Asked by: Flo Paules
business and finance construction industry

What do you put in expansion joints?

17
Pipe expansion joints are necessary in systems that convey high temperature substances such as steam or exhaust gases, or to absorb movement and vibration. A typical joint is a bellows of metal (most commonly stainless steel), plastic (such as PTFE), fabric (such as glass fibre) or an elastomer such as rubber.


Also asked, what can I use for expansion joints?

How to Replace Concrete Expansion Joints

  • Sweep away any dirt and debris from the area.
  • Dig out and remove all the old material that's in the joints with a putty knife.
  • With a wet-dry vacuum, clean out the joints between the slabs very well.
  • Apply a bonding adhesive, usually epoxy, into the joints with a brush.
  • Insert foam backer rod.
  • Cover and seal the joint.

Beside above, where are expansion joints required? Pavement expansion joints are only needed when: The pavement is divided into long panels (60 ft (18 m) or more) without contraction joints in-between. The pavement is constructed while ambient temperatures are below 40F (4C). The contraction joints are allowed to be infiltrated by large incompressible materials.

Simply so, what material is used for expansion joints in concrete?

Minimize Concrete Cracking and Damage with Expansion Joints. ASPHALT EXPANSION JOINT is composed of a blend of asphalts, vegetable fibers, and mineral fillers formed under heat and pressure between two asphalt-saturated liners. It is waterproof, permanent, flexible, and self-sealing.

Do expansion joints need to be filled?

Just remember that expansion joints should always be sealed and filled with a flexible joint sealer and never be epoxied or coated over. Contraction joints can be filled in the same manner after a coating or sealer is applied.

Related Question Answers

Kemberly Volkholz

Professional

How wide should an expansion joint be?

Expansion joints should be wide enough to prevent portions of the building on either side of the joint from corning in contact, when the structure is subjected to the maximum expected temperature rise. Joints vary in width from 1 to 6 in.

Miladin Leipacher

Professional

How do I fill the gaps in my concrete driveway?

The best way to repair your expansion gap is to use purpose-designed foam backer rods and self-leveling caulk. Both materials are available in most home improvement stores. Cut your foam backer rods to the proper length for your expansion gap and press them into the gap.

Prados Estremera

Professional

Should concrete control joints be caulked?

Control joints or saw cuts should be addressed the same as above. The control joint can be filled with backer rod or even sand. Filling the saw cut is mandatory as control joints are 1/4 the thickness of the concrete. On a 4″ slab, that is a 1″ deep saw cut and nobody want to use that much caulking.

Irache Muller

Explainer

What is the difference between a control joint and an expansion joint?

A control joint is used to reduce the occurrence of shrinkage in concrete, and it is usually a continuous, vertical joint filled with mortar. An expansion joint is a continuous or horizontal joint. Unlike control joints, expansion joints are left completely free of mortar.

Consuela Camphausen

Explainer

How do you make concrete seams?

By using concrete control joints you can fix where those cracks will occur.
  1. Step 1 - Pouring. Concrete control joints, also known as expansion joints, are something best added when you're pouring the concrete or before it cures.
  2. Step 2 - Setting in Place.
  3. Step 3 - Trowel.
  4. Step 4 - Cement Saw.

Azan Zarzalejo

Explainer

What is the best concrete caulk?

Silicone represents another popular material to use as a concrete caulk. It does not degrade as fast as the organic urethane caulks, and it remains flexible yet sturdy in its hold. One of the best uses for silicone caulk involves filling the gaps between concrete and other materials, such as brick, wood or metal.

Franz Tschinkel

Pundit

Are concrete expansion joints necessary?

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.

Babul Preda

Pundit

What do you use to fill gaps in concrete?

For this reason, forget about filling the gap with a hard repair compound that's cement based. You need to fill it with something that's flexible. When installing a new slab against an existing one, many concrete masons put expansion joint material between the two slabs.

Erikas Poladura

Pundit

How deep should control joints be?

A 4" slab should have joints 8-12 feet apart. Cut joints deep enough. Cut joints 25% of the depth of the slab. A 4" thick slab should have joints 1" deep.

Loay Labarrieta

Pundit

How do you install fiber expansion joints?

FIBRE EXPANSION JOINT should be installed 1/2″ (12.7 mm) below the concrete surface to accept the joint sealant. Before sealing, slide SNAP-CAP® from W. R. MEADOWS over the top of the expansion joint. Place the concrete and screed to finish grade, as usual.

Riffat Shahgildyan

Pundit

How often should expansion joints be used?

How Often Do You Need Expansion Joints? Usually, expansion joints should be no farther apart than 2 to 3 times (in feet) the total width of the concrete (in inches). So for a 4 inch thick concrete slab, expansion joints should be no more than 8 to 12 feet apart.

Embarek Glavinsky

Teacher

How long can you build a wall without an expansion joint?

DON'T go more than 25 feet without a vertical expansion joint for brickwork in a veneer or cavity wall without openings, such as windows. “This is a well-accepted rule of thumb in the industry,” says Tann.

Kasandra Arion

Teacher

What is an expansion gap?

An expansion gap is a term used when fitting wooden flooring. The expansion gap should be around the whole perimeter of the room, wherever the flooring may be against fixed objects, such as walls, doorways, radiator pipes and fireplaces.

Fabriciano Soriano

Teacher

How often do you need a movement joint in brickwork?

In order to avoid the detrimental effects of differential vertical movement between the inner and outer leaves of a wall a horizontal movement joint should be provided at no more than every third storey or 9m, whichever is the less.

Giuseppe Veneza

Teacher

Why do we need expansion joints?

Expansion joint is a joint provided in a building to mitigate the risk of crack formation due to thermal expansion. The joint allows separation of building that will allow the building to expand and release stresses thereby preventing release of stresses by cracking.

Chadi Igartuburu

Reviewer

What is the purpose of expansion joints in bridges?

An expansion joint or movement joint is an assembly designed to hold parts together while safely absorbing temperature-induced expansion and contraction of building materials, and vibration, or to allow movement due to ground settlement or seismic activity.

Lisardo Pocinhos

Reviewer

Are control joints necessary?

This means that any cracks that occur before the concrete is sawed will render the sawed joint ineffective. Timing is very important. 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.

Sadrac Dordal

Reviewer

How do you caulk a large gap?

To make sure these gaps are as well sealed as your others, follow these easy instructions.
  1. Remove all old caulk from the joint to be filled.
  2. Measure the size of the gap that needs to be filled.
  3. Fill larger gaps with foam backer rod, sometimes called spline.
  4. Put a surface bead of caulk over the filled gap.

Titu Maneja

Reviewer

What is self leveling sealant?

Self Leveling Sealant is a single component, self-leveling, premium grade polyurethane sealant with an accelerated curing capacity. It seals horizontal expansion joints in concrete and cementitious slabs requiring no tooling.

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EveryThingWhat Staff Editor

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10th March, 2020

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