How deep can you Sawcut concrete?

A good rule of thumb is to cut the joints one-quarter to one-third the slab thickness. 1 For a 6-inch-thick slab, that means cutting 1.5 to 2 inches deep. Ensure that the saw cut depth meets the structural engineering specifications.

How deep should contraction joints be?

¼
Contraction/control joints must be established to a depth of ¼ the slab thickness (Figure 2). Proper joint spacing and depth are essential to effective control of random cracking.

How deep should my slab be?

However, the usual thickness of a concrete slab is around 10 cm. Whatever you plan on doing, your concrete slab should be at least 5 cm thick. That is the bare minimum of a concrete slab thickness.

What is a Sawcut joint?

Sawcut joints minimize random cracking that result from drying shrinkage and temperature changes. A joint creates weakened sections where cracks form. Joint activation (cracking) occurs beneath the sawed slot when shrinkage and temperature stress exceed the tensile strength of the concrete.

Does concrete need expansion joints?

Expansion joints are virtually never needed with interior slabs, because the concrete doesn’t expand that much—it never gets that hot. Expansion joints in concrete pavement are also seldom needed, since the contraction joints open enough (from drying shrinkage) to account for temperature expansion.

When should you use a Sawcut control joint?

Sawcut Timing In general, saw cut joints should be installed as soon as the concrete is sufficiently hard to resist tearing and raveling and before random cracking occurs.

What is the difference between construction joint and contraction joint?

Both isolation and construction joints are formed before the concrete is poured; contraction joints (or control joints) are “placed” in the fresh concrete before it has a chance to create its own joints—also known as cracks.