Nothing lasts forever, not even concrete:
Downspout Splash Block – Corroded Concrete
The downspouts are obviously more recent than the splash blocks, but the whole shopping center wasn’t more than a few decades old. Rain isn’t nearly as acid as it used to be, but it still eats away at concrete.
After about two decades, though, even high-quality concrete goes bad:
Rt 376 bridge deterioration – marker 1102 – 2018-05-07
That’s the upper surface of the Rt 376 bridge at Red Oaks Mill, with a fragment of the corroded lower edge still dangling over the Wappinger Creek:
Red Oaks Mill bridge – dangling concrete
Mostly, we manage to bike around the decayed infrastructure.
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#1 by Dave Mackie on 2018-05-19 - 07:55
The Romans made a reasonable start on “forever” – the concrete dome of the Pantheon is 1,800 years old.
Of course, they didn’t drive on the dome…
#2 by Ed on 2018-05-19 - 16:38
Or salt it on a regular basis …
#3 by Olli on 2018-05-19 - 11:56
“Rain isn’t nearly as acid as it used to be, but it still eats away at concrete.”
And winter maintenance…
“THE FINAL RESULTS OF THE ROAD TRAFFIC IN WINTER PROJECT”
http://alk.tiehallinto.fi/winter.htm#4
“Snow and Ice Control”
https://www.dot.ny.gov/divisions/operating/oom/transportation-maintenance/snow-and-ice
#4 by Ed on 2018-05-19 - 17:33
Indeed: “The annual corrosion costs were calculated as 160 US$ per car.”
NYS DOT has been preemptively salting with liquid calcium / magnesium chloride before light icing, which seems to work fairly well on Rt 376 in front of our house. We’re quite successful at staying home and playing with our toys when it snows, though, so whew we lack broad experience.
#5 by Olli on 2018-05-20 - 08:00
“at staying home and playing with our toys when it snows”
A wise decision…
“MTV3 Uutiset – Etelä-Suomen kolarisuma talvella 2005”