Screed

This article is about the construction term. For a written work, see Screed (publication).

Using an aluminium screed to level wet concrete. Note the screed tilted slightly towards the operator

Screeding a parking ramp with wood

In the US screed is a flat board, or a purpose made aluminium tool, used to smooth concrete after it has been placed on a surface. Also used to assist in leveling the application of plaster.

In the UK, screed is a thin, top layer of material (traditionally sand and cement), poured in situ on top of the structural concrete or insulation, on top of which other finishing materials can be applied, or it can be left bare to achieve an effect similar to that in buildings by Tadao Ando. It is becoming more common to use "self levelling" poured screeds which use materials other than cement as their binder. A recent development in the UK is the delivery, mixing, and pumping of screed from a single vehicle. Where previously screed jobs required a separate pump to administer the screed, these new machines can now administer the screed directly from the mixing pan to the floor at a range of up to 60 metres.

In the US screeding is the process of cutting off excess wet concrete to bring the top surface of a slab to the proper grade and smoothness.

References

• "Constructing Architecture - Materials, Processes, Structures: A Handbook"; Andrea Deplazes (ed.); Birkhauser, 2005