Caring for your new concrete

Concrete is about as low-maintenance as an outdoor surface gets — but the first month and the first winter matter. Here is how to treat it.

• Respect the cure. Concrete reaches its strength over time, not overnight. We will tell you exactly when you can walk on it and when heavier things can go back — stay off it until then.
• No deicing salt the first winter. Salt is the fastest way to ruin the surface of young concrete. The first winter, use plain sand for traction and shovel early instead.
• Keep it clean the easy way. A broom and a garden hose handle almost everything. Rinse off leaf stains and dirt before they sit all season.
• Watch the edges and joints. Keep the control joints clear of packed debris, and do not let downspouts dump directly onto or beside the slab — that is what buried drainage is for.
• Expect the color to settle. New concrete reads lighter at first and evens out over the first year or two of weather.