Temperature seam in concrete

The temperature seam in concrete is a necessary component of this type of structure. They should be done for the reason that when the concrete hardens, and then at a temperature drop and the humidity level changes, compression or expansion of the concrete slab occurs. If there is no thermal stitch, then, due to the appearance of internal stresses, various deformations of the structure and cracks can occur, which is why the strength and durability decrease. Thanks to such solutions it is possible to evenly distribute the emerging additional loads, preventing deformation processes.

The temperature seam is used to create structures of any type, bridges and sidewalks. Over time, it can clog up dust or stones, because of what will not perform the assigned protective functions. For this reason, you should periodically clean the joints. It is possible to seal thermal seams in concrete using special elastic materials that protect them from contamination, but this will not affect their properties. Before pouring concrete , calculations are usually made for the coefficient of surface expansion, determine the width and length of the joints, as well as the distance between them.

Cutting the temperature joint, you need to follow certain recommendations:

- Proceed in a timely manner. Technologically, the right solution is to cut them in freshly laid concrete immediately after the surface has been polished. If the work is carried out much later, that is, when the material hardens, then at the edges may appear cracks, worsening the spatial characteristics of the material. That is why it is recommended to cut the seams 12 hours after pouring or 24 hours if the work was done at a lower temperature.

- The temperature seam in the building should have a calculated depth that fluctuates within one-third to one-fourth of the total thickness of the screed obtained.

- Cutting should be done with the obligatory observance of the interval.

- The mesh to be cut must not contain internal seams, since first of all the formation of cracks occurs in the internal corners.

- Temperature-shrinkage seams should not be crossed T-shaped, since such a connection often becomes the cause of the formation of cracks that cross the resulting seam.

- On the grid, there should not be areas with triangular corners, since deformations usually begin at the ends of sharp corners. If you can not avoid a triangular shape, then the figure should be made equilateral.

Temperature seam is designed to protect the walls from the occurrence of cracks during temperature deformations. According to the following data, it is possible to judge how large such deformations are: a stone building, which at a temperature of +20 degrees has a length of 20 meters, at a temperature of -20 degrees it becomes 10 millimeters shorter. Perform a seam in the form of a dowel, the depth of which should be about 5-10 millimeters.