Is there any industry standard or guidlines for pumping reinforced concrete?

We get 2 main types of fibres added to concrete over here, poly fibres and steel fibres. We have no issue with any of the poly fibres(annoying as they can be at times), however the steel fibres seem to come in 2 grades, one which is around 1" long wavy,and very flexible -no problem and the other which is around 2"/50mm and rigid, when you try and bend it with your fingers it will puncture the skin. Its this one which we have an issue with.

When you are puming this stuff you have to use a 5" line , and if the contractor wants, reduce it down to 4" flexibles. The steel has a tendency to ball up and then clog either the grills or the line. This is usually better if the contractors are adding the fibres and not the concrete company!

When you get poor concrete combined with these fibres the results can be serious, and its the concrete pumpers insurance that they want to claim off.

The issues here are this, the puming system is a pressurised system and to introduce these fibres is akin to putting bullets in a gun when you get a blockage ,and yet nobody seems to care?

hey mate i have pumped heaps off the 2 inch fibers through lots off pipes the trick is you need a 4inch wibau so that means you have a 4inch inlet all the way out the end through 4 inch gear, so know reducers needed.was easy with this machine.

I know the idea of no reducer probably works ok, perhaps its the aggregate  sand and steel mix over here that dont like 4" ,But if these things will puncture your skin, what are they doin to the tube?

if your rollers are set right, the concrete is pushed through not squashed. so this is not a problem. i only advise using a wibau nothing else. it has plenty of grunt to.

saying it just must be the mix may well be it, but in saying that i could not use a 3 1/2 inch end hose thats where the reducers comes back in. also you talked about the balls we had that problem here to, so (close your eyes bob) i had to run with no grate.

Closed

Those long, stiff wires really suck. If you suck a sponge to clean the boom watch out when you rinse it. Those bad boys will flatass stick you right now!

yeah to right bob after doing a water wash being a wibau the spounge was a throw away.

Ist experience was in Main Vail for a retaining wall footer.We had a titan and water washing was out,it was a hard felt disaster but we saved the boom (lots of bandaids).

Subseqent pours the plant sent out a 2 yd load of reg mud for clean up.

Dublin Virginia about a year ago,   33m pumpstar, no problem going in hopper or reducing down to 4" line, but when i turned the pump off would lock in the hopper and only sucked air,

my solution,, got hopper pumped all the way down, turned pump on before concrete came down the chute of the mixer, kept pumping till truck was empty and pumped hopper dry,  then the same on all the rest of the trucks,,

Bob!    the grate was closed!  : )

if we run with no grate we dont have any defense in the case of an accident, if they stick a numpty there  to keep the grills clean and they get hurt we still dont cos they shouldnt be there!!!! dammed if you do damed if you dont !!!!!!!  

They have also started to use them on the polystyrene blocks (like beko) and want it down to a 3"... no chance!!! 

pump steel fibre concrete a fair bit if you any line 5 inch steels on deck are best but sometimes use 4 inch depends on volume of steel fibres in concrete. we also find that if the readymix/contractor uses a blower to put steel fibres into truck as this seperates fibres so they are spread through load, this stops fires and concret sitting on grill. hope this is useful dave

I know sometimes it pumps and sometimes it dont , but my issue is that ive seen guys get seriously hurt by blowback , makin them look like someting out of horror film, but if you try to get this across to the contractor, they look at you like you are a dim wit.

Watch out if you do reduce that to a 4" hose it will flat ass where and rip the inside of the hose up! Even hard on 5'' hoses on the inside!

i guess nobody is listening. a wibau will solve all the problems in these posts.

Mr wibau 

The problem is that folks have what they have. It would be tough to sell your.......... [insert brand] and buy something different just to deal with a problem that should/will be solved by the ready-mix companies. These fibers are pumpable when properly mixed with the load. That makes it a supply side problem.

Hey bob if that is all folks have well they all say safety first, (grate down) well why dont they get someone in to do the job that does. Is that not the safest way. For the concrete bob i dont beleave that it is the readymixs problem it is a hash mix too pump so you have too deal with it and use the right gear for the job. Also comes down too this is real pumping of concrete not just put a boom out and hit go.

So it is the brand of the pump thats do that the mud will be pumpable ? *lol*

Mr wibau... you sure you dont work for a readymix co?????

this is real pumping of concrete not just put a boom out and hit go.

In the US there are more yards³ pumped out the end of a tip hose than any other way. We consider that "real pumping" too.

Hey, I am glad that you have no trouble with that stuff; we can also pump it. When the ready mix people figure out that their truck turn around times are longer with that mix they will change it. It just makes good economic sense.

Good luck ;~)

We can all pump this stuff no matter what equipment we use , the problem i m trying to get across here is that u introduce 2" long steel pins into a pressurised system .On a bad mix you get blow back/forward, on a good mix the guy at the end kinks the hose , the results are the same.... nasty little steel pins accelerating out of a pipe./barrel towards what or who ever...