I am currently working on renovating an old house built in 1888.  We
have run into some problems where the foundation is crumbling in
certain areas and will need to be patched/ repoured.
    I know that concrete has changed in its chemistry a lot over the
last 120 years and that things such as portland cement and rebar,
which are integral parts of modern concrete construction were not
widely in use at the end of the 19th century.  Also, I know that
different chemical make ups and attributes(ph levels, breathability
etc...) between the two types of concrete can create adverse
reactions.
  So.  I would like to know how concrete was formulated in the 1880's
(in the portland, Ore area for a middle class home more specifically).
   and how to make it, or a compatible modern day equivilent.
thank you very much

---

Request for Question Clarification by kriswrite-ga on 18 Oct 2004 11:52 PDT

According to many sources, concrete was not in widespread use in the
U.S. until the 1890s (for sidewalks and roads) and 1920s (for
foundations). One web site explains: "Even though concrete has been
around since the dawn of mankind (the oldest use of concrete dates
back to 5600 BC), poured cement home foundations and foundation walls
(for homes with dirt basements) didn?t start showing up really big in
the United States until the 1920s. Concrete was indeed used in the
U.S. as early as the 1800s, but economies of scale, transportation
improvements and local construction habits didn't make their use of
poured concrete a big enough deal until just before the Great
Depression...
?Cement is indeed an ancient building material, but the degree of its
use is an exceptionally reliable way to date the site or general area
you?re looking at. According to Bruce McIntosh of the Portland Cement
Association of America, the turn of the century was ?really about the
time a cement and concrete industry was born in the U.S.? ... American
home builders didn?t start pouring concrete foundations and foundation
walls until roughly the time Herbert Hoover was promising everyone a
chicken in every pot. In most areas, poured cement foundations really
didn?t catch on big until guys who survived the battlefields of France
and Germany started cashing in on the GI Bill during the late 1940s
and demanding that someone invent the American suburban subdivision."
("Use Home Foundations to Date Your Sites:?
http://scottybuck.home.att.net/crg/cement.htm )
Therefore, it may be prudent to first consider whether or not the
home?s original foundation has been replaced. A good indication may be
other homes in the area (on the same block), built around the same
time. If they don?t have concrete foundations, you may be dealing with
a foundation that?s newer than the home.

Kriswrite