Automatic Concrete Curing Blankets

Short-cutting the curing process will have a major impact on the quality of your finished concrete. An improperly or uncured slab is likely to develop cracks that affect the durability and life of concrete. Strength and durability of concrete is attained only by proper curing. It is essential to maintain proper moisture in concrete throughout the hydration process. Moisture transfer during construction could prevent concrete from developing its full strength and might lead to high shrinkage stresses. One method of curing concrete is by use of a concrete curing blankets.

Concrete Curing Blankets

A curing blanket typically comprises a large burlap blanket, often in ten feet by forty feet pieces, covered with a plastic material. The curing blanket is placed on the recently mixed concrete and the burlap side of the blanket, which is in contact with the concrete, is periodically wetted in order to maintain moisture on the surface of the concrete. The curing blanket can require rewetting every six to eight hours or less depending on weather conditions. As a result, the curing blanket typically must be rewetted many times during the curing period.

Manual Labor

In order to wet the curing blanket, workers typically use a large hose, connected to a water source, to spray the burlap portion on the underside of the blanket. A gas powered pump is often required in order to provide sufficient water pressure to the large hose. This process requires significant manual labor since the curing blanket must be physically lifted to access the burlap underside and since rewetting, in some cases, may be necessary hourly.

Water Waste

Workers often must use a large and heavy hose, similar to a fireman’s hose, to spray the curing blanket. The hose discharges substantial amounts of water and therefore a significant amount of water does not reach the curing blanket and ends up on the ground or elsewhere. As a result, this process can waste a significant amount of water and result in a messy work site condition.

Human Error

Since this process relies on manual labor, error is possible since a worker may forget to rewet the curing blanket or may wet the blanket with too much or not enough water. Human error can result in significant monetary and temporal consequences. According to certain government regulations, if a worker forgets to spray the curing blanket and the concrete structure does not pass certain inspections, then the concrete structure may have to be rebuilt completely resulting in a loss of time and money for the builder.

Automatic Concrete Curing System

The Cure Tender automatically and periodically applies water to concrete curing blankets to ensure proper curing. Our automatic concrete curing blankets will not only save you money, it will save you valuable time.