Mixing concrete in the FEL Bucket

[beowulf]

Personally - I would be hesitant to use my FEL bucket. Unless you are prepared to SCRUB it spotless - future materials might hang up on any concrete residue.

Actually, it cleaned out easily - immediately after we were done, we dumped the rest of the water in to the bucket and broomed it around and it came out clean. That was the easiest part.

 

[4570Man]

I have an electric mixer for concrete. Personally - I would be hesitant to use my FEL bucket. Unless you are prepared to SCRUB it spotless - future materials might hang up on any concrete residue.

I mix with the electric mixer - transport with my wheelbarrow.

I move concrete in my front bucket pretty regularly. A hose down with a water hose removes the vast majority of it. What little bit splatters and dried on hasn’t ever caused any problems.

 

[3Ts]

Looks like you're pouring a slab for a pump house. I assume the large diameter pipe is the well. When you get to building the covering, don't forget to leave access to pull the pump and all the pipe in the well.

On mine, the well is in a bump-out and the sides and roof of the bump-out can be removed easily so a truck with a crane can pull it if needed.

 

[beowulf]

Looks like you're pouring a slab for a pump house. I assume the large diameter pipe is the well. When you get to building the covering, don't forget to leave access to pull the pump and all the pipe in the well.

On mine, the well is in a bump-out and the sides and roof of the bump-out can be removed easily so a truck with a crane can pull it if needed.

3Ts - you are spot on with that advice. For the well at the main house, the well house/covering can be completely tipped off the pad to one side to allow full access when needed - and it has been needed twice in 30+ years. It takes two strong guys to tilt it off and put it back but so very convenient to be able to do that. I will build the well house the same way for this one. I have also left access for the well company truck, and will make sure no wiring or poles block that.

 

[dodge man]

Did I miss it? What is the pad for? It looks like a quality job to me.

 

[beowulf]

Did I miss it? What is the pad for? It looks like a quality job to me.

dodge man, the pad is for the well head (controls, booster pump, pressure tank, and such). Our daughter and son-in-law are building a home on our property - we have 90 acres and have lived here for 36 years. It will be great to have them here as we get older. We have gone through the preliminary processes with the County to make sure we could do this. We have had the road cut, a pad made, the well drilled, the pump put in, a water yield test done, septic test holes done, cleared trees away for new power lines, and more. . . BUT the county is taking forever to approve the permit (backlogs are blamed). The contractor submitted plans on December 4th - still waiting. Everyone up here complains about the wait time for plan approval.

 

[zzvyb6]

Thanks guys. Great options, but I don't have a mixer anymore, and the drive to the site from where we live is a bit rough and some distance away. I may be stuck with mixing at the site.

Be careful moving that load. That much mix + water + sand + gravel (or just the pre-mixed recipe + water), is VERY heavy. Have a lot of ballast in the back.
I have a pto mixer (3x80 lb. bags at a time) that make it fun. I make 1/2 your pad size with the throat full. I need a LOT of gravel in the bucket to keep the front wheels on the ground. Your bucket will b quite a bit farther forward.

 

[bdhsfz6]

I'm always mixing small batches of concrete for various projects on our 25 acres. I used to mix next to the barn where I store the materials, and carry the wet concrete to the site in the FEL bucket. It was always a pain to clean, and pouring the mix from a 6" wide bucket into a small form wasn't always possible. In some situations, it usually meant shoveling by hand. I also found carrying wet concrete in a FEL bucket can make the tractor unstable on rough ground, since the concrete tends to "slosh" from side to side.

I thought about investing in a FEL mounted SSQA or PTO mixer but the price was prohibitive for the small projects I do. Instead, I picked up an old stand mixer with a burned out motor at a yard sale for $50. I welded a blank SSQA plate to the mixer legs and replaced the bad electric motor with a hydraulic model, which I power via the tractors 3rd function valve. The whole project cost less than $200.

I now load the ingredients at the barn and mix the concrete while transporting it to the job site. I use the FEL to pour the concrete from the mixer precisely where I want it in the form. The only time I get off the tractor is to reload the mixer.

 

[ponytug]

I'm always mixing small batches of concrete for various projects on our 25 acres. I used to mix next to the barn where I store the materials, and carry the wet concrete to the site in the FEL bucket. It was always a pain to clean, and pouring the mix from a 6" wide bucket into a small form wasn't always possible. In some situations, it usually meant shoveling by hand. I also found carrying wet concrete in a FEL bucket can make the tractor unstable on rough ground, since the concrete tends to "slosh" from side to side.

I thought about investing in a FEL mounted SSQA or PTO mixer but the price was prohibitive for the small projects I do. Instead, I picked up an old stand mixer with a burned out motor at a yard sale for $50. I welded a blank SSQA plate to the mixer legs and replaced the bad electric motor with a hydraulic model, which I power via the tractors 3rd function valve. The whole project cost less than $200.

I now load the ingredients at the barn and mix the concrete while transporting it to the job site. I use the FEL to pour the concrete from the mixer precisely where I want it in the form. The only time I get off the tractor is to reload the mixer.

Sounds great. Photos?

All the best,

Peter

 

[Paddy]

Beowulf,

I have mixed a lot of concrete in my bucket. The trick is to use as close the the exact amount of water needed. Measure the water! Mixing dry mixture is hard work

I use a hoe and a shovel