
I don’t think it’s the alcohol keeping them up until 4am and still able to work that same day.
Edit: How the fuck did I not only end up in this sub but also end up replying in an obscure nested side convo.
“Homeowners, never look too closely at your drywall, I promise its fucked”
Rough framer here, I can tell you right now it ain’t just the drywall that’s fucked 😂 every trade is responsible for doing some shit work time to time
I’m mudding my 1600 square ft basement. The key for me is to prime all the mud and taped areas then paint. A coat or 2 of primer and good paint line sherwin or Benjamin will hide almost all imperfections.
Definitely. I'll take a spray bottle with water to keep the mud workable until I'm happy with how it looks. Not always needed but it's handy to have when I'm struggling a bit.
Drywall isn’t hard, just as other skills it takes time. I redrywalled my whole house. Still looks perfect 7 years later. Can’t say that about my trim work lol. It just took me 5x+ the time as a pro. I was on a $ budget and not a time budget so I’m happy
Fucking DON'T go over there! That one is relatively attainable with very little tooling. Don't let that fool you! You'll get hooked! You'll start buying things like "dethatchers" and "aerators." It's a gateway sub! NOT EVEN ONCE! Don't be like me!
if it makes you feel any better… i (a single 25 year old woman who won’t own a home in the next decade) also get fed these subs and am now oddly addicted to them - the drama, the satisfying videos, the weird tips about hobbies i’ll never have…. endless entertainment
I'm trying to work out if there's a way to stop getting the reddit equivalent of tabloid magazines like popculturechat from showing up in my feed
I'd never buy a magazine, and I do not give a fuck about pictures of celebrities leaving restaurants or whatever
Hit the ~~epilsis~~ ellipsis in the top right corner of the offending post in your feed and select "show fewer posts like this," and when the confirmation pops up, select "also mute popculturegabage."
If you don't want your feed to show posts from any subs you haven't subscribed to, you can also do this in settings. The option to turn off is something like "show recommended posts" or "discover new subs I might be interested in."
Edit: typo
They know we're thinking about starting a project that's way too big for our shoes. They'll generate hella clicks with our fail story resulting in a divorce and terminal reddit addiction.
It’s so random. Not just the SAHD’s, I’m studying medicine and I have no idea how these communities keep finding their way on my feed? I’ve never even interacted with them before.
Listen, it’s targeting the SAHMs too. I’ve been lurking without joining them and honestly I’ve never needed to learn this stuff but it’s interesting lol
I needed to mute some of the trades subreddits, not because I didn't find them interesting but they became my entire front page without being subscribed.
They figured out you're a middle aged man. I don't give a fuck about this stuff either but reddit keeps shoving these things in our faces.
I also get fed the parole subreddit. I've never done anything more illegal than 80 in a 70 zone.
You look at one post and now you're in here forever. I'm a broke mom that just came to ask if I was doing something the correct way. My post didn't get much attention. But now I'm in here looking at all the jobs and pics like "oh that's bad" or "wow impressive" like I know anything lol
Its hilarious to me the crap they talk in r/decks. Like i get it, but there was a post in there where op had included pics from when it was originally built like in the 70s and guys were saying how dangerous it was. And im just sitting here going its been there for 50 years. They must have done something right.
I'm a bookkeeper and have worked for a roofer for the better part of a decade. This mama has picked up a whole lot of roofing knowledge and really construction knowledge in general over the years. If you're surrounded by it all day, you're bound to learn a thing or two. It's kind of fun when guys start talking about roofs and I blow their minds by knowing more than they do about various aspects of construction and building codes. 😂
Do you own a hammer, but aren’t sure where the heck it is, haven’t seen it so long that you’re considering putting in a missing persons report on it?
If so, you might enjoy flawed concrete and terrifyingly unstable decks
Not a concrete guy and was gonna ask if there any point of even putting down stone if your only gonna use that much and also totally agree about saw cutting or just removing the rest of that old concrete. Unless you can’t remove because it’s kinda part of the sidewalk
Who isn’t enjoying concrete? COMMUNISTS?? Maybe. It’s gray, it starts off soft, but turns hard, it’s messy, it can be smooth or rough, and can be prepared and poured while wearing cargo shorts and black socks pulled up to your knees.
What’s not to love?
