Concreted.com is about architectural concrete blocks, concrete resurfacing, decorative concrete, concrete stain, concrete sealer's, stamped concrete, concrete pumps & various other concrete related topics.

Concrete
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Concrete is a compound material made from sand, gravel and cement. The cement is a mixture of various minerals which when mixed with water, hydrate and rapidly become hard binding the sand and gravel into a solid mass. The oldest known surviving concrete is to be found in the former Yugoslavia and was thought to have been laid in 5,600 BC using red lime as the cement.

Concrete is made from sand, gravel & cement

The first major concrete users were the Egyptians in around 2,500 BC and the Romans from 300 BC, in fact the very word 'concrete' is derived from the Latin concretus, meaning grown together or compounded. Most of the surviving roman structures, from the Colosseum to Hadrian's Wall, were constructed using concrete.

The Colosseum, Rome

The quality of cementing materials deteriorated and even the use of concrete died out during the Middle Ages as the art of using burning lime and pozzolan (admixture) was lost, but it was later reintroduced in the 1300s. In 1414 the manuscripts of the Roman Pollio Vitruvius were discovered in a Swiss monastery reviving general interest in concrete, however it was not until the 1800s and the emergance of Portland cement that the next developments in concrete took place.

Portland cement was first manufactured in Britain in the early part of the 19th century, and its name is derived from its similarity to Portland stone, a type of building stone that was quarried on the Isle of Portland in Dorset, England. The patent for Portland cement was issued to Joseph Aspdin, a British bricklayer, in 1824.

Pouring concrete foundations

Concrete is now universally the most commonly used construction material for foundations, reinforced frames for buildings, bridge decks, retaining walls, roof tiles, in-situ and precast floors. Most structural concrete is supplied to site as ready mixed concrete. Many modern concretes contain admixtures, such as plasticisers, and pozzolanic additives, such as pulverised-fuel ash or blast furnace slag to enhance the durability or reduce the cost of the concrete.

Architectural Concrete Block - Architectural concrete blocks are similar to regular concrete blocks but have a decorative finish. They come in a number of unit styles like: Rock Face units, Splyt Face units, Corduroy units and Break Off units.

Concrete Resurfacing - If your concrete has become cracked or stained there are concrete resurfacing solutions available like Spray-Top and Scofield Texturetop. These concrete resurfacing products can make your concrete look like new again.

Decorative Concrete - Decorative concrete techniques like stamped concrete, acid stain and concrete overlays add texture, colour and interest to dull expanses of plain concrete.

Concrete Stain - Concrete stains like Kemiko stone tone stain and Triple-S concrete acid stains give your driveway, walkway or patio a fresh new look and provide a simple way to add color and style to these surfaces.

Concrete Sealer - Untreated concrete will absorb water and be susceptible to damage from rain and frost. Concrete sealers form a protective layer on your concrete preventing cracking and maintaining it for years to come.

Stamped Concrete - Stamped concrete is the process of adding texture and color to concrete to make it resemble natural stone, brick, cobble and slate. Products like Creative Impressions texture mats and Cobblecrete concrete stamps allow you to achieve these effects.

Concrete Pumps - Concrete pumps are the easiest and most cost efficient method of moving and placing large amounts of concrete. Schwing KVM 17 Boom Pump and the Schwing KVM 32XL Boom Pump are popular models.

Concrete Companies - Company profiles of a number of concrete companies, including: Bolduc, Border Magic and Distinctive Concrete. Further details about these companies can be found by clicking on the relevant links.

Precast Concrete - Precast concrete is cast and cured at a factory and then transported to a work site for erection. It can be used in flooring like the HumeSlab flooring system and building systems like Omnia precast concrete formwork.

The most relevant links we could find, placed here free

The Concrete Centre - This website has lots of information and news about many different issues relating to concrete. www.concretecentre.com

Concrete Network - Lots of information about many different types of concrete can be found here. www.concretenetwork.com