Hauling mixed concrete?

[GLyford]

We did some growing up using the driveway, does that count? Also, we made a mixing platform out of a couple sheets of ply a couple of times. I actually like making the mix that way (as well as dumping a bag in the wheelbarrow, adding water, and mixing in with a garden hoe). Doesn't take terribly long, either.

 

[jenkinsph]

Amen! I was wondering if someone would bring that up.

I have paid for mine many times over, and I can still do smallish pours despite my creeping decrepitude.

The last time I used it, I elected to buy 100 bags or so of the 5000psi pea-gravel concrete at the big
box store. I exploited their young and energetic staff to load my PU. I still had to unload it, however, so
I got the 60# old guy bags. In the past I have always used my own piles of gravel, sand, and half-sacks
of Portland. I find that the latter method is actually easier, as shoveling the aggregates into the drum
is easier than loading the bags.

Over the years, I have used every method I have heard of, except dumping piles in the street and
manually mixing it.

In my locale Lowes has good prices on concrete bags delivered to the small farms so that is what I use. The last project I worked this year required about 300 bags of 50 lbs. each. That is a lot easier to handle than the 80 lb. sacks loading into a small mixer. The 50lb. sacks cost about $2 more total cost over buying the 80lb. sacks, that was $2 bucks well spent in my opinion.

Get to do this again next week, starting a new project with similar concrete water boxes.

Mixing concrete in the street. Sounds like a good way to get run out of town.

 

[dodge man]

Another thought, but isn't ready mix hauled to the site going to be a higher quality concrete? In my opinion it is.

 

[downsizingnow48]

Sacked quikrete is listed at 4000psi although most folks probably use too much water to get that. A good readymix company with a good driver can be counted on for good concrete. Sometimes you can get a truck full of hot concrete (starting to set) or too wet. The folks that mix their own shovel by shovel can get excellent concrete. In my experience it all depends. Not much of a guideline!

 

[downsizingnow48]

For the record, I have never mixed concrete in the street nor even thought of it.

 

[BoylermanCT]

If you are going to haul the concrete, make sure you are using a trailer and not a pickup. 1 yard of concrete is 4000 lbs, so 3/4 yard is 3000 lbs. This is beyond the capacity of most pickups. Would be an easy load for any dual axle trailer or some single axle trailers.

 

[ArlyA]

We have a bit of experience at mixing concrete. (sorry if someone has already mention the following) The problem with moving mixed material, is the aggregate settles to the bottom as you drive to the job and its very, very hard to get it mixed back in, that is to make it correct/consistent. We had an bridge abutment pour and did it on site using 100, 80lb bags since we could not get a truck to the job site.. Attached is some photos. This was setup with the bags being somewhat higher than the mixers and doing that, reduced the labor, lots!. This worked like a dream and with 2 mixers running, we had them poured in less than 4 hours.. As another fellow mentioned, most people add waaaaay to much water to the mix.

 

[jenkinsph]

When building boxes on the irrigation ditches where I can not get a mixer truck I use this set up. An F550 service truck with generator and water tank in bed, run water hose and extension cord to form location. Use the 110 to carry two thirds of a pallet of sackrete and adjust height for easy transfer to the mixer. Use a wheel barrow mixer within a couple of feet from the form. Nobody has to work very hard to do this and can mix about 1 pallet an hour (rough guess).

For the formed walls it helps to have a second person to help dump the concrete into a bucket to pour in the walls. The slabs I can do by myself.

 

[HCJtractor]

I decided to buy the concrete and have it delivered, rather than mix it. Glad I did, as it was easy. The truck could place the chute right into my forms. Was a little more expensive, but my back appreciated not having to wrestle bags of concrete.
All you guys have good stories. The last picture of the bridge pour was interesting. If I had all thise volunteers, i would have used my mixer!

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[GLyford]

Glad you got it done, that's the big thing.