Pouring concrete dog kennel

Have played with the idea of doing this to make mine beter. Is there any real reason to go 4 inches thick? Would 2 inches thick be good enough. Looking to do on a budget (a Low one)

I think 2 inches would be fine. Make sure you have good joints to control the cracks. I'd also ask for #89 stone instead of #57.

Make sure you pour on red clay and not top soil. I'd go 4 inches on the edges and go thinner in the middle and use gravel and wire to help it stay in place. X2 on the control joints.

Years ago when I had dogs I did mine 4" thick and Im glad I did. Now years later Im out of the dog breeding business and I have a nice thick slab to park my camper on or maybe one day build a shed on.

Make sure you slope the concrete, and if you are getting it from a concrete plant ask them to entrain air into the mix, this will help the concrete from cracking during freezing weather.

The fear is it breaking up, then it will require demo and starting all over, costing 3x as much. It pays to do it right the first time.

What size area are you talking about?

Woodsman brought up a good point. When you're done kenneling, a 4" slab can be re-purposed.

And I'm no concrete expert, but a 2" slab just doesn't seem thick enough to last. A few seasons of freeze/thaw cycles, and that slab will be spider webbed with cracks and crumbling away.

Mine is now a tool shed. Go 4". Also, have a good washout trough and catch basin.

Four inches......smooth finish.....

GA native said:

Woodsman brought up a good point. When you're done kenneling, a 4" slab can be re-purposed.

And I'm no concrete expert, but a 2" slab just doesn't seem thick enough to last. A few seasons of freeze/thaw cycles, and that slab will be spider webbed with cracks and crumbling away.

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This^^

Concrete is porous and will absorb moisture and during a freeze you will pay the piper. 4" is the minimum standard for a reason.

If I was going to pour concrete, it would be no thinner than 4 inches and would remove any topsoil. I see cheap sidewalks all the time that are 2.5 and 3 inches thick and they look awful after a few years of hard winters

Make sure you cut fault lines, goal being squares. Any rectangle will crack

1gr8bldr said:

goal being squares. Any rectangle will crack

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Did not know this. Can you explain why or ? Thanks

rospaw said:

Did not know this. Can you explain why or ? Thanks

Click to expand...

Any hydrated material will shrink once the water evaporates. You have probably seen a dried pond bed where the top layer cracked. It can withstand it when everything is equal. But say, a sidewalk, it being rectangular, it has to two forces, two masses pulling in a tug of war with not enough material to hold it. People call it an expansion joint. It's really a shrink fault line. Later, months later, it becomes a fault line to help with shifting forces but the shrink issue is over. I cut my fault lines as soon as I can get on it and not have cutting issues. If you cut 24 hrs later, you will probably already have cracks. If you cut to early, the blade will cut the concrete good however the aggrigate, the rock, will not cut but will pull up, giving you a nasty looking joint that can't be fixed. I can't recall the proper depth of the cut. That's a debate. Some even say 1/4. I go 3/4 on a 4 inch slab, slightly more on the edges, the last couple inches. If you start to pay attention to concrete that you see around town, you will notice a very predictable pattern in where it cracks. Always midway on rectangles. Always where a big mass joins another mass like where a sidewalk joins a slab, etc. Those crack control lines being symetrical and straight look so much better than a nasty random crack, LOL, however I had a homeowner once who was mad because he was not having those cut lines on his concrete. They actually went as far as to have another concrete guy come out and he told them it was done right and explained it to him.

J-seph I poured mine 3.5''deep.Leveled it with the 2x4's. It is 26'x18'. I made my slope 1/2'' front to back. I smoothed it the best it would get. It is one solid piece. I laid hog wire before pouring to hold it together without cracking. After 13 years it still looks like it did the day i poured it. I did one earlier in the years 2'' thick and it crack and busted over time. Just make sure it doesn't have fiber in the concrete.

1gr8bldr said:

Any hydrated material will shrink once the water evaporates. You have probably seen a dried pond bed where the top layer cracked. It can withstand it when everything is equal. But say, a sidewalk, it being rectangular, it has to two forces, two masses pulling in a tug of war with not enough material to hold it. People call it an expansion joint. It's really a shrink fault line. Later, months later, it becomes a fault line to help with shifting forces but the shrink issue is over. I cut my fault lines as soon as I can get on it and not have cutting issues. If you cut 24 hrs later, you will probably already have cracks. If you cut to early, the blade will cut the concrete good however the aggrigate, the rock, will not cut but will pull up, giving you a nasty looking joint that can't be fixed. I can't recall the proper depth of the cut. That's a debate. Some even say 1/4. I go 3/4 on a 4 inch slab, slightly more on the edges, the last couple inches. If you start to pay attention to concrete that you see around town, you will notice a very predictable pattern in where it cracks. Always midway on rectangles. Always where a big mass joins another mass like where a sidewalk joins a slab, etc. Those crack control lines being symetrical and straight look so much better than a nasty random crack, LOL, however I had a homeowner once who was mad because he was not having those cut lines on his concrete. They actually went as far as to have another concrete guy come out and he told them it was done right and explained it to him.

