Scaled color layer. (Decorative Problem Clinic).

Q. I am a contractor in a freeze/ thaw climate. Last year we installed a stamped concrete driveway at a residence. This past spring I received a call from the homeowner telling me that the surface is scaling off his driveway. When I inspected it, I noticed that concrete from only one truckload

A. There was probably insufficient air entrainment in that load of concrete. Take some of the scales to a testing lab or a petrographer. A quick visual inspection of the sample using a microscope should reveal whether there is a low level of air entrainment. That evidence may be enough to resolve the matter with the ready mix company. If not, a core should be taken and a formal air entrainment study performed. If there isn't enough air entrainment to protect the concrete from freeze/thaw damage, it really doesn't matter what else may or may not have happened to the finished product.