Doing a DIY project can sometimes be fun. If you’ve had success with some minor projects of this nature, then you might be tempted to try concrete installation by yourself. Maybe you’ve watched a few videos on YouTube, and you think it looks fairly straightforward.
You should know that doing concrete installation by yourself can backfire, though. You can contact a company like OS Concreters Ballarat if you want a team of pros who can handle the job for you. First, though, let’s discuss why this is one task that you’ll probably want to leave to the professionals.
They Know How to Do the Prep Work
Doing the prep work before concrete installation involves more than mixing up a batch of concrete and pouring it. First, you must dig up the topsoil. A professional will know the best way to do that, whereas an amateur might struggle with this first crucial step.
A pro will also know how to compact the subsoil, which is the next logical step in this process. They will then lay down the base layer, which is normally composed of granulated gravel. If you’ve never done this before, it’s entirely possible that you might mess up one of these steps.
They Will Know What Concrete to Use
You should also understand that the pros will know what concrete to use in any situation. There are multiple kinds, and it’s possible you might utilize the wrong one if you’ve never attempted a project of this kind before.
If you have a very heavy vehicle that you park in your driveway most of the time, like an RV, you will need concrete with a stronger PSI. You might not recognize lower-quality concrete if you see it in a home and garden store. The pros will know what kind to use once they ask you about your driveway or wherever else you’re pouring the new concrete.
A Job You Do Yourself Might Not Hold Up Well Over Time
You might decide you’ll tackle the job yourself, and once you finish pouring the concrete, you might be pleased with the result. Just because it looks good at the moment it’s finished, though, that does not necessarily mean it will stay that way.
If you messed up even the smallest detail of the process, that will come into play sooner rather than later. Once the concrete dries, if you didn’t get one of the earlier steps right, you can feel sure that the driveway will start showing some significant cracks before much time has elapsed.
At that point, you will feel disappointed that you didn’t call the pros to handle the job. You will likely have to call someone to come dig up the driveway again. You will have spent money on the botched job that you did, and now, you’ll have to pay additional cash to the company that will do the repairs.
There are plenty of DIY projects you can handle, but this is probably not one of them.
