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It Was Used For Both The Great Pyramids And New York's High-Rise - And It Can Work For You Too!

Concrete is widely regarded as the single most used man made medium in the world. Dating back to the most ancient civilizations, concrete began as a mix of dried mud, straw and animal excrement. That recipe has continued to evolve into a product we call concrete. Mixing cement (also known as portland cement), fly ash, slag cement and aggregate - cement dries and becomes hard in the shape of the mold that surrounds it. If no mold is present, it will lay flat and spread evenly until it comes up against something.

With nearly 10 billion cubic yards of concrete made each year (this equals more than 1 cubic yard for every person on earth), the concrete industry is both large and widespread. In the United States alone, the concrete industry is responsible for more than 40 billion dollars of gross sales yearly and employs more than 2 million workers across our great nation.

There are two main types of concrete that are used today - these are Reinforced Concrete and Prestressed Concrete.

1. Reinforced Concrete - developed in 1864 by William Boutlnad Wilkinson in the United Kingdom, reinforced concrete is simply the process of taking regular concrete and placing a high tensile strength material like steel (commonly rebar) inside it. This increases the ability of the concrete to handle much more stress. It will resist bending, sliding, cracking and movement to a much higher degree than regular concrete. Commonly called "Pre Cast" concrete, reinforced concrete can be manufactured to take virtually any shape, size and function.

2. Prestressed Concrete - improving on the idea of placing rebar or some other tendon-like tensile creating material in the concrete, Prestressed Concrete uses the same rebar (or similar) materials but bends them first, creating a "bending force" that compresses the concrete. Imagine bending a tree back, then letting it go - the bent tree creates a force. This force is capitalized by pouring concrete around it and using it as is applicable. For more on Prestressed Concrete visit this link.

What Is Concrete?
Properly defined, concrete is simply cement (Portland Cement) mixed with water and aggregates (rock, sand and granite). However, over the years concrete has evolved to include a much higher breadth and depth of materials. For an depth explanation of what concrete is please visit www.concretenetwork.com .
I Have Heard That Texas Is A Terrible Place For Concrete - Why?
Well, we aren't sure exactly what is meant by a "terrible place", but our guesse is that you mean Texas is a tough place for concrete to remain strong. If this is the case then we need to clarify something. Concrete typically performs best when laid in about 75 degrees. The reason is concrete forms or "hardens" as it dries out. This drying of the water in the mix allows crystals to form, if the concrete dries to fast - the crystals won't form right. Essentially making the concrete brittle and reduces overall load strength by as much as 50%. However, new advances in both mixture chemistry and application techniques now allow for a more controlled drying process, thusly ensuring a strong and even slab.
My Neighbor Just Recently Got "Decorative Concrete", What Is It?
Decorative Concrete is essentially regular concrete with a different mixture and finished with an application of colored paint, varnish or something else. In homes all across Texas, decorative concrete is being used more and more in all sorts of applications - to get a free quote simple contact us.