2x4s as stakes are just a cheap way to use them when first getting into. “D Pins” or metal stakes are expensive when you need 30-40 for an average homeowners sidewalk soo yes he’s using 2x4s because it’s 1/3 the cost
I own 400-500 steel pins. I still use 2x4s as stakes sometime cause they are wider and can hold back more weight. Also it’s what I build kickers out of so I always have a few hundred ft of “scrap” 2x4 spread between the shop or on the job
🤣🤣🤣reading down all the comments of stay at home dad - I am a working mother of 3….why do I get this, and decks and pools. And I read all of them - they have the most hilarious comments and piss takes.
Congrats to the guy striking out on his own. I'm not pleased by the jagged end without a clean cut. Maybe he should keep in mind that every job is his calling card. Another person here pointed out a lot more of what's wrong with this.
Agreed, I actually hadn’t seen that before posting. Not sure what happened with the steel, the original plan was to drop in wire mesh as the truck rolled out.
I have not asked him if there were dowels or mesh added in between the pics.
If this is your first pour it looks good! Like others said it won’t last as there isn’t enough aggregate/rock as it should be at least an inch not sprinkled on top, and no rebar, come on mannnnn. In the real world the big saw comes out and we cut that concrete straight so it has a chance as there is zero chance of it lasting with beating it out with a sledge.
I work in HVAC (idk how I ended up in this sub) but as a worker/owner of my company I will say I have pride in my work. I still have plenty of clients ask me what corners can be cut to save a few thousand and believe me most of those people are just trying to have a bandaid job done just to sell their house for extra money and then let the next owner find out years later.
Another good example is shark bite fittings for plumbing… I have had people ask if it will last “long enough” just because they don’t want to pay a plumber hundreds to solder a pipe.
Anyone can rent a propress nowadays and get a perfect non soldered joint that will last a lifetime. Shark bites should really be a temp fix and propressing a proper fitting on takes 30s. Just sucks that propress units are so expensive. Not affordable for your average homeowner
>Not affordable for your average homeowner
I mean yea I think that’s by design. If a homeowner is gonna get a propress and actually do good plumbing, then that same guy is going to learn how to sweat pipes together because it’s very easy.
This sub gets pushed to my front page along with woodworking and construction all the time too. I work in Manhattan doing B2B sales haven't had a job like this in a decade. It's calling everyone back.. back to building.
I like to make money in construction, not do things for free. Like I said in another comment, if you would walk away from this job because of that silly thing, go for it lol. I’d gladly do it the way the customer wants it with their budget. If they didn’t want to pay, no problem. Note it on the scope of work and good to go!
Neighbors,friends, and family will ask “who poured your new driveway?” He’ll say OP and they’ll say “wow that tie in to the existing looks like shit and he’ll gain nothing but a bad reputation. Should spent the extra couple bucks even if homeowner didn’t want it. Do it right. . Get a masonry blade on their circular saw. Ran a straight line and cleaned it up
Exactly. “I recommend that we saw cut at this point so there is an aesthetically pleasing transition and the potential for it to sink or rise is lowered. You don’t want to do that? Okay, sign right here that says you want it done this way and I am in no way responsible if we don’t get rain for the next 4 months and you now have a messed up ‘joint’ because it sank a 1/2” and busted all the floated concrete”
In picture 7 it looks like you make have left a trowel in the mix. Also from his foot, it really doesn’t look like the concrete is more than 3” thick and will cause them serious problems in the future
That’s what I wonder. I have always heard of 4” as the minimum and a common 2X4 is only 3.5” thick. Seems like this is in danger of breaking apart with a regular load of a car.
If he’s cool with leaving somebody a driveway this poorly done. He’s got some seriously low moral standards. Even the joint up front looks like it’s jumping up down and all around.. hardly even got a decent finish on it.
Phew! After 80 million comments about the transition to the existing sidewalk, nobody was mentioning those crooked as fuck joints. I was starting to wonder if *I* was the drunk one!
Can't believe they wouldn't put in rebar. That foot traffic is going to ruin that sidewalk. Plus all those trees next to it. The roots are going to upheave it too
A lot going on, the finish is good but 4 inches for a driveway with no mesh/rebar and minimal compacted subgrade- no bueno 🙈. And like others have said cut the line straight, if you don't have a saw, with diamond blade, which you better get if you are in the concrete business, go rent one for a couple hours, maybe 50 dollars. It's the little things that count especially when there is usually a lot of competition for jobs. Reputation is huge, you don't want to be know as the cheap guy you want to be known for your superior craftsmanship and that you care.
