I finally saw a crew use a power screed on a big garage pour in Spokane and it blew my mind

I was helping a buddy out on a side job last week, a 24x30 garage slab. The main crew showed up with this gas-powered screed I'd never seen before, a Whiteman. They hooked it up and just walked it across the forms. It vibrated and leveled the whole thing in maybe 15 minutes, no bull floating needed. My back hurt just watching them, but in a good way, lol. I've been hand screeding for 8 years and always thought those machines were overkill for residential work. Seeing how flat and fast they got it changed my mind. For a crew doing multiple pours a week, it seems like a no brainer. Has anyone here made the switch to a power screed, and was the learning curve bad?

3 comments

3 Comments

bennett.harper1mo ago

My old foreman, Dave, bought a used Allen screed for a string of condo slabs in Boise. The first day, the new guy tried to muscle it like a hand tool and buried the nose in wet concrete. They had to stop and shovel out a whole section. Dave made him practice with just water in the forms for an hour. Once they got the hang of letting the machine do the work, they cut their screed time in half on those long pours. The finish was so much tighter right off the bat.

valc911mo ago

Ever read about how those big vibrating screeds can actually over-compact the concrete if you push too hard? Sounds like that's exactly what the new guy did by forcing it. Letting the tool's own weight and vibration do the job is the whole point.

gavin3651mo ago

That Whiteman screed in Spokane changed my whole view too. I was always in the "overkill" camp until I saw the finish. Bennett.harper's story about the new guy forcing it is spot on, the trick is really just guiding it.