Cold Joint | Cold Joint Concrete | Cold Joints In Concrete | Concrete Cold Joint Repair

Cold Joint Concrete

Concrete Cold joint is defined as the plane of weakness in concrete due to an interruption or delay in the concreting operations.

Cold joint in Concrete is generally formed when the first batch of concrete start setting before the next batch arises so that the two batches do not intermix.

Sometimes, the cold joint is placed due to accidental interruptions and delays and sometimes because of the work stoppage at the end of the day, but they can ‘also occur from poor consolidation.

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Effect of Cold Joint In Concrete

Cold joints in Concrete are one type of crack in concrete when it gets hardened. These joint does not create gaps in the concrete but merely seams containing no appreciable void structure. A cold joint is usually linear, closely joined, and bonded.

However, there is a chance of a small void area in concrete where the concrete is not fully compacted, as with any concrete pour. These small voids can lead to crack development in the future.

Generally, cold joint concrete does not create any structural problems if the joint is in compression. However, the location of the cold joint, the structural function of the element, and aesthetics need to be considered when assessing a cold joint.

A cold joint can be a weak point, but not always. If concrete is placed before, but the vertical bar is sticking out of the concrete for attachment later, then structurally, it is not really a weak point.

It is essential to have a good joint at the place of concrete interruption.

It’s more important that the concrete is placed before having a roughened surface (unfinished) in order for the concrete to mechanically bond to that surface.

If there is, no bar left of old concrete then this cold joint can be considered a weak point.  

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How to Avoid Concrete Cold Joint

• To avoid concrete cold joints in structural members like columns, beams, and slabs it is necessary to place concrete in layers about 18 inches deep and intermix each layer with the previous one by using a vibrator.
• Concrete pouring should begin in the corners and work toward the center.
• During slab casting, concrete should be placed against the preceding batch and not dumped in an individual pile.
• In the case of sloping components like stairs and rafts, the work should proceed uphill.
• While concreting in hot weather retarding admixture may be needed to slow the setting time.

Concrete Cold Joint Repair

Concrete cold joints occur due to many reasons. If the joint has compression forces there is no structural problem but aesthetically it should be avoided. Cold joints may lead to failure if the joint is in tension.

So, the question arises of how to avoid cold joints in concrete. here are some remedial measures to avoid cold joints in concrete,

• In the case of concrete recently placed in fresh condition and if vibrators can penetrate the surface without much effort, fresh concrete can be placed directly against the old surface. Care should be taken that old concrete should be covered by fresh concrete as quickly as possible and the joint thoroughly and systematically vibrated.

• In the second case if the concrete has become a little bit harder but can still be easily removed by a light hand pick, the surface will be raked thoroughly and the concrete in a loose state is removed without disturbing the rest of the concrete in depth.

• This place must be filled with a rich mortar layer 12 mm in thickness placed on the cold joint, fresh concrete is then placed on the mortar layer and that cold joint is systematically and thoroughly vibrated penetrating the vibrator deep into the old layer of concrete.

• If concrete placed before becomes too hard or stiff to be remolded and mortar or slurry does not raise in spite of extensive vibration, the joint is left to harden for at least 12 – 24 hrs. Then this type of cold joint must be cured as a regular construction joint, after cutting the concrete to the required shape and preparing the surface.

FAQs: Cold Joints Concrete Repairs:

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