I am going mix 5 meters of concrete foundation myself, what is the best way to lay it? in thin layers around the trench or in big dollops on top of another and as its gonna be a dry day and will take a whole day to do, what can i do to make it stick well/stay moist and set well together as concrete is suppose to have a life of 4 hrs before drying, and how long should the mix be in the mixer each time? thanks
You wouldn't know what 5m3 looked like if it **** on your boots. Get real! A mixer truck takes 6 m3 many still take 5.5m3 - It is enough to fill the average living room up to a depth of 3 feet. Pour yourself another drink and think about Disneyworld [Edited by: Forum Moderator]
start at one end and level as you go How many of you are there ? you wont do this in a day on your own
With readymix, get a friend to help barrow it in place. The driver is only allowed to stay a certain time per M³ then has to dump the rest were he is.
Insane to handmix 5m3. I suspect if you are going to buy bulk bags etc then the difference in cost is minimal. I pay £50-£55 a m3. Additionally if they cannot pour into the hole then a conveyor may help at an additional £80 a load from RMC. If at all possible avoid wheelbarrows, unless the truck or conveyor genuinely cannot reach. I
There's a calculator at http://www.diydoctor.org.uk/projects/mixingconcrete.htm that will give you an idea of the quantities of materials required to mix 5m3 of concrete (4:2:1 mix). It was this that convinced me to get readymix! It will cost around the same to have it delivered as to mix it yourself. It took 3 of us 45 minutes to barrow 3m3 so be prepared for some hard work. We had to barrow due to access restrictions to the back of the house. Search for other posts on how to get the footings level as these proved very helpful. I'm doing another 3m3 on Saturday, I'm obviously a glutton for punishment!
Recently had three and a half truck loads delivered (not on the same day) Garage footings, slab and driveway. Believe me, It's hard enough shovelling the concrete round and tamping it once it's poured, let alone mixing that sort of quantity !! I took a section of the garden wall down so the truck could reverse right upto the pour.... Barrowing that quantity - NO WAY ! If need be, pay the extra for a pump.
When referrin gto concrete its always the cubic measure unless stated as linear when the thickness and width are needed to provide the cubic measure (back to square one) lol