[TowerTalk] re; exploding concrete

[Jim Lux]

Greenacres113 at aol.com wrote:
> I believe it's entirely possible. When you are a  novice learning arc welding 
>  & gas cutting the first lesson is to place  the metal properly. If you weld 
> or burn on concrete you can super heat the  trapped water inside. It will 
> definitely explode. I have seen it happen.  Lightning super heating moisture as it 
> passes along a wire/pipe in concrete can  cause this.
> 
> k9il  

I don't think so.. Yes, it explodes or spalls, but the explanation is 
wrong.  It's the thermal stresses (like pouring water on non-pyrex type 
hot glass).  And, as Hank Lonberg pointed out, in well constructed 
concrete, there aren't any gaps for liquid water to accumulate in.