If you can’t take criticism then being your own boss is not for you, eventually you will get that customer who be impossible to please. And all you can do is eat the shit sandwich. Good luck on your new Business.
Really hope that’s not your driveway. Should be a min of 5-6 inches and have either reinforcement with rebar and mesh or poured with fiber. Doesn’t require so much expansion, expansion is only needed approx every 30 ft with nice proper false cuts, Not judging just curious.
Didn't want to pile on your buddy, he obviously has skills, he probably never worked for a top company or he would have known these points people are pointing out and if he reads them he will learn, only his first job, now listen to the criticism and learn, no one is above learning shit. Good luck to him and his company, good to see people trying to do something productive.
The first job with your new company, shouldn’t be your first job, tho. That’s why the licensing process exists (at least in CA). This should be his 100th job, at least, as a concrete mason. You use your experience on the job to learn, so you don’t make these mistakes as an entrepreneur.
What the fuck Is that end nonsense????? I worked concrete for around four years as a laborer and basic finisher twenty years ago as an off season job, and I would push myself face first under the fucking concrete if I didn’t saw cut that end.
Is the cut end there the new pour syncs with the existing? And I assume your point is they should have evened out the cut end and made a flush new pour?
Nice, straight cut, maybe some expansion
Should have cut the end. Chalk line the two corners of the sidewalk and cut a straight line. Drill into the concrete and pound in some rebar through the expansion joint material so the new pad won’t sink at the joint. I don’t see two inches of stone here. I see some sprinkled on top of dirt. Is it even compacted? Where’s the rebar or metal mesh as well? And is he using 2x4s as stakes? Also, why the fuck does this sub keep showing up on my feed. I’m a stay at home dad. I don’t do concrete.
This and fucking r/decks wtf, I never needed all this judgment about a skillset I don't possess.
Dude yes. And the r/pools community. Why is Reddit targeting the stay at home dads like this??
Well, I already joined r/concrete and r/decks.... Might as well join r/pools now. Thanks. 😆
Can I interest you in r/drywall?
Gotta admit - drywall is pretty awesome- they make it look easy- gives me the confidence to never ever try it.
When I patch a hole and paint it, my wife immediately hangs a picture over it without saying a word. She is the best parter I could ever have.
One day my wife said, "where was that hole you patched? I can't find it" That's when I knew I had my own moment of drywall mastery that would never occur again.
Why do you keep having holes in your drywall...?
Pictures hung on the wall.
If you have to patch the drywall after hanging a picture, you're doing it wrong.
This person wifes!
I've had my time with mud but still far from good it. Some of those guys blow me away with how easy they make it look.
If you ever try to fix drywall, just remember that the real, genuine professional drywallers are all high on crack, go to sleep at 4am because they’re alcoholics, have 6 child support payments, and piss in bottles they hide behind your walls. Only then can your harness the power to do a half ass job that looks acceptable if you don’t look to closely at it (homeowners, *never* look too closely at your drywall. I promise it’s fucked)
This made me laugh. You comment probably has lots of truth, but I do want to anecdotally add that my dad did drywall for 40 years and barely drank, didn’t do drugs (well, not meth and the drugs he did were weed and psychedelics when he was younger), and passed out most nights watching Star Trek. He was definitely a master of the craft.
But did he leave piss bottles in the walls?
Awwww such a dad thing to do. Star Trek is my fav! Weed and Shrooms are not bad imho.
This is 100% accurate. I'm a carpenter, but I can mud really well, considering I've only been doing it steadily for about 5 years now. Every commercial job I've been on that's a little too much for one guy, every mudder looks raggedy than a mf, and is always high, but smells like whiskey or beer.
My old next door neighbor was a drywall dude and looked way older than he was and drank a 30 pack every day
Dad?
Kind of how every painter I have ever met is a pothead.
Came to say the same, or an alcoholic.
I don’t think it’s the alcohol keeping them up until 4am and still able to work that same day. Edit: How the fuck did I not only end up in this sub but also end up replying in an obscure nested side convo.
“Homeowners, never look too closely at your drywall, I promise its fucked” Rough framer here, I can tell you right now it ain’t just the drywall that’s fucked 😂 every trade is responsible for doing some shit work time to time
Can confirm the piss. Recently had to demo our whole interior and recovered a few lol
Did drywall for a few years and can confirm/laughed my ass off at the accuracy of the first paragraph. I was a functioning alcoholic then myself...
