"Did you find burlap easier to source locally, or was it more about handling convenience?"
Actually, a bit of both. Burlap was surprisingly easy to find at my local garden center—it's often sold as landscaping fabric or frost protection material. Plus, handling-wise, it's just way more forgiving than plastic. You can drape it easily, and it stays put without fighting you every step of the way (unlike plastic sheets that seem determined to fly off at the slightest breeze...been there!).
You're spot-on about weather being a wildcard. Last spring, I poured a small walkway and got hit with an unexpected cold snap. Had to improvise by layering extra burlap and even tossing some old blankets on top overnight. Looked ridiculous but did the trick. DIY concrete definitely keeps you on your toes—always something new to learn or adapt to. Glad your patio project turned out okay despite the heat spikes; misting constantly is no joke, especially when you're racing against evaporation.
"DIY concrete definitely keeps you on your toes—always something new to learn or adapt to."
Totally relate to this! I've mostly stuck with plastic sheeting myself, mainly because it's always lying around from other projects. But honestly, I'm intrigued by your burlap approach. Plastic is such a pain when it comes to wind, and it's like wrestling a giant kite sometimes...not fun at all.
I hadn't thought about garden centers for burlap—usually I just associate them with plants and mulch. Good to know there's another handy source. How reusable is burlap, though? Does it hold up after a few uses, or does it start falling apart on you pretty quickly?
And yeah, weather surprises are the absolute worst. Last summer I was pouring footings, and a random thunderstorm came rolling in out of nowhere. Ended up scrambling for tarps and plywood to cover everything up. Felt ridiculous, but hey, whatever works, right?
I've actually found burlap to be more hassle than it's worth. Tried it once because I had some leftover from landscaping, but after a couple uses it started fraying and shedding fibers everywhere—ended up being a mess. Plastic might be annoying in the wind, but at least it doesn't leave bits stuck in your concrete finish. Guess it's a trade-off between convenience and durability...
Yeah, burlap can definitely be a pain—I learned that the hard way too. I remember one job where we thought we'd save some cash using leftover burlap from another project. Big mistake... spent more time picking fibers out of the finish than actually pouring concrete. Plastic sheeting isn't perfect either, but at least it doesn't leave you with fuzzy concrete. Sometimes convenience wins out over trying to reuse materials, unfortunately.
Totally agree on burlap—been there, done that, never again. A few quick thoughts from experience:
- Plastic sheeting is cleaner, but watch out for wrinkles. They can leave subtle marks that catch the eye later.
- Canvas drop cloths can be a decent middle ground. Less fuzz than burlap, more durable than plastic, and reusable.
- If you're after texture intentionally, burlap can actually be cool...but yeah, accidental fuzziness isn't exactly designer-approved.
Sometimes experimenting leads to happy accidents, other times just headaches...
