A question about cement mixers...

[JoeyB]

I never drove a cement mixer and I probably never will, but I always wondered about something. What do you do if, let's say, a rod comes out the side of the motor while you're loaded and there's no drum rotation. I know concrete sets up relatively quickly, it's pretty hard after just a few hours, and there's no way you're going to get a new motor in there within that time frame.

Surely this happens from time-to-time. What do they do?

[Kranky]

I never drove a cement mixer and I probably never will, but I always wondered about something. What do you do if, let's say, a rod comes out the side of the motor while you're loaded and there's no drum rotation. I know concrete sets up relatively quickly, it's pretty hard after just a few hours, and there's no way you're going to get a new motor in there within that time frame.

Surely this happens from time-to-time. What do they do?

I worked in the shop at a concrete co. for a short time about 20 years ago (crappy job), and had to deal with that scenario. Heres what we did:

Call for another similar mixer to respond to the scene ASAP.
Disconnect the hyd lines from the mixer barrel hydraulic motor on the "dead" truck.
Pull the running mixer as close as possible to the dead one.
Disconnect the hyd lines from the mixer barrel motor on the "live truck" and hook them to the mixer barrel on the dead truck, and empty the mixer.

Back in the days of mixers with "pony engines" to drive the barrel, it must have been near impossible to empty a disabled mixer before the concrete "went off".

[marylandkw]

The shop I use alot is at a concrete company. I have posed this question to the mechanics there before.

their mixers actually have auxiliary ports on them and every mixer carries one 20' hose. Call another mixer to the broken down one and you have two hoses and can hook up and spin.

[thebaldeagle655]

I ran one in 73 - 75, no hydraulics, PTO and chain. If we had a motor or tranny go, we would have to use a pipewrench to turn the driveshaft to the gearbox running the mixer until the trap door was on bottom then get a hydraulic jack and boards to hold it up and support the weight while we pulled the nuts off the hatch. After that, you get a LONG rod to lower the jack with, and pull the jack out with a rope and watch the mud run. Of course this is after you have pulled the truck into an area it can be cleaned up at first In the event a driver called in and failed to mention that when the engine went down that the drum was full of mud and that he had left the truck on the side of the road and it set up there was a company in Riverside that used dynamite to blast the set up concrete loose. In 74 the price was $1000 a yard to blast it, I can only imagine what it would cost today!

[Kranky]

I ran one in 73 - 75, no hydraulics, PTO and chain. If we had a motor or tranny go, we would have to use a pipewrench to turn the driveshaft to the gearbox running the mixer until the trap door was on bottom then get a hydraulic jack and boards to hold it up and support the weight while we pulled the nuts off the hatch. After that, you get a LONG rod to lower the jack with, and pull the jack out with a rope and watch the mud run. Of course this is after you have pulled the truck into an area it can be cleaned up at first In the event a driver called in and failed to mention that when the engine went down that the drum was full of mud and that he had left the truck on the side of the road and it set up there was a company in Riverside that used dynamite to blast the set up concrete loose. In 74 the price was $1000 a yard to blast it, I can only imagine what it would cost today!

I can only imagine what blasting would do to the drum!

[thebaldeagle655]

You would be suprised, I watched them once, air hammered/drilled a hole, small amount of explosive, really just a little pop from 1 mile away, sounded like an M-80. Not a dent in the drum and shiney as new when we got it back.

[JoeyB]

Well all right! So it actually does happen and there are procedures in place to deal with it. That's interesting. Thanks everybody...

[Birken Vogt]

With the condition of some of the old decrepit mixers that run around here you better beleive it happens

Birken

[allan5oh]

Blasting is done up here on gravel trucks. If the gravel truck has been going too far up the winter roads, sometimes all the moisture will get the gravel pretty stiff. The solution is to drill a few holes, and set it off.

[brian]

jack hammer and a small mexican is what they use in florida.

[Graymist]

I drive a concrete mixer truck up here in Edmonton, Canada, for Lafarge ( yeah, they don't get any bigger than these guys !! ). The best way to "kill" a load in the drum is to pour a bag of sugar in the load....and no, I'm not kidding !! Some of us guys actually carry 4kg bags of sugar, available from any grocery store, just in case we need to kill a load....it nearly happened to me once, when I was pouring for footings. It was a hot day, I was new, I hadn't added enough water after getting loaded, & wasn't too familiar with slumps. The load started to tighten, the hopper started to get blocked. Luckily, I was able to make it back to my plant in time to dump the entire load of about 6 meters. The hopper, I had to chisel away with a hammer and a crowbar, but it was still a bit soft, so it wasn't that difficult. Luckily for me, my company were very understanding, and attributed it to my "learning curve".

All said and done, I SIMPLY LOVE MIXER TRUCKS, especially the tractor trailers, where we mostly get the pump jobs....as long as you can keep an eye on the flow down the chute into the pump's hopper, and synchronise the flow with the pace of the pump, it's like a walk in the park. GOMACOs, however, need a lot of concentration.

Always, BUT ALWAYS, respect your mixer truck, no matter how crappy it may be....the moment you lose respect for it and take it for granted, it can land you in a world of hurt.

[Porchclimber]

I didn't know Edmonton, ALBERTA (Canada is East of Alberta) is near Pittsburg,PA.

Only an easterner from Canaduh would make a mistake like that.

[Graymist]

I didn't know Edmonton, ALBERTA (Canada is East of Alberta) is near Pittsburg,PA.

Only an easterner from Canaduh would make a mistake like that.

Quick to jump to conclusions, and indulging in name-calling, aren't we ???? FYI Edmonton is about 3500 km north and west of Pittsburgh, but then, I guess a smart-ass like you knows that anyway. Why I'm in Pittsburgh and Edmonton, is, very honestly, none of your freakin' business. And no, contrary to what you'd like to believe, I ain't no easterner....I'm from Van BC, and moved to AB a while ago....never travelled east of SK in Canada, except to change planes at YYZ.

I don't know if you were just kidding, but in case you weren't, your assinine comment was quite uncalled for, not to mention, completely irrelevant to the topic in this thread. If you have nothing worthwhile to contribute, atleast don't broadcast your spastic "intellect" for all the world to see and laugh at.

[silvan]

All said and done, I SIMPLY LOVE MIXER TRUCKS, especially the tractor trailers

They make mixers as tractor-trailers? That's one I've never seen anywhere. Interesting.

where we mostly get the pump jobs....as long as you can keep an eye on the flow down the chute into the pump's hopper, and synchronise the flow with the pace of the pump, it's like a walk in the park.

I liked pump jobs the best, except for the standing in the freezing ass cold waiting on them to finish screwing around with the hose so you could finish the pour already and wash out.

So you could do it all again. And again. And again. And again.

Ugh. Hats off to you guys. I have a lot more respect for concrete now, but it definitely isn't my thing. I couldn't stand all the waiting, waiting, waiting, waiting, WAITING. It drove me completely frickin' cuckoo, and I only survived nine arduous, miserable days of that.

I'm glad I'm back behind the wheel of an 18-wheeler.