I just found out that my concrete guy will be starting with my pool deck tomorrow. It will only be about 600ft but will be a single pour with a cantilevered edge using the capstone stegmeier forms. My question is how long should I let the concrete cure before the forms are removed? This guy is extremely busy and I'm afraid he may wait too long to come back and remove them so I may have to do it myself.
Question about Stegmeier Cantilever forms
- Thread starter mjdieth
- Start date
Typically the forms are removed very shortly after the pour, during the floating and finishing phase. This way the tie wires can be severed and the holes where the tie wires penetrate the forms can be troweled over. Your concrete guy should not be coming back to do this, he should be doing it as part of the finish troweling. What type of finish is planned for the decking?
Ok, this is interesting. The reading I have done on concrete states that slabs should sit for 3 days before removing forms, would the concrete be able to hold its own weight by the end of the pour? These will not have the wire ties, they are the clip loc forms that use the liner track to stay in place. The liner is not in yet, they need this poured before the liner is in so the track is free. This will just be a plain broom finish on the concrete, no stamping or staining at all.
If there aren't any wire ties running through the forms, then you should be able to leave them for as long as you want, but be aware that the broom finish will end at the forms if they're left on. And yes, leaving the forms for a few days on standard slabs, or on the side of the decking opposite the pool is generally a good idea. I prefer to leave them in place for at least 7 days if possible, as they help maintain moisture during the most critical curing period.
So what is the earliest that I can have these removed, are you saying that they should be able to remove them on site and it will hold up? If this is the case I can have the PB come back and get the liner in very quickly.
You can remove the forms very shortly after pouring and they'll hold the shape, but the concrete will be very weak and susceptible to damage initially. Regardless of when the forms get removed, if it were me I'd let it cure for a couple days before doing anything adjacent to the decking that could cause damage.
Perfect, thanks for all of your help. I will have them remove at the end of their day and not have the builder come back for a few days after for liner installation. i'll have to keep my dogs off of it too, that will be challenging.
You may want to defer to the concrete subcontractor and ask them. They are experts in the forms and cement mix they are using, as well as your local environmental conditions. You also want them to be responsible for any problems afterwards. Unless you have any really serious doubts about their abilities to do the job right, in which case you may want to ask for a different sub.
if these forms are in the liner track then yes you remove them after the pour while concrete is still slightly wet and u use a piece of the form to cream the edge and make it nice and uniform. If these are wire tie forms you do the same but u go around and cover the wire w tiny bits of mud and you use the same piece of form to cream the edge. you have to be careful when doing broomswept finish and leaving a hard line at the top of cantilever. Your concrete guy should know what to do with these forms and the process, its not a Ill do it for the first time and figure it out deal, you need to watch someone who knows how to do it first to get the feel of it I wouldnt let him practice if this is the case