Just learned that curing concrete releases heat for a full week after pour

I was reading a concrete tech article from Purdue the other day and found out that a standard slab can hit 130 degrees F internally during curing. That heat stays in there for like 7 to 10 days depending on thickness. I always knew it got warm but never realized it could get that hot. It explained why some of my bigger jobs have small cracks near the edges. Has anyone else noticed that thicker pours seem to crack more no matter how good your mix is?

2 comments

2 Comments

william_taylor1mo ago

Used to think concrete curing was pretty boring and not a big deal. But reading up on it totally changed my mind, especially seeing how the internal heat builds up like that. Explains a lot about those edge cracks you mentioned.

calebw501mo ago

Yeah, I know exactly what you mean. It's wild how much heat those massive pours can generate, especially in thick sections. I've seen guys just brush it off like it's nothing, but once you actually dig into the chemistry behind it, those edge cracks make total sense. It's one of those things where the more you learn, the more you realize how much can go wrong if you're not careful.