SUGAR! KILLS!

i dont change anything .water wash with no worries.

Just asking the other day a old mixer driver were talking about how to kill a load I said use sugar or a two liter bottle of soda he claims that none of that will kill a load of concrete.

currently running a 47 meter, schwing of course, in northwest north dakota. i check every load if concrete is cold to the touch it dont go into pump. period. i tell contractor im sucking sponge and washing out where it sits period put down plastic dig a hole whatever u need to do.  if your dumb enough to want me to pump concrete when its 10 below then i aint having a bad day period.  i dont mean to be a dick but concrete will freeze before i can get boom folded and outriggers in.

Water wash...no worries.  

Mister perkins..was wondering the same thing..last Friday had 16 yards of straight cement 3 slump footing with 1.5% cacl..concrete temp approx. 65 degrees..trucks ordered back to back..took about 1/2 hour to unload each..ran hopper down..swung boom around to suck ball back..within 5 minutes..no luck...immediately tried to blow out..no luck..long story short..just got boom back together today..what a nightmare..With all I've read on this site..should have sugar killed the last hopper full before running hopper empty??

I just circulate and add water, cold or hot if I question there might be a problem.. Soup thaws out, as long as you got your ball back who cares, easy day!

I know what you are saying perkins, there is a lot of things that can get you in cold weather.

when its cold, the plant puts in very hot water, i mean just about boiling water, and most guys use calcium, some at 2%. they would use 50% if they could! the mud freezing in the boom is always a concern, but if you have hot water and 2% and have a fifteen minute stop, it comes out of the hose like a tube of toothpaste! no joke

Now the bad thing about cold weather is, if you want to circulate, you gotta swing your boom around and because your hyd fluid is like molasses in minus 20, it takes a full five minutes to swing over, even in rabbit.

When you finally get your sponge back and boom folded, its a full two minutes for each outrigger to come back in, cuz of the cold hydy fluid. your pads and dunnage are frozen down, the redy mix driver that helped you out by washing down your steps has made a lethal icicle out of the whole back end. doesnt matter, cuz if you fall down ,it dont hurt cuz yer dressed like the michelin man anyways!! Oh , i love winter. what was the question again?haha

I always circulate sugar or delay set. I was just curious what you guys do.

relay.if you couldnt suck a ball why didnt you water wash and save your boom.it works every time.

keep your balls in the cab and dress warm.

Putzman.thanks for the reply...Please describe what you would have done..mix was Hot..ball wouldn't suck back..tried to blow back..wouldnt..Happy New Year by the way!

Yea Putzman. Can you describe in the most detailed version how you water wash? I tried it a few times in crisis situations with desastrous results.. If you say it works EVERY time I must be doing something totaly wrong

water wash A frame  pump hopper down to top of cyl. fill with water then pump till the first  drop water comes out all rpm s half volume.once you see water out the end hose reverse pump and full volume and all rpm sthis will cleam your pipe like brand new .dump hopper or drive some where to clean out hopper. try this on a day your not in a  bind get used to it.cause it works.

Putzman described water wash well enough. I see all the discussion about sucking ball and water washing. I really don't understand why so many people struggle with water wash. Not claiming one better than the other.

Thanks For replay putzman1975 and dipstick..will give it a try just for another option

Well thats the way I did it but strange enough it doesn't work for me.. The concrete washes out and the whole boom will plugg.. Maybe god doesn't like me

Pump all the mud you can and then stop auger. l fill hopper about half full then take a stroke to make room for the rest of my water tank. Then at about 70 percent volume and 1400 rpm I pump all they way down until just before I sick air and reverse same rpm and volume till air bubbles come up. Important that you stop auger before you put water in hopper or it will wash rocks clean and plug. Hope this helps.

pfff.. Never that I will do this and risk a HUGE amount of trouble.. This shit will bite you guys in the ass one day for sure. 

Please don't get me wrong, I'm not trying to convince you to stop doing it! But I don't think its wise to try and convince people to start doing it. You are talking like its the easiest and best way.. The only way... Thats just not true.

I would not advice anyone to do it unless he was 110% sure about it...

By all means wash out whatever way works. Bottom line is your truck is clean and ready fir your next job. I'm not trying to sell one method is better than the other.

drop ice in your bucket to cool down concrete...snow can works to .. and recirculate, eat your dinner and have sleep before the next truck. Take n easy and keep control

Don't forget to tell him it might take him rockin up the deck pipe before he gets it right! lol. I have been pumping around 15 years or so here in Utah. As far as we're concerned water washing is the only way to washout.

Agreed. If you don't know what you are doing you will ruin your day! That is how we washout our pumps 98% of the time. But this is the way we have been taught for decades.