How thick do I make a concrete slab for a 45X45' to hold pickup, car and 30' travel trailer?

Answer 1

If you want this slab to remain for years with no cracks, you need to build it properly. Excavate all soft soil from the location.

Install 12" of "A" gravel underneath it first, and pack it with a whacker-packer and water. Install 1/2" rebar on 12" centres running BOTH directions. Tie the rebar properly with wire. Put EXTRA rebar or a fabricated rebar beam under the areas where you drive ON to the slab..ie. the equivalent of where the 'garage door' would be.

Assuming you have installed forms already, pour 4000lb. concrete and vibrate it into place,liftingup the rebar to approximately the centre of the depth. You need 6" of concrete.
After smoothing and trowelling the concrete, you must cure it correctly.
CURE the concrete by spraying it with a fine mist of water and covering it with polyethylene. Make SURE it is WET. Leave it covered for a WEEK, removing the poly and wetting it down if it is DRY.
You should consider scoring 'crack or expansion' lines in the slab approximately 10-12' apart by using a concrete saw set to a very shallow depth, perhaps 1/2". That will control any cracks that DO develop from natural expansion and contraction. You can fill the cracks with silicone or caulking compound.

By the way, if you intend to put a garage on top of that slab, you should use a 'club-foot' type of construction, which involves a deeper, thicker footing around the outside that is bevelled to the 6" thickness underneath. A typical club-foot slab has 12" thick edges and the 12" thickness usually is installed with a 'rebar beam' structure around the perimeter, and is about 24-30" wide and then bevels in to the 6" thickness. The extra concrete carries the weight of the walls and structure. The footing and slab is all poured at the same time.

Answer 2

Concrete Slab Thickness

Answer 3

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How thick do I make a concrete slab for a 45X45' to hold pickup, car and 30' travel trailer?

Answer 4

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Assuming that this concrete slab is a slab on grade and not elevated. The thickness of the slab depends on the geotechnical properties of the soil such as the modulus of subgrade reaction, and the strength of the concrete. For such large concentrated loads there are three cases to consider. This discussion is based on the work of H. M. Westergaard in the 1920s and 30s. Case 1: Wheel load close to the corner of the slab Case 2: Wheel load a considerable distance from the edges of the slab Case 3: Wheel load at an edge of a slab, but removed from the corner. Each load case involves calculation of the resulting concrete stress and comparing the resulting stress with the allowable tensile stress in the concrete. This forum does not lend itself to discussion of complicated equations. Suffice it to say that any good structural engineer can calculate this for you. You just cannot throw out a thickness and reinforcement and call it good. It must be evaluated and designed.

Answer 5

fiddlesticks is right.... if you want to spend 10X more money and time than necessary. If you have nice solid ground to pour onto,whether it's dirt, rock, or whatever, as long as it's solid, 4" is just fine. I would recommend 1/2 inch rebar ran in a grid about every 4 foot and when you order your concrete, have them add fiber-mesh. It's fiberglass "hair" that's mixed all in the concrete and really helps prevent cracks. Just make sure you don't pour onto frozen ground or mud. This is how my company pours all of our concrete for residential in Illinois. We stay off of it for 7-10 days after we pour and NEVER have problems with it. Solid ground is the key but rock is absolutely NOT necessary.

Answer 6

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Answer 7

at least 6" but 8" is preferrable you would be wise to increase the edge thickness with a 10" deep footing all the way around especially where the driveway is. Also definately use reedbar #3 and tie in an 8" grid. 4" concrete is for foot traffic and 6" to 8" is for light vehicle use. But compact the sub soil very well or it wont matter how thick it is.

Answer 8

6 inches with reinforcing bar, make sure the reinforcing bar doesnt sit on the ground when you pour, line the outside with temp wood and level the top, the re-bars need to be in the middle of the concrete other wise it will have no effect, prop it up so it sits halfway before you pour, then tamp it down and level using the edge of a board all the way across, then as it starts to set pull a broom across it to give it an anti slip surface then use a float to go round the edge. take a look at some finished examples and have a clear idea before you start. make sure your temp edging boards dont bend outwards when the concrete is poured by putting in wooden pegs to hold them straight, and get the concrete mix right, use a mixer not by hand, better mix

Answer 9

4" to 5" is how we pour them in the midwest. Make sure you put reliefs at least every 10' (checker board pattern) otherwise it will crack. When you score the concrete go at least half the thickness.

Answer 10

i would go with no less than 8'' and with re-bar on 8'' centers and crossed