Dear Tim,
My contractor is going to enlarge my patio. My old patio was build without base rock and still pretty good. He insist that the new concrete area does not need base rock, just rebar. What do you think? We live in San francisco bay area.
Thanks,
Angeline
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Angeline,
You can successfully pour concrete on compacted soil without using base rock. The contractor's idea of installing reinforcing steel is an excellent one. I would pour the slab five inches thick and make sure the steel ends up in the center of the slab. Space the bars two feet on center both directions. If I were you, I would spend an hour or so reading many, if not all, of my past concrete columns.
Tim Carter
www.askthebuilder.com
W3ATB