I was hired to operate A 2004 Schwing KVM32XL on A Mack truck. 4 weeks into employment now an I have pumped 3/4 of 1 basement, All 8 foot walls. Boss man very busy an I need help to learn how to run it. Ben on the yard drawing straight lines with it for about 10 hours. Boss said I done A good job when I pumped some of the job. How do I learn how to run this? All I have is A short instructions book an what little time he can give me. Have grown up in the trucking industry an still own one today. Not stupid, Just  educated enough to ask for help.

First thing is the safety training.... the ACPA (American concrete Pumping Association) www.concretepumpers.com  Has lots of good information, they also have a certification program, It's mostly a due diligence - paperwork thing, but it is a hell of a good start.  

Many guys start like you, myself included - as an owner-operator.  This site was a great help.

Set-up, priming, clean-out, locating and clearing plugs.  important to remember, if your routine gets interupted...recognize that and step back and look it over to figure out just where you were in your routine, bad things happen when you are on autopilot....

Welcome to the site and to the industry....

Welcome to 6 months of pain.  You'll either love it or hate it.

whats in the little book is the basic and the rest you learn on site.  run into a problem, usually have to figure things out the hard way, then ask another op if they've run into the same problem and how they remedy/avoid the issues.  its a nasty way to figure things out but seems to be the nature of the beast.

First place to start is routine, routine and more routine.  find what works so your not rushing, whether from the boss / next job / mud on site.  In my opinion, there is no right way, just a wrong way.  I was extremely lucky in my first six months.  cowboy hauling ass from site to site,  blasting off walls/footings, no PPE, it went on and on ...  im not sure when i changed but thank the pump gods it was before a near miss became an incedent.

a few tips

- your prime is only as good as your washouts.  suck back two sponges and do not rocket them back.  use a priming agent,  if no primer available DO NOT go over board with water. if your pipes are clean a 60M can be primed with 2L of water.  count your stokes when priming.  32M should be 6-7 strokes A framed.  DO NOT rocket prime.

- DO NOT ram out a plug.  STOP!!! u can blow off elbows to start.

-ALWAYS reverse pump when poping clamps

-DUNAGE.  in a 32M, 4 - 4"x6"x4' is stantard under a working outrigger, THOUGH i do not know where you work and do not know what kind of ground is under your pads.

-NEVER have steel at the discharge end, rubber ends ONLY

-After blowing out the boom, ALWAYS reverse 2 strokes.  if the hopper explodes on the second stroke, you have a plug.

-20ft Clearence from power line.  If you dont feel comfortable, dont do it.  im sure the boss would rather not pump the mud then have the chance of touching a powerline.

-Never lift more then one hose with the boom

-The rule is: hole 1ft down, outrigger 1 ft back.  im a 2 -> 1 if the hole isnt shored.  the ground does funny thing in the thaw

-Always try and keep a decent amount of pressure on your rear tires when seting up

-Safety stramps on anything attached to the tip end of the boom

-Pins in all clamps,  boom or hoses on the ground

-I do not recommend short rigging until you have a routine down pat and fully understand the limits of short rigging

-i found Schwing booms are less bouncy when you keep the four section as verticle as posible until you flat stick

-People in the concrete industry (at least where ive worked, including myself) are a fucked breed

-Pumping can be extremly high pressure/stress and long days. ALWAYS have two packs of smokes

Worry about your setups and washouts the most.  The boom will come with practice and time.  i recommend to not use reducing hoses.

Hopefully u have vet ops to talk with every day.  if you dont feel comfortable with somthing, you dont have to do it.  i know ive done setups and boom work people said could not be done or i am crazy.  dont feel pressured to do the same.  know your limits and learn the machines, they can be testy bitchs and are not very forgiving.

Good Luck, Have Fun. You have a good truck and a good pump if shes been taken care of.

if you make it through 6 months, things will get alot easier

First thing is to not worry too much and not be too relaxed either. Always have to be alert. As people suggest, your cleaning is very important, make sure your pipeline is clean, or you are giving yourself a tough pour next time.

During pumping do not allow people near hose, always watchout for whiplash, never lift anything with your boom, never allow your hose to be sunk in heap of concrete, etc...

Never get in  to something you cant get out of......Wear gloves and protect your eyes........Dont assume anything

no such thing as a" stupid question ", just "stupid people" that dont ask questions,

Willy 60 do you want to sell that 32 while its still worth something?

Don't put your hand any were you wouldn't put your pecker 

WOW, Thanks for all the info. Dont know where to start.

#1 I do not own this truck, The truck that I own is an 84 KW-W9 in great condition. Going thru A divorce after 30 years an wanted to try something different. This is not the job that I applied for, Its what was given to me because of my years of experience in the trucking industry. Im sorry if I mis-lead anyone into thinking that I owned this truck.

#2 This is A job that I want to do.  Speak any words that you want to say. After driving truck for 34 years, I have said them all myself, An you will not offend me. You all will get to know me as we go.

# Lets get to it. Boss man says to prime the pump,,,,, Get water from the mud delivery truck an fill hopper to 3/4s of the way to the top of the open whole for the pump in the hopper. Then instruct the driver to start the mud flowing an dont stop till I tell you to with the horn. As soon as the mud hits the grate, Then you turn on the pump an walk over to the site an start you job. Watch the pressure on the remote, It will spike to about 200 PSI an then go down. If it gets more than 300 PSI, Then you have A plug.. What are we doing wrong???? Teach me, I am willing to learn, Thats why Im here.  Again Thanks for your help, I will learn to do this !!!

When you "prime" the boom clear ALL people from hose area,30 ft.will be good,and if someone tells you different smile and dont "prime" till they are well clear.A thing called hose whipping can occur if you miss your prime.Treat your pump as a gun,it is always loaded.....

MOST IMPORTANT!!!!!!! WHEN IN DOUBT BLOW IT OUT!!!! DONT BE A HERO CALL FOR ASSISTANCE AND DO NOT HAVE A BOOM PARTY THEY ARE 99% PREVENTABLE.

http://www.concretepumping.com/dictionary/index.php?title=Boom_Parties

Read this article it is verry helpfull

http://www.concretepumping.com/dictionary/index.php/Concrete_Pumping_&_Safety_Articles

And all the other articles. If you are ready reading ask more.

Did my first pump job alone today by myself. I was nervous, But think thats A good thing. Its keeps me on my toes.