Coastal Work Is No Joke
We just wrapped up a seawall cap pour over on Siesta Key and man, I gotta say - waterfront concrete is probably the most demanding work we do. Everything about it is harder. The access is tighter, the conditions are harsher, and you absolutely CANNOT cut corners on materials.
Salt air eats concrete. Not overnight, but give it 5-10 years without proper protection and you'll see the rebar start rusting and the concrete spalling off in chunks. I've seen seawalls on Longboat Key that were only 15 years old and looked like they were 50.
What We Do Different for Coastal Jobs
- Higher cement content mix - we spec a 4500 PSI mix minimum for anything within a few hundred feet of salt water. Standard residential is usually 3500-4000.
- Epoxy-coated or stainless rebar - regular rebar rusts. Period. On the coast that rust expands and cracks the concrete from the inside out. Coated rebar costs more but saves you from a full rebuild in 10 years.
- Marine-grade sealers - we use a penetrating silane/siloxane sealer on all our coastal work. It soaks into the concrete and creates a barrier against chloride intrusion. Way better than a surface film that'll peel off.
- Proper drainage - water table is HIGH on the keys. Sometimes we're dealing with water seeping up during the pour. You've gotta account for that in your forming and base prep.
The Seawall Cap Pour
This particular job was a 60-foot seawall cap. The old cap was crumbling - you could literally pull chunks off by hand. We demoed the old cap, set new forms, placed epoxy-coated rebar, and poured a new cap with a slight slope away from the water. Whole thing took about a week including cure time.
We also poured a small waterfront patio while we were out there. Customer wanted a broom finish with a stamped border - looked real sharp against the bay.
If you've got waterfront property on Siesta Key, Longboat Key, Osprey, or anywhere along the coast and your concrete is showing its age, don't wait until it's an emergency. Drop us a line - (941) 374-8674.