Stupid ?'s about Concrete Trucks/Ordering Concrete

[Davefr]

Stupid question #1:
When you order X yards of concrete do they add exactly X yards worth of ingredients into the truck or do they add a little extra?

#2: If you order X yards but only need X-1 do you still pay for X? And do you have to actually take the full X yards even if the job doesn't need all of it? (ie are you obligated to empty the truck on the job site)

#3: Does the truck operator actually know how much "mud" has been dispensed? How?

#4: If the truck returns to the yard at the end of the day with extra left in the hopper what do they do with it?

 

[Firebird 1]

How my local batch plant works. If I need 6 yards, I order 6 yards. They will put 6 yards on the truck. It is loaded by computer I have to trust that they load it correctly. If I only used 4.5 yards, I am still charged for 6. If I have a place for the extra 1.5 yds they will dump it out for me. If not, they will take it back to their plant and wash it out.

In the old days, friends of drivers would always have something formed and ready to pour that they would stop by and dump it off. There would be lots of free driveways, footers, slabs etc. poured. The concrete co. no longer allows this as it waste's too much time. At one time, there was a precast co. that made septic tanks and basement stairs that was located right beside a batch plant and I think they hardly ever bought concrete.

 

[oldmancave]

I just had my garage foundation poured this summer. around here you get very close to the amount you order. and they will empty what ever is left and wash out the truck on your property .if they return to the yard with any left in the tub hardened they send someone into the barrel to jackhammer it out.

 

[readhead]

1. Exact
2. You pay for X. Most will want to wash out on the site but you can ask them to wash out in the truck.
3. No
4. There usually won't be any and if there is they have watered it down so it doesn't set up.

 

[DanielC99]

Stupid question #1:
When you order X yards of concrete do they add exactly X yards worth of ingredients into the truck or do they add a little extra?

#2: If you order X yards but only need X-1 do you still pay for X? And do you have to actually take the full X yards even if the job doesn't need all of it? (ie are you obligated to empty the truck on the job site)

#3: Does the truck operator actually know how much "mud" has been dispensed? How?

#4: If the truck returns to the yard at the end of the day with extra left in the hopper what do they do with it?

1 - I think they load the exact amount that was ordered.
2 - Yes on paying for the amount you ordered, not sure if they have to dump the extra on your property.
3 - Not sure.
4 - I always have something else formed up in case there is extra that was not used for the intended order. (Please see number 2 above). But, my property seems to be a never ending project...

 

[matt_i]

Just like any material, its better to be 1/4 yard over than 1/4 yard under....

My truck drivers came with a "mix ticket" and a credit card receipt for my order.

As far as ordering, I called about 5 days ahead of time to tell them what I wanted to do, its dependent on weather and many other factors. They put me on "will call" which means I had to call before 7am (iirc) on that actual day to lock in the day's order.

Typicallly must discharge the truck's complete contents + washout on the job site. I put down a piece of plastic film. Break the concrete up the same day after it begins to harden, but not overnight! and you will have some nice gravel to use on another project.

 

[pamike]

Our local plant make big 2 ft x 2ft retaining wall blocks with the left over concrete. They sell the block pretty reasonable since all the concrete is overage on jobs that the customer already paid for the concrete.

 

[Fixin'Stuff]

If you order 6, you pay for 6. It isn't like they can save any leftovers for later.

 

[bguerini]

Like most stated, if you order 6 they will batch 6 (or maybe less) but never over. I build concrete structures for a living and it is my opinion that it is better to have to much concrete than not enough. At work, if I don't have enough, I got +\-7 guys standing around at ~$50/man/hr and its gets pricing...a lot more pricey than ordering an extra yard of concrete and not using it.

Also, if you run short on concrete, you may get a cold joint in whatever you are placing before the next truck shows up with the rest of your concrete. A cold joint is an unwanted joint where previously placed concrete has set up before continuing to place more concrete on top of or next to.

Even when I am placing concrete at my house I always order more than I need and send the rest back. Spending $80-$100 dollars is worth it to me to not run short.

 

[brewchief]

There are some mix on site trucks that carry dry bulk product and water and combine them just before it comes out the cute, they are not very common but they are around in some areas. I think they are priced higher per yard but can dispense small amounts so it can work out better if you only need a half yard or a couple of yards.

 

[couch67]

The dry mix truck is what was used for forming my shed pad. It used a bit over 4 yards, the truck is able to make 5. Its a smaller truck so it is better in places where a full sized mixer would not access. They did charge a bit more than a premixed order, but the owner was also my finisher, so you could say it was a one stop shop.

 

[ms fowler]

#4, some of the newer front discharge trucks have a meter that tells the driver what is left in the drum. Driver of any style truck can look into the drum and tell you approx how much is left.