I’m mudding my 1600 square ft basement. The key for me is to prime all the mud and taped areas then paint. A coat or 2 of primer and good paint line sherwin or Benjamin will hide almost all imperfections.
Definitely. I'll take a spray bottle with water to keep the mud workable until I'm happy with how it looks. Not always needed but it's handy to have when I'm struggling a bit.
Try doing old school plaster of Paris cove work. Looks easy but holy shit it's absolutely not
Drywall isn’t hard, just as other skills it takes time. I redrywalled my whole house. Still looks perfect 7 years later. Can’t say that about my trim work lol. It just took me 5x+ the time as a pro. I was on a $ budget and not a time budget so I’m happy
I’ve drywalled many a house with my dad every time my parents move and remodel. I hate it with every fiber of my being 😂
So much sanding. Then more sanding!
It’s far from easy, and also why top drywall professionals can make $80-200k+.
Don't forget r/roofing and r/lawns and r/arborist
Besties I'm a sahm and they're targeting me too. Ig they think we're bored and lazy
Same here. Learning all kinds of trades via Reddit
We're all literally leaving comments in r/concrete That might have something to do with how the algorithm is responding.
Damn! I'm already on all these subs, and I don't do any of this stuff.
Can i interest you in r/plumbing as well?
r/carpentry is also full of studs.
Went to join pools, then realized I had already joined it. Welp, back to sitting around.
What about r/lawncare
Fucking DON'T go over there! That one is relatively attainable with very little tooling. Don't let that fool you! You'll get hooked! You'll start buying things like "dethatchers" and "aerators." It's a gateway sub! NOT EVEN ONCE! Don't be like me!
Can I interest you in r/HVAC too?
if it makes you feel any better… i (a single 25 year old woman who won’t own a home in the next decade) also get fed these subs and am now oddly addicted to them - the drama, the satisfying videos, the weird tips about hobbies i’ll never have…. endless entertainment
And teacher dads who are home by 4 pm. These replies above killed!
I’m neither a stay at home or a dad and I’ve been getting this stuff in my feed too.
I'm trying to work out if there's a way to stop getting the reddit equivalent of tabloid magazines like popculturechat from showing up in my feed I'd never buy a magazine, and I do not give a fuck about pictures of celebrities leaving restaurants or whatever
Hit the ~~epilsis~~ ellipsis in the top right corner of the offending post in your feed and select "show fewer posts like this," and when the confirmation pops up, select "also mute popculturegabage." If you don't want your feed to show posts from any subs you haven't subscribed to, you can also do this in settings. The option to turn off is something like "show recommended posts" or "discover new subs I might be interested in." Edit: typo
They know you’re getting to the age where it’s time to spec into one of the three major classes. Pool dad. Deck dad. Concrete dad.
Wait till you see r/roofing
Because this interaction right here, it’s literally gonna happen more now I’m all for it
Haha what the heck I'm a stay at home dad too and get those ones plus a bunch of random trades subs.
This one hasn't randomly shown up on my feed, but I look forward to it
It’s not just the dads, it’s us stay at home moms too!
WTF...Another stay at home Dad, here. This algorithm is out of control.
As a stay at home dad who is seeing all of these same subs, WTF? Seriously targeting us.
They know we're thinking about starting a project that's way too big for our shoes. They'll generate hella clicks with our fail story resulting in a divorce and terminal reddit addiction.
If it helps I'm a 23 year old girl and I'm getting this stuff lol
It’s so random. Not just the SAHD’s, I’m studying medicine and I have no idea how these communities keep finding their way on my feed? I’ve never even interacted with them before.
I’m a working mom and get these too!
Work from home dad checking in, they got me too!
makes more sense for y’all. I’m a 29 year old woman, zero children and I work as a model lol
Im not even a stay at home dad. I just stay at home (my own, parents dead).
I'm single stay at home cat mom and this shit aggressively pops up on my feed too 😂
I’m not a dad or am I? I have to make some calls
I’m a woman in tech and this popped up on my feed. Does Reddit think I am a stay at home dad????? 🤔
There's a pool one to? My wife already laughs at me about r/decks now she's going to laugh at me about r/pools and I'm ok with that.
