Alrighty Fellas!   Have a low clearance building of 22'.  19'7 of unfolding height,  Contractor doesnt want to pay for grout.  Is it possible to prime the boom Zed with water?

Have done it with a 36Z alot and works nice.
But it really depends on the mix, I usually get good mud.
What mix are you using?

Yes

should be no problem we do all the time  , but if the mix is really rough ask the contractor if hes saving money if you got to stand there and clean out a blockage.

Doesn't want to pay for grout?  This is the least of the problems you're bound to have with this guy!!

The ultimate prime is water and portland cement.  5 gallons of pancake batter consistency cement slurry is the best you'll ever get!!  The mixing is a bitch though, 2 guys and a stick work, one to stir and the other to add the powder.  I like to use an industrial paint stirrer on a 1/2" drill.  I also have an air drill on my truck for the times there is no power available.

I'd be leary of water and priming in a 'Z'.  if you do attempt it, have the contractor sign off on the water prime, so that he doesn't bitch when you have to bust system to clear the plug out.

pump j- 2 guys.?.. electric drills.?.. just to mix grout!!!   half a plastic 40 gal drum and a shovel ( and me)

Or get a price quote for the grout required from the concrete supplier, and have it on the arrival ticket when the contractor signs your ticket.   SIMPLE!!

There's more than one way to skin this cat!!

I've primed my 40z plenty of times with water, works great.  If your mud aint the best then use soap.  Regular dawn dish soap works wonders.  Oh and it softens ur hands while you do dishes.  (HA,HA)  Slurry works well too butt it's a pain and it's messy and you can get soap @ safeway.

unfolding height is in between the beams with those primes.  i found that the 32-5 concord boom setup primes best flat.  if theres over head clearence, i still prime the 2nd and 3rd closed with 4th section up, 5th section down so have empty drop hose when its unkinked.  best thing is to look at mix.   put 1/2 the amount of water in your prime port you normaly would.  if you dont have a prime port 50/50 without a primer.

for any you u guys with big booms with the same setup  (ex Alliance 48m +, when folded and horizontal, the 3rd - 4th ram closes and the 4th section goes up) if it is possible to prime in this fashion with water?  the thought never even crossed my mind at the time.  

if the company dosnt supply the bags of cement,  its pretty hard to find at a rezy site.  i have to agree, 1 bag of cement in a 5 gallon pail is good for any size boom.

I have ran every thing from high volume LP to 63m and one of my 2 fave pumps is the Putz 5 section 31m. You can actually feed the boom under the truck and recirculate in the hopper thou I don't recommend it. If you have a grout port just fill it to the top W/water and let her rip.

in my opinion, even with a little boom, fixing a plug sucks. I have never done what your asking but got friends that do it all the time. If you are that worried about it, i would suggest prime outside and move the pump in. Beats a plug, and with a 32 your only talking about what, 15 min to move

WHAT??? under the front of the truck????  thats AWSOME>> you setup in a doorway?

In a 32 - 5, 15 min is about right for a normal setup.

Tell him to buy a few bags of portland and mix it for you, what are they 10-12 bucks each

can you share some pictures of the job,

water prime ? that maybe ok with pee gravel but regular crete you are risking a plug no matter how you have the boom positioned. In the cost factor whats cheaper down time clearing a plug or grout if you use system or slick pak when goin through the boom.

typesdubs,  the reply would be "dont you know how to prime?  never needed it before."  havn't had problems priming a boom **with a prime port** which i sucked the spong back last pour.  ive done the water in the hopper way but never liked it.

Excelent replies guys!!!!   Thanks for your input. I'm going for the water prime Zeed up,,,   Wont be the 1st plug i broke loose,,,  POUR IT OUT!!!

Will post pics monday evening

slick pak or some type of gel or grout why water ?

dawn and mud or mudd an a little bit of hydrallic oil amazing

I'VE PRIMED 32Z WITH ONLY WATER, ONLY THING DIFFERENT FOR ME WAS I HAD TO PUMP FASTER THAN I NORMALLY DO TO KEEP THE WATER FROM RUNNING TO FAR AWAY FROM THE CRETE AND TAKING THE FINES WITH IT. LEAVING A STONE PACK BEHIND YOUR WATER. ANY PLUG I DID HAVE WAS ALWAYS IN AN ELBOW AT THE BOTTOM OF A Z.

Hey pour use 1 bucket of birckeys sand , mix it up with water to make a thick slurry i prime my 46-6 like this every day ! put water in front of it and all good

I myself like slickpakII with about 25 or so gallons of water . I mix it in the hopper before leaving for the job site that way Im ready to go . I only use slick pak with the boom any time we have to use pipe and hoses we order grout.

mmm

What a small price to pay for insurance.I know the big macho thing but throw in a slick pak and get more peace of mind.

I was never sure why, but i used to plug in the tip 90 when i would use slickpac about half the time, we ran out and had to use water for a few months, and I never plugged. Tried using more water, less water, half bag, to two bags, tried priming slow, med, and fast. Never had good luck with it but water always worked so stuck with it.

Risky yes i agree, but to each his own I guess. Z-folded i heard you have to use less than normal water and prime wide open, but like i said before i never tried it.

If the mix your using has alot of plasticizer in it, slick-pak and the likes tend to suck the moist out of the concrete.
You can get around this by mixing the slick-pak with more water, but then IMHO you might aswell just use water.
We here in Norway use ALOT of plasticizers and I have never had good luck with slick-pak on high slump mixes with alot of line.
The boom I always prime with water.
But slick-pak works great if you use it right...

I guess the contractor don't want the slick pac in the pour? Myself, I don't use slick pac. I been pumping for almost 15 years and I have only used it a handful of times. Same as Step Brother, I always seemed to plug with it. The plug was bad enough but then when you tear it apart, you got to jack with the snot in the pipe and get it all over you. Just use straight water. If you got a prime port put it in there. I always prime in the Z no matter where I'm priming. I use less water than most guy do. I put volume on 10 and throttle about 2 or 3 clicks up from idle and spray water into cylinders (maybe 2 or 3 gallons) and get busy. Even works with curb mud. The prime is effected a lot by how you clean out on the previous pour. I suck back about 10 gallons of water with my sponge every time. Clean pipes = less water to prime with and less chance of plugging on prime. Good luck - anxious to see how it turns out.

I prime my 61 meter everyday with water never have an issue good luck and may the crete gods be with you

hey pour it out we prime our zs evereyday inside with water just have 5th stage straight down we make the builder supply slurry if we got heaps of line off the boom