Grasscrete brings home the gold for a project installed by the Bomanite Licensee Premier Concrete Construction winning the 2018 Bomanite Gold Award for Best Grasscrete Project. A backyard, adjacent to an Artists/Musicians studio located in Massachusetts, had several requirements. The first requirement was an access to accommodate large delivery vehicles. The second more important requirement was a permanent solution to storm water management without destroying the landscape aesthetics — nothing to ruin the vibe — for the studio’s occupants.
The perfect solution for this project was Grasscrete Pervious Concrete. With its added benefit of a very long lifespan, it easily met the requirements of storm water management while simultaneously augmenting the landscape architecture. The project incorporated 3,000 square feet of Grasscrete. A sub-base was prepped to facilitate storm water management via proper drainage and to create the outer forms of the project.
Next, the single-use Molded Pulp Formers were placed with rebar in both directions which gives Grasscrete the highly desired characteristic of being continually reinforced. Special attention was needed to ensure the straightness of the formers because any misalignment will be magnified by the long rows of voids once they are punched out. This is critical prep work before the concrete pour. The concrete is then poured, leveled, broom finished, and allowed to dry.
The voids become the mechanical system that creates the Pervious Concrete and are designed in a highly defined and regular manner. Grasscrete is commonly known as Void Structured Concrete. Here is a close-up of the Punch Tool used to punch through the layer of concrete on top of the formers and into and through the top of the Molded Pulp Formers to create the voids in the dried concrete.
Pictured is a wide view of the dried concrete on Day 2 before the voids have been created. A crew systematically punched out the voids with the Punch Tool and put the finishing touches on the entire project. To gain a full appreciation of the process, watch the time-lapse video of the installation of this project below. It takes a lot of crew members to systematically punch out one void at a time. That portion of the video is mesmerizing.
The Molded Pulp Formers are biodegradable. To clean up the project and to initiate the biodegrading process, after the voids were punched, the entire project was pressure washed. Grasscrete is an environmentally friendly Pervious Concrete solution. What’s next for this project? At the time of installation, the owner was contemplating having half of the Grasscrete fully Concealed and the half closer to the building Partially Concealed.
Watch the time-lapse video of the installation of this project.
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