The foreman who swore by wet curing in 2003, he was right all along

Back when I started on a slab crew in Columbus, this old foreman named Ray would make us stay late to soak every pour with burlap and keep it damp for a week. I thought he was just wasting time, especially when the newer guys were using curing compounds out of a sprayer. That summer we poured a big warehouse floor, and by the next spring theirs had all these hairline cracks showing up. Ray's sections still look clean today. I drive past that building sometimes and think about him. Anyone else get schooled by an old timer on something you figured was outdated?

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faith_thomas17h ago

Thought I was saving time with the spray-on stuff back in 2008, but after two winters my driveway looked like a road map. The old guy next door just shook his head and said wet curing is the only way to keep the surface tight. He made me redo the cracked part with soaked blankets, and it's still smooth as glass eight years later. Now I always take the extra couple days to keep things damp, even if it feels like babysitting a sponge. That foreman had the right idea, and I bet he never had to warranty a single slab.