Click to expand...

Thanks!
The rectangle threw me off. I have done on my own and friends projects with cut expansion joints and even wood (Cyprus) joints but never knew not to make them rectangles. I do know of one that was a back drive to a hobbyshop at a friend house that looked great except for one large rectangle that cracked bad at close to the "square" line. Only place in the whole 60' long pour. The rest was basically squares.

found this:

Concrete Joints Placing Tips
The following recommended tips should be observed:

Maximum Joint Spacing should be 24 to 36 times the thickness of the slab.
Joints should be spaced about 10 feet and a maximum of 15 feet.
When using joint groove for contraction joints, the joint should be a minimum depth of ¼ thickness of the slab.
Saw-cut joints should be done within 4 to 12 hours after the concrete has been finished.
Keyed joints are not recommended for industrial floors.
Dry-cut joints should be made between 1 to 4 hours after completion of finishing.
The pre-molded joint filler should be used to separate slabs from building walls or footings. Place 2 inches of sand over the top of a footing to prevent bond to the footing.
If the slab contains wire mesh it is recommended to discontinue the mesh across contraction joints.
Joint spacing should also be chosen so that concrete sections are approximately square.
It is recommended to have concrete joints along column lines either sawed or keyed.
Metal dowels should be used in slabs that carry heavy loads.
Plan exact locations of all joints including the timing of saw cutting.
Use isolation joints between slabs and columns, walls and footings and where curbs or sidewalks meet other concrete structures.
Materials used on concrete joints must be flexible enough to absorb or deform as needed and then being able to restore back to their original state.
Always look for materials that are permeable and that are able to bond to the concrete.

https://www.thebalance.com/types-of-concrete-joints-845022

1gr8bldr said:

Any hydrated material will shrink once the water evaporates. You have probably seen a dried pond bed where the top layer cracked. It can withstand it when everything is equal. But say, a sidewalk, it being rectangular, it has to two forces, two masses pulling in a tug of war with not enough material to hold it. People call it an expansion joint. It's really a shrink fault line. Later, months later, it becomes a fault line to help with shifting forces but the shrink issue is over. I cut my fault lines as soon as I can get on it and not have cutting issues. If you cut 24 hrs later, you will probably already have cracks. If you cut to early, the blade will cut the concrete good however the aggrigate, the rock, will not cut but will pull up, giving you a nasty looking joint that can't be fixed. I can't recall the proper depth of the cut. That's a debate. Some even say 1/4. I go 3/4 on a 4 inch slab, slightly more on the edges, the last couple inches. If you start to pay attention to concrete that you see around town, you will notice a very predictable pattern in where it cracks. Always midway on rectangles. Always where a big mass joins another mass like where a sidewalk joins a slab, etc. Those crack control lines being symetrical and straight look so much better than a nasty random crack, LOL, however I had a homeowner once who was mad because he was not having those cut lines on his concrete. They actually went as far as to have another concrete guy come out and he told them it was done right and explained it to him.

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To a point. Concrete also expands in extreme heat. Our sidewalks in our subdivision were given the standard trowel joints when they were put in 12 years ago (useless btw) and there is one section that we have had saw cuts done on because in the summers that are really hot it actually expands causing the sidewalk to lift a good 3" off of the ground at one of the trowel joints. (no trees, roots etc causing it) and once we did a series of saw cuts, problem solved.

Miguel Cervantes said:

To a point. Concrete also expands in extreme heat. Our sidewalks in our subdivision were given the standard trowel joints when they were put in 12 years ago (useless btw) and there is one section that we have had saw cuts done on because in the summers that are really hot it actually expands causing the sidewalk to lift a good 3" off of the ground at one of the trowel joints. (no trees, roots etc causing it) and once we did a series of saw cuts, problem solved.

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Yes, I could see that happening on a long sidewalk. On a typical pour, it moves ever so slightly. That's why expasion board should always be used in a confined area of concrete. Many front porches with a brick rolllock have expanded and barely show a crack in the mortar joint of the brick exterior rowlock, all the way around

Depending on the size, I would check with your supplier. They have a minimum, so you may can go deeper for the same money.