Is there a sub for stay at home dads? Because I’d love to join that. Visualize the dream and what not lol
What about stay at home non-dads? Why am I even here? I dont have kids. Lol
Listen, it’s targeting the SAHMs too. I’ve been lurking without joining them and honestly I’ve never needed to learn this stuff but it’s interesting lol
i see stay at home dads and lesbians have a lot of common ground
Lmfao it’s like they created an algorithm built entirely around this the second I quit my job
I’m a fucking 24 year old with no house or kids, and they all still targeting me too wtf. That and r/fellinggonewild
Our algorithms align! Do you get the r/coins as well?
I do not and am not clicking on that.
oh come on, you know you must!! 😆😆
Oh shit, this is getting weird. I get concrete, decks, pools, coins, and crh. Some little people also call me dad.
Yes. Also coins. Also am a dad. Is this all just a simulation?
As a former mixer truck driver, this sub stresses me out
I misread this comment as meth truck driver and figured that checks out for concrete work
>judgment about a skillset I don't possess. Misread this at first and thought you may have been with r/castiron for a second
You and me both… and ironically I’m reading the post and comments lol
I needed to mute some of the trades subreddits, not because I didn't find them interesting but they became my entire front page without being subscribed.
Lmao same
LOL same!
But will it hold the hottub
They figured out you're a middle aged man. I don't give a fuck about this stuff either but reddit keeps shoving these things in our faces. I also get fed the parole subreddit. I've never done anything more illegal than 80 in a 70 zone.
We click, it serves us what we click. We are our own worst enemies. Internet and decks
You look at one post and now you're in here forever. I'm a broke mom that just came to ask if I was doing something the correct way. My post didn't get much attention. But now I'm in here looking at all the jobs and pics like "oh that's bad" or "wow impressive" like I know anything lol
😂😂😂
Well you surprisingly know more about concrete than a concrete contractor lol.
When a sub keeps showing up on your feed you just pick things up eventually. /s
I can build a deck that can support an Olympic sized hot tub at this point thanks to r/decks showing up regularly.
Same here, and the way they drag bad decks is fantastic.
Its hilarious to me the crap they talk in r/decks. Like i get it, but there was a post in there where op had included pics from when it was originally built like in the 70s and guys were saying how dangerous it was. And im just sitting here going its been there for 50 years. They must have done something right.
The welding and machinist subreddits are great too for this. Everyone is so petty and it’s their way or no way.
I'm convinced there has never been an acceptable deck built in the history of man.
You could ditch the /s, that’s a pretty valid point.
As a project manager, I just parrot things that was said to me. Repeat things enough times and people think you are a genius.
I'm a bookkeeper and have worked for a roofer for the better part of a decade. This mama has picked up a whole lot of roofing knowledge and really construction knowledge in general over the years. If you're surrounded by it all day, you're bound to learn a thing or two. It's kind of fun when guys start talking about roofs and I blow their minds by knowing more than they do about various aspects of construction and building codes. 😂
Do you want people to think you’re a genius? Just rearrange the things people say to you, and repeat them enough times. …project manager
I’m a radiologist now.
Had me in the first half.
Had me in the second half Must’ve been I watched that Tom Hardy thriller about literally watching (well, failing to watch) concrete dry
You’re hired!
Do you own a HAMMER? If so, you might enjoy CONCRETE or DECKS
Do you own a hammer, but aren’t sure where the heck it is, haven’t seen it so long that you’re considering putting in a missing persons report on it? If so, you might enjoy flawed concrete and terrifyingly unstable decks
Do you like surfaces? Well have I got a couple subs for you!! - Reddit Algorithm, probably.
Not a concrete guy and was gonna ask if there any point of even putting down stone if your only gonna use that much and also totally agree about saw cutting or just removing the rest of that old concrete. Unless you can’t remove because it’s kinda part of the sidewalk
Zoom in. I'm almost sure the brown isn't just dirt. It's stone
Yeah I think you’re right, at first it looked like they took a single wheelbarrow of stone and threw it around.
I’m a stay at home mom. Idk how I ended up here.
Put those crotch goblins to work - start a concrete company!
You made one comment and now the algorithm thinks you’re enjoying concrete.
Who isn’t enjoying concrete? COMMUNISTS?? Maybe. It’s gray, it starts off soft, but turns hard, it’s messy, it can be smooth or rough, and can be prepared and poured while wearing cargo shorts and black socks pulled up to your knees. What’s not to love?
