Concrete paving slabs

Thanks to the development of the construction business, we receive new and improved old materials for roads and finishes. Once the concrete tile was expensive and not very strong material. It was forgotten for a while, and only thanks to the progress and development of the chemical industry did new technologies for its manufacture appear. Currently, concrete paving slabs are used both for finishing the tracks in the city's parks, and for frequent houses.

What is a concrete paving slab?

There are three technologies for making concrete stone, each of which gives us material with special characteristics.

1. For the production of a combination of shapes and vibrostol. This technology is called vibration. Forms are filled with a ready-made mixture of concrete and additives, then placed on a table, constantly vibrating. This makes it possible to compact the mixture. After aging on a vibrating table, the molds with the mixture are sent for two days to freeze in a warm place. The finished tile surface is smooth and shiny. This type of production is usually used by small businesses. Relatively inexpensive production, if desired, can be reproduced at home.
2. The second method is the use of molds. This time the mixture of concrete and additives is poured into molds, which are now located on the vibratory press. In this case, vibration is combined with pressing the mixture. The disadvantage of this method is that vibration and compression can lead to layering of individual parts of the mixture. It is threatened by the fact that it is extremely difficult to achieve the same quality of each element from one batch. But the surface is always rough, which makes traveling safer along the street.
3. The previous method is somewhat similar to hyperpressing. In this case, we will also pour concrete into the molds, now the punch takes part in the process. The difference is that we will not apply any additional vibration. The compression load is much greater, the pressure occurs both on one side and on both sides. This method allows to save a little by means of cement, because compression makes the product durable even with its smaller quantity.

Sidewalk tiles on concrete base

With the tile itself, everything is understood, but what if there is an old coating of concrete left on the site? Quite often it happens that we need to lay the paving slab on a concrete path. Almost all the dachas used to be decorated with concrete. But such a solution is gradually cracking, and there comes a need for renewal.

There are two ways to work with paving slabs and a concrete path: lay the tile, first adding a new concrete layer, or pour a sand cushion. In the first case, we remove all the cracked pieces of the old coating, and in the remaining areas we make notches or small depressions. Then we carefully sweep away all the dirt, wet the surface. Now it is already possible to apply a layer of a liquid concrete mix with a reinforcing mesh and from above to lay a tile.

There is another method of laying paving slabs on a concrete base, if it has already outlived its own. In the use of a sand cushion, it is important to install concrete curbs. When the curbs come to their place along the ends of the path, their height should be greater so that after the laying of the tile the entire surface becomes level. Then pour the sand and begin laying the tiles . Often sand is hindered with cement and a little water is added. Experts recommend to still dismantle the old tracks, but the practice proves that if the rules are observed, the new one turns out to be quite strong and durable.