Son of Ultrathin Slabs
Innovative thin slabs get good report cards
after one New England winter.
by Harris Hyman, P.E.
A year and a half ago [NEB, July
1985], I described the installation of
ultrathin slabs for use in one- and twostory
frame buildings. These are fiberreinforced
concrete slabs less than 3 1/2
inches thick, with little or no steel and
no thickening at the edges.
There are a number of advantages to
the ultrathin design: the slabs are easy to
form up, and easy to insulate well.
There is no need to use steel reinforcing,
and less material is used.
On paper, ultrathin slabs look like a
good idea. Out in the real world, after
seeing five