Had an old finisher tell me I was burning my salt finish and he was right

I was doing a salt finish on a patio in Austin last spring and an old timer named Pete watched me for like 2 minutes before he said 'kid you're burning that salt, it's melting before you even wash it'. Turns out I was waiting too long after the pour and the salt was dissolving into the concrete instead of just sitting on top. He made me wash it right then and he was totally right, the spots were way cleaner. Has anyone else gotten called out by an older guy and had to completely rethink their timing?

3 comments

3 Comments

michaeltorres7d ago

And here I thought I was being efficient by mixing everything fast, turns out I was just making salty concrete soup with no visible craters. Old Pete probably saved me from having to grind that whole patio down and redo it, so I owe him a cold one next time I see him. Bless those grumpy old finishers who don't mince words, they've forgotten more than I'll ever know about concrete.

max_torres447d ago

Did you let the mix sit for a few minutes after adding water before you started working it @michaeltorres? That little rest lets the water soak in proper and keeps you from chasing it around like that.

gibson.avery7d ago

Gotta push back a little here @max_torres44. I've actually found that letting it sit too long can backfire in hot weather or if your mix is on the drier side. That rest period works great for some batches but other times I've had the water just sit on top and then I'm fighting a sloppy mess when I try to work it in. What really changed the game for me was getting the water amount right from the start and mixing it in stages rather than all at once. I'll add half, mix, add the rest, mix again, and then I'm usually good to go without any waiting. Different strokes for different folks I guess, but that's what clicked for me.