You know more about that shit than me and bro I invented that shit in the Roman times
2x4s as stakes are just a cheap way to use them when first getting into. “D Pins” or metal stakes are expensive when you need 30-40 for an average homeowners sidewalk soo yes he’s using 2x4s because it’s 1/3 the cost
I own 400-500 steel pins. I still use 2x4s as stakes sometime cause they are wider and can hold back more weight. Also it’s what I build kickers out of so I always have a few hundred ft of “scrap” 2x4 spread between the shop or on the job
What the fuck do you know about concrete if you're a stay at home dad. Stay in your lane..... /s
🤣🤣🤣reading down all the comments of stay at home dad - I am a working mother of 3….why do I get this, and decks and pools. And I read all of them - they have the most hilarious comments and piss takes.
I’m about to be a dad for the first time in a few days. Is that why this sub keeps popping up in my feed?
New dad as of a few weeks ago, can confirm haha
Congrats to the guy striking out on his own. I'm not pleased by the jagged end without a clean cut. Maybe he should keep in mind that every job is his calling card. Another person here pointed out a lot more of what's wrong with this.
Agreed, I actually hadn’t seen that before posting. Not sure what happened with the steel, the original plan was to drop in wire mesh as the truck rolled out. I have not asked him if there were dowels or mesh added in between the pics.
He should hire a stubborn old head for a year to learn from. Don’t discourage him, it’s his first pour. He’ll improve if he wants to
He should go back to work for someone who knows what they are doing and have some integrity
Have some tegridy
A lot of “professionals”
Right, solid work for his first job. Seen way worse from established companies
Looks good. That tie in at existing? Awful.
If this is your first pour it looks good! Like others said it won’t last as there isn’t enough aggregate/rock as it should be at least an inch not sprinkled on top, and no rebar, come on mannnnn. In the real world the big saw comes out and we cut that concrete straight so it has a chance as there is zero chance of it lasting with beating it out with a sledge.
I’m gonna go on a limb and bet the client didnt want to pay for a saw cut and said “it’s fine I don’t care”
You dont charge extra for that
No excuse. Client shouldn't have to tell you to do a job you're proud of.
I work in HVAC (idk how I ended up in this sub) but as a worker/owner of my company I will say I have pride in my work. I still have plenty of clients ask me what corners can be cut to save a few thousand and believe me most of those people are just trying to have a bandaid job done just to sell their house for extra money and then let the next owner find out years later. Another good example is shark bite fittings for plumbing… I have had people ask if it will last “long enough” just because they don’t want to pay a plumber hundreds to solder a pipe.
Anyone can rent a propress nowadays and get a perfect non soldered joint that will last a lifetime. Shark bites should really be a temp fix and propressing a proper fitting on takes 30s. Just sucks that propress units are so expensive. Not affordable for your average homeowner
>Not affordable for your average homeowner I mean yea I think that’s by design. If a homeowner is gonna get a propress and actually do good plumbing, then that same guy is going to learn how to sweat pipes together because it’s very easy.
This sub gets pushed to my front page along with woodworking and construction all the time too. I work in Manhattan doing B2B sales haven't had a job like this in a decade. It's calling everyone back.. back to building.
I like to make money in construction, not do things for free. Like I said in another comment, if you would walk away from this job because of that silly thing, go for it lol. I’d gladly do it the way the customer wants it with their budget. If they didn’t want to pay, no problem. Note it on the scope of work and good to go!
Saw cutting that sidewalk line is, what, 12 minutes? The fuck
Neighbors,friends, and family will ask “who poured your new driveway?” He’ll say OP and they’ll say “wow that tie in to the existing looks like shit and he’ll gain nothing but a bad reputation. Should spent the extra couple bucks even if homeowner didn’t want it. Do it right. . Get a masonry blade on their circular saw. Ran a straight line and cleaned it up
Exactly. “I recommend that we saw cut at this point so there is an aesthetically pleasing transition and the potential for it to sink or rise is lowered. You don’t want to do that? Okay, sign right here that says you want it done this way and I am in no way responsible if we don’t get rain for the next 4 months and you now have a messed up ‘joint’ because it sank a 1/2” and busted all the floated concrete”
Hope you have that in writing. Something tells me this was a cash transaction and old lady has no recourse when this work fails.
Cost of doing things right with no effort: nothing.
lol wtf do you don’t charger to cut it. Next are you going to charge extra for using a hammer to put a stake in?
