What is post tension concrete?
Post-tension concrete is a slab with cables, called tendons, running through it that are pulled tight once the concrete is strong enough, which squeezes the slab in compression. The pull comes when the concrete reaches a strength of 2,000 psi, inside the 3 to 10 day window the Post-Tensioning Institute recommends, and each cable is drawn to 33,000 pounds.
The institute says that compression resists the tension soil movement puts on a slab, and it rates post-tensioning a cost-efficient way to deal with house foundation problems on ground that shrinks and swells. In McLennan County, the USDA soil survey gives a high shrink-swell potential to most of its clayey upland group, which covers about 26 percent of the county.
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Post-tension slabs in houses and larger buildings
Under a house, the slab typically runs 8 inches thick, poured with 3,000 psi concrete. The institute also names offices, apartments and parking garages among its uses. Never cut or drill into one casually, because a severed tendon is very hard to fix.
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