To an outsider, making cuts in your lovely smooth concrete floor may seem to make little sense. However, saw cutting is important for preventing cracks. Saw cutting essentially limits the damage of inevitable shrinkage during the curing process by forcing any cracks to follow a weakened line of our own making.
Once a concrete slab begins to cure, it starts to shrink; this can be limited by using a good concrete mix, however, concrete will always shrink to some degree - it’s unavoidable. As the concrete shrinks, forces act on the concrete to literally pull it apart, causing ugly cracks to form.
The act of saw cutting creates control / contraction joints – essentially weakened lines of concrete that direct any potential cracking along those same lines. Doing this, you can make the concrete crack where you want it too as it shrinks.
However, correct depth and timing in saw cutting is essential – wait too long and your industrial floor will crack wherever it pleases, and if the depth of the cut is too shallow the weakness will not be significant enough to guide the cracks.
As a general rule, control joints should be cut at ¼ of the slab’s overall thickness. Any deeper than this and the overall load-bearing capabilities of the concrete slab will be compromised.
If you need our expert advice regarding your concrete flooring project, don't hesitate to get in touch. Our concrete finishers are highly experienced in installing concrete industrial flooring to a range of specifications, and know exactly what to do when it comes to saw cutting and preventing cracks. Call us today on 01590 676 585 to get started.