Concrete Built for Central Wisconsin Winters

Central Wisconsin's pour season runs May to October, while nights stay above freezing. Late-season pours are possible with cold-weather practices, but spring through fall is the safe window.

Usually it's a thin pour, a weak base, or no control joints where the slab needed them. Water gets into small cracks, freezes, and pries them wider every winter. A proper base and joint layout prevents most of it.

Yes, especially concrete less than a year old. Salt brine soaks into the surface and the freeze-thaw cycling pops the top layer off, which is called spalling. Sealing the concrete helps a lot.

Four inches handles cars; where Wausau plows stack heavy snow on the edges, five holds up better. The base underneath matters as much as the thickness.

In most cases, yes, particularly if the work touches the sidewalk or street apron. In most cases the contractor files the city paperwork for you.

Only when the old slab is solid and even — otherwise you're paving over a future crack. An overlay on a heaving or badly cracked base will crack right along with it, so an honest contractor will tell you when replacement is the smarter money.

Usually about a week for passenger vehicles, longer for heavy trucks. Cold weather slows the cure, so fall pours may need extra time before they take weight.