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Just found out from a county inspector that the Roman Pantheon's concrete dome is still the world's largest unreinforced concrete dome, which blew my mind considering it's almost 2,000 years old.
It makes you think about the quality of the mix and placement they achieved back then, so what's the oldest concrete structure you guys have worked on or seen that's still holding up solid?
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willow1141mo ago
Honestly that fact about the Pantheon gets me every time. It's a real gut check on modern building sometimes. We did a patch job on a grain silo from the 1890s once, and that concrete was like rock, harder than some new stuff I've seen. Makes you wonder what they knew that we've maybe forgotten along the way, you know? The real shame is we don't build things to last centuries anymore.
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hollyc921mo ago
Right? My grandpa's old workshop floor feels more solid than my new driveway. They must have mixed things differently or just took more time with it. What's the newest thing you've seen that actually feels built to last?
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lisaf381mo ago
Wow that's crazy to think about! I read somewhere that they used volcanic ash in the mix, which is a big part of why it's lasted so long. Honestly @hollyc92 is onto something about them just taking more time and care back then. It feels like now everything is about getting it done fast and cheap, not about making it last. Seeing stuff like that old silo willow mentioned really proves we used to build things for the long haul.
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