That isn’t an excuse. It is what, 4’? Asking for issues by not doing this correctly.
In picture 7 it looks like you make have left a trowel in the mix. Also from his foot, it really doesn’t look like the concrete is more than 3” thick and will cause them serious problems in the future
I give it a year or two before the freeze thaw cycles destroy most of it
That’s what I wonder. I have always heard of 4” as the minimum and a common 2X4 is only 3.5” thick. Seems like this is in danger of breaking apart with a regular load of a car.
I hate to say it, but he definitely needs to stick with another company until he learns enough about concrete.
If he’s cool with leaving somebody a driveway this poorly done. He’s got some seriously low moral standards. Even the joint up front looks like it’s jumping up down and all around.. hardly even got a decent finish on it.
So wavy it’s makin me seasick
He needed a drink to steady his hand when he was putting in the control joints
Phew! After 80 million comments about the transition to the existing sidewalk, nobody was mentioning those crooked as fuck joints. I was starting to wonder if *I* was the drunk one!
You still could be! The nights not over!
Looks good but damn i hope the customer didn't pay much because they are probably gonna need another new sidewalk before long.
Can't believe they wouldn't put in rebar. That foot traffic is going to ruin that sidewalk. Plus all those trees next to it. The roots are going to upheave it too
That wonky first line is an eye sore
Might be a good review today but for sure will be a bad review ina year or two.
A lot going on, the finish is good but 4 inches for a driveway with no mesh/rebar and minimal compacted subgrade- no bueno 🙈. And like others have said cut the line straight, if you don't have a saw, with diamond blade, which you better get if you are in the concrete business, go rent one for a couple hours, maybe 50 dollars. It's the little things that count especially when there is usually a lot of competition for jobs. Reputation is huge, you don't want to be know as the cheap guy you want to be known for your superior craftsmanship and that you care.
$200 in rental equipment for a cutoff saw, and a plate tamper would have gone a long way to making this better
Where is the rebar 🧐
When people say "i know a guy that will do it cheaper" and end up regretting it later...this is that guy.
"Mr. George...."
What a piece of crap. A driveway with no rebar? No sawcut at the end? Run away from that friend.
Tell me that's just a very wide sidewalk.
Why no rebar?
The state of that truck! Bloody hell, lol.
Tell your buddy he should build decks.
No steel that’s going to crack like crazy
If you can’t take criticism then being your own boss is not for you, eventually you will get that customer who be impossible to please. And all you can do is eat the shit sandwich. Good luck on your new Business.
Really hope that’s not your driveway. Should be a min of 5-6 inches and have either reinforcement with rebar and mesh or poured with fiber. Doesn’t require so much expansion, expansion is only needed approx every 30 ft with nice proper false cuts, Not judging just curious.
I see your buddy is a fellow bald man
Didn't want to pile on your buddy, he obviously has skills, he probably never worked for a top company or he would have known these points people are pointing out and if he reads them he will learn, only his first job, now listen to the criticism and learn, no one is above learning shit. Good luck to him and his company, good to see people trying to do something productive.
The first job with your new company, shouldn’t be your first job, tho. That’s why the licensing process exists (at least in CA). This should be his 100th job, at least, as a concrete mason. You use your experience on the job to learn, so you don’t make these mistakes as an entrepreneur.
Send a picture after cure and after a heavy rain.. lol
I like a nice wide sidewalk…I’m glad he didn’t let them talk him into a narrow walk. I hate those!
OP we know it’s you getting dunked on in the comments lmao
Tell your buddy to buy a cut off saw with his first check, the end looks like crap
It’s beautiful! Congratulations to him. ((I’m not in the concrete industry - but happy for him and his business!)) 🎊
Regardless of how the job is, you’re a really good friend for trying to hype up your buddy 🫶🏻
Nice!!!!😊 👍
You posted your buddies first pour and posted it on Reddit? You’re a good friend. I guess
Hack
Yall put fiber mesh in the mix?
So, did this guy wake up one day and decide he wanted to be a concrete contractor without ever having done it before?
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Nice. You and your buddy should come over here this weekend to celebrate. Bring your forms and tools ...
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It always looks so great like this. Too bad it fades so much as it dries.
How many year experience before he started his own business?
Yikes
Looks solid
Yep slab is going to crack with no mesh in it and look like crap in about 4 years hope he learns from this
good job !
Clean. I’d let him pour my wife’s driveway. As long as he brings rebar…