Is it normal for fresh concrete to be this much darker than the old slab?

That dark charcoal shade is completley normal right now and it will lighten up significantly over the next month. Fresh concrete holds a massive amount of water during the early stages of hydration, which makes it look almost black or deep slate next to an old slab. Give it a solid 28 to 30 days before judging the final tone. It might never be a 100% dead match to the street apron—sun bleaching, dirt, and years of weathering change older slabs—but that harsh contrast will fade until you barely notice it.

Leaving the forms and stakes on for three or four days isn't just typical; it's actually good for the slab. The wood forms help hold moisture along the perimeter while the mix is curing, which stops the outside edges from drying too rapidly and spalling. While you technically can strip forms after 24 hours on flatwork, plenty of crews leave them set over a weekend so nobody accidentally steps on a green edge or chips a corner while walking the lawn.

If they cut in clean **control joints** and gave you a nice, even broom finish, it sounds like they took pride in the prep and finish. When they come back later this week, they'll pull the pins and backfill the grass up against the edge. Just keep heavy vehicles off it for at least seven full days, let it bleach out naturally, and you should be in great shape.

Did you happen to check the batch ticket, or have you ruled out high slag or fly ash content in the mix design? Hydration aside, if the local plant substituted a heavy percentage of slag or Class F fly ash, that slab might cure out permanently darker and take twice as long to bleach out compared to standard portland cement.

Also, have you ruled out wether they sprayed a heavy cure-and-seal right after finishing? If they applied a topical solvent or resin, it locks that wet, dark look in for months til the sun breaks it down.

Man, a fresh broom finish looks so ridiculously sharp when it's done right! I'm acutally prepping to pour my very first patio slab next month and seeing posts like this gets me so pumped to finally do it. Random question though—if you hit that older street section with a heavy-duty pressure washer and some degreaser, woud it brighten up enugh to bridge that visual gap once the new section cures out? Or does aged concrete just hold onto that weathered patina forever no matter what you blast it with?

Spot on about leaving the forms on to protect the green edges, but one detail crews sometimes get sloppy with: make sure they don't use your fresh slab as leverage for a pry bar when they pull those stakes. I've seen guys pop a clean edge right off on day four becasue someone wedged a flat bar against the top lip instead of pulling the pins straight up. As long as they don't pry directly against the new concrete when stripping, you'll be set.

Wait, are you supposed to be spraying it with a hose while waiting for the forms to come off? I'm super new to all this, but I saw a video where someone kept wetting down thier new slab with a garden sprinkler to help it cure stronger. Or whould spraying water right now mess up that fresh broom finish? Sorry if that's a dumb question, I don't realy know much about how the watering part acutally works yet.