 

[G-ManBart]

If you order 6, you pay for 6. It isn't like they can save any leftovers for later.

Actually, that's not entirely true. I drove a mixer truck at two different companies for 6 years during the summers when I was still in school (pre-CDL days).

The two companies handled excess concrete differently. The first company had forms set up for retaining wall blocks and similar things. You would add some water to the mix before leaving the job site so it wouldn't set up, then fill the forms with whatever concrete you had left when you got back to the yard. At the end of the day they would have you add 100 gallons or so of water to the barrel, and wash it out in a field they set aside for the purpose, and once a month or so they would break it up with a dozer and an excavator.

The other company would weigh your truck with full fuel and water tanks at the end of the day to know how much concrete was left in the barrel. They would then have you enter the plant, and they would add super plasticizer and have you mix it for a few minutes. That concrete wouldn't set up overnight, and then they would add fresh mix to it in the morning with a slightly different ratio. They had a state lab test concrete from that method and it proved stronger than the normal mix. I can't recall, but I think you had to have half a yard in the barrel for them to bother with it.

For the OP, think about possible ways you could use extra concrete and be ready for it on the day of the pour. I had a couple of gate posts ready the last time I did concrete. The driver filled up the bucket on the backhoe with the excess, and we shoveled it into the holes for the posts...worked out perfectly.

 

[Dick in Wisconsin]

Stupid question #1:

If you've never ordered concrete before, I don't think there are any stupid questions.

I build concrete structures for a living ... At work, if I don't have enough, I got +\-7 guys standing around at ~$50/man/hr

I'm curious, do you pay your concrete guys $50/man/hr? Or is that what you bill them out at or factor them in at?

The other company would weigh your truck with full fuel and water tanks at the end of the day to know how much concrete was left in the barrel. They would then have you enter the plant, and they would add super plasticizer and have you mix it for a few minutes. That concrete wouldn't set up overnight, and then they would add fresh mix to it in the morning with a slightly different ratio. They had a state lab test concrete from that method and it proved stronger than the normal mix. I can't recall, but I think you had to have half a yard in the barrel for them to bother with it.

I find this method of dealing with "extra concrete" rather interesting; no waste. But what do you do if you have an extra yard of a special mix in the middle of the day with additional jobs left to do? Dilute the special mix into the next job? Or isn't that a big deal?

 

[larry_g]

I've used the drymix truck here a few times. For a full load the price is comparable to a mix truck. For the smaller jobs, like putting pads in the bottom of the holes for the poles in the pole building, it is ideal. Worked good for sidewalks too. So for the small jobs I can recommend it. For the small yardage delivery the per yard goes up but it works.

lg
no neat sig line

 

[hillbilly slim]

Also if being pumped, what ever in hose after pour will need to go somewhere at the job. The longer the run the more crete that needs dumping. Very important especially in a top dollar neighborhood...

 

[Zeke]

While on the subject of ready mixed concrete, here are some facts to consider:
70 to 100 revolutions required for mixing,
Mixing speed = 6 to 18 rpm
After mixing, drum revolves at agitating speed, 2 to 6 rpm
Discharge before exceeding 300 drum revolutions
Discharge before 1½ hours
Typical complete mixing times:
Minimum of 1 min. for up to 1 sq yd or less mixer capacity plus 15 sec. for each additional sq yd or fraction thereof.

So the mobile batch mixer is not ideal. And, over-mixing concrete damages the quality of the concrete, tends to grind the aggregate into smaller pieces, increases the temperature of the mix, lowers the slump, decrease air entrainment, and decreases the strength of the concrete. Also, over-mixing puts needless wear on the drum and blades of the transit mixer.

The moral of the story is to get the first batch of the day if you can. Although if you're getting a late start and have enough man power, a hot mix delivered at lunch time will set faster allowing the finishers to get done by nightfall (depending ion the season).

Yeah, there's some cut and paste there^^^^^ because I don't have all this memorized, I just know these are the things to know.

 

[dutchgray]

Here
1 we order what we need and usually get it, some of the dodgy companies have been known to short an order
2 we take it all, they will wash out on site, I believe they would return with extra if it was the only way but you would pay.
You have to pay for a full load on the first load, ie if its a 6 cube bottle and the job is 3 you pay for 6, if you want 9 cube you get the 3 in the second load at cube rate, so normally you don't use mixer trucks for small jobs, our local dry mix truck can do 10 cube, we work a lot of small slabs to a 6 cube load as the dry mix stuff bleeds really badly for a slab and doesn't finish well.
3 Only a guess by looking in the bottle, you can hear when is about to run out also.
4 Don't know about all but the local ones tip it out on the ground and break it up later, none of the local batching plants make a concrete product on site however.