Replies

1. 
   Mike_Willms | Jul 16, 2001 12:05am | #1

   *
   Jo,

   Wheelbarrow(s).

1. 
   davidmason | Jul 16, 2001 12:18am | #2

   *I would rent the pump. If you've got the money for it. Dave

1. 
   Mike_Smith | Jul 16, 2001 01:15am | #3

   *the longer the chute, the more you need elevation.. with no elevation it is tempting to add water for better flow.. then you get a bad mix.. too much mix water.. longer wit time to finish...wheelbarrows are hard work.. but you can control the pour and maintain your grade easier...many hands make a better job...are you going to use a power trowel?

1. 
   piffin_ | Jul 16, 2001 01:17am | #4

   *The pump will pay for itself on a job that size unless you have labor at five dollars an hour or less. And it'll be a better job with the pump.

1. 
   Don_Reinhard | Jul 16, 2001 02:25am | #5

   *Jo: Rent the pump. I've done it all three ways, and pump is best. Wheelbarrow breaks many backs at about a yard for every 80 sq ft of 4 inch slab, and you have a bunch of 80 sq ft areas in there. Had a conveyor truck once, but that is sloppy, and not as well controlled. A good pump operator puts it where you want it at the rate you want it, and with the proper mix. Just do it when it is cool! as an aside, you lose about half a yard in the bowel of the pump to get it started and demonstrate that it is flowing right, and left over because the pump cannot clear itself out. Prepare for a big lump somewhere and a mess where the operator cleans up afterward. Leave concrete in a pump too long and it freezes - noy a pretty sight, taking the poor fish of an operator days to chisel out. Watched it happen on a blistering hot day in North GA. Don

2. 
   Mike_Smith | Jul 16, 2001 02:35am | #6

   *the tone says this is a DIY project...do you have someone who can hump a 4" pump hose ?do you have people lined up who can pull and place 46 CY of concrete..this is a BIG pour...you need a LOT of help...after you get it placed.. you still have to screed and finish....if this is a basement.... that's one thing... if it's your finished floor....think hardhire a pro cement finisher to take over the whole thing.......i've been in construction for 30+ years.. and i wouldn't think of pouring that slab.....even if it was my house...b but hey , whadda i no ?

3. 
   bill_burns | Jul 16, 2001 03:01am | #7

   *I am with mike on this one. history has proven that when the concrete truck arrives, people disappear into thin air, bad backs act up and the sun is the hottest it has ever been while the humidity drops to zero! I would hire this out or attempt it in sections .

4. 
   Jeff_Clarke_ | Jul 16, 2001 03:06am | #8

   *Jo - last fall we poured a smaller slab, 16 x 24, in the woods 75' behind our 3-car garage. 16 yards - turned down slab/footing - took about 3 hours. Professional mason with 3 helpers and wheelbarrows was the most cost-effective way. I'd have been nuts to do it myself and your slab is 9 times as large. I agree with the tenor of 'hire a mason and let him decide.' He has to stand behind, and sometimes in, the work. PS - Listen to Mike Smith.PPS - Don't forget the contraction joints!Jeff

5. 
   Dave_Richeson | Jul 16, 2001 03:31am | #9

   *My vote goes to Mike and Jeff. I have poured concrete from trucks,used extended chutes,humped wheelbarrows, and used pumper trucks. All while in the employ of some pretty good companies. Every time I have poured for myself, the help disappears. An experienced crew of four to six men can make the job look easy but, believe me the key is experience. Everyone knows what to do, when to do it, and how to do it correctly.Gabe Martel wrote a good article in JLC about pouring slabs. It is worth the time to look it up on thier web site and print it out.Best of luck, Dave

6. 
   Jerry | Jul 16, 2001 06:48am | #10

   *Jo,You've gotten good advice here, but if you insist on doing it yourself, you'll need twice as much help as you think you do. The trucks come with about 14' if you ask, otherwise about 10'. They will bring, or you can rent another 16' but they won't hang more than that off their truck, even if you have it. (it's not practicle anyway).Pay for the pump, but as Mike said, a 4" line full of concrete gets pretty heavy. You can spend even more on a boom pump and save a lot of work.Jerry

7. 
   skader3 | Jul 16, 2001 09:20am | #11

   *Wow! A 3780 square foot slab pour for a three car garage - must be some big cars!! I placed a 3100 sq ft slab for my house, DIY'd it with a host of friends, many of which were in the trades at one point or another. I split the slab into three seperate pours. Generally, I had a dozen people, half of which had experience. I always served good steaks and good beer after the pour.I dont think that the yardage is impossible (we placed 50+ cy in a day and no-one collapsed), but the square footage of finishing is a lot to screed, float and trowel in one day.I would think the power trowel is a must for this. Make sure you have a couple of experienced finishers. look into using the metal construction joint material, you can use this for intermediate screed lines and it serves as a control joint as well. You leave it in the slab. I like this better than cutting the control joints because it doesnt leave a groove for dirt and dust to gather in. I think it works better in controlling cracks as well because the slab is disrupted over the entire thickness, not just the top inch or so. Space the control joint material in a 10' grid, use a 10' screed board and voila!Using a pump is a must for this - you cant reach across 54' with the chutes. No way. I reached across 24' pouring the slab for my shop and that was a stretch. With 20' on the chutes, it takes 3 men and a boy to control that sucker (there's more than a ton of concrete in the chutes). A boom pump is really a lot better than the alternatives. both wheelbarrows and the hose from an on the ground pump destroy your reinforcing (you are reinforcing the slab, right?), your forms, and your screed boards or control joint material and are a backbreaker to deal with. If you use the pump without the boom, figure on a bunch of big people to manhandle the hose. especially if you've got 50 feet plus out in the pour. Yikes!! Those kind of pumps are best, I think, if you've got to place a slab in someone's backyard and want to avoid all of the wheeling. most of the hose is just on the ground, not moving and the end of the hose is moved very little. Moving a hose around a slab will be a bear. Around here, the boom pump would be around $700 for a pour like that. Get the boom pump.I hope this isnt your first concrete pour, cause that's a biggun! Good luck.sami

8. 
   Jo_Lorant | Jul 16, 2001 02:18pm | #12

   *Thanks a lot ,Guess i'll get a pumper with a boom.Jo

2. 
   Jo_Lorant | Jul 16, 2001 02:18pm | #13

   *
   When pouring a concrete slab, how far will the chute on the concrete truck extend? I have been told if it extends past 20 or 30 feet the cement will seperate, therefore I will need a pump truck. My slab measures 70'x 54. The cement truck will be able to be in front and on te side of the 3 car garage to pour cement. The back and other side are not accessable. We have limited access to the site because we are in the woods. thank you Jo