Rice Lake Truck Scales - Manual (Page 18)

14 Survivor
®
SR Siderail Truck Scale Assembly Instrucitons
With the bay level and floated, finish against the siderails with either a
magnesium float or steel trowel for a neat deck line level with the exposed cross
beams. If you have taped plastic-film splatter guards on the siderails, the bottom
tape strip will serve as a guide for the finished deck level between cross beams.
When the first bay has been floated with a magnesium float and has set enough
for finishing, use a radius edger to finish the metal/concrete joint at each cross
beam.
Move to the next section and pour and vibrate that section.
Use a screed board cut to the appropriate length for this section. This
section will be wide enough to use a bull float to assure a level surface.
Finishing the edge along the siderail can be done from outside the scale to
eliminate using kneeboards on the fresh concrete.
Continue with each section in the same manner. As a general guideline, a 90' x
14' deck 8" thick should require approximately 30-32 cubic yards of concrete,
necessitating two or possibly three concrete trucks. A short break between trucks
will allow time to finish float and edge poured sections while waiting for the
next concrete truck. Don’t forget to clean out concrete from the drain tubes on
each bay.
For a non-skid surface, use a stiff bristle broom for a brushed finish when the
concrete has set enough for final finishing.
Curing the Completed Concrete Deck: The concrete deck must be maintained in a moist state for at least seven
days for a satisfactory cure. If the top surface of the deck is allowed to dry out during this time, the finished surface
will be prone to unsightly spalling and be weakened from surface cracking.
A moist surface can be maintained by covering the entire deck with a continuous 4-6 mil sheet of polyethylene
plastic turned up and dammed at the ends and kept filled with 1" of water. Alternately, an epoxy-based concrete
curing solution can be sprayed or rolled onto the deck surface immediately after final finishing and while the
concrete surface is still moist. As the epoxy curing solution will also seal in concrete stains on the exposed beams,
clean off stains with a damp sponge before applying the curing solution to the deck. Epoxy-based concrete curing
products are available at contractor-supply companies. Do not use the petroleum-based or paraffin-based
waterproofing agents advertised for wood decks and concrete patios available at hardware stores or lumberyards.
These products are not curing agents, and will allow the deck surface to rapidly dry out.