Jobsite Mixing

by Rebecca Wasieleski
Created: March 6, 2009

Jobsite mixing leaves the contractor in control of batch size, timing and details of the mix such as additives and color.

The Boxer 427W compact utility loader with cement bowl attachment allows a contractor to mix up to 200 pounds of concrete and drive it where it needs to go. At 36 inches wide, this compact utility...
The Boxer 427W compact utility loader with cement bowl attachment allows a contractor to mix up to 200 pounds of concrete and drive it where it needs to go. At 36 inches wide, this compact utility loader can access many areas a larger machine cannot.
STOW, a division of Multiquip, offers the German-made Collomix brand mixers, which includes 10 models of hand-held mixers in either single- or dual-shaft designs, four models of automatic mixing...
STOW, a division of Multiquip, offers the German-made Collomix brand mixers, which includes 10 models of hand-held mixers in either single- or dual-shaft designs, four models of automatic mixing stations and a variety of paddle designs to help you get the best mix possible. Stands are available that allow contractors to turn their hand-held mixers into automatic mixing stations.
Stone Construction Equipment's Champion Concrete Mixers line offers units ranging in capacity from 2 to 12 cubic feet. The line includes end-dump configurations in the 6- and 9-cubic-foot models...
Stone Construction Equipment's Champion Concrete Mixers line offers units ranging in capacity from 2 to 12 cubic feet. The line includes end-dump configurations in the 6- and 9-cubic-foot models, which allow contractors an alternative to the traditional side-dump model.

Using professional equipment will get you professional results. Jobsite mixing leaves the contractor in control of batch size, timing and details of the mix such as additives and color.

As a concrete contractor, you're probably using concrete mixes, repair mixes or overlays on a daily basis. You want to ensure proper and efficient mixing of your materials. Jobsite mixers are a great resource to help you achieve this.

There are times for a ready mix truck and times for jobsite mixing. Anytime you have a project that requires more than 5 cubic yards of concrete or a continuous pour, you'll most likely call in a ready mix truck. For smaller jobs, projects that will be poured in stages, or on jobsites not easily reached by ready mix trucks, jobsite mixing offers you flexibility and quality control.

Hand mixing

Hand mixers are the most portable and flexible of jobsite mixing equipment. Contractors can carry hand mixers up or down stairs and easily transport them around a jobsite. While some contractors mixing small batches of concrete might turn to a drill with a mixer paddle attachment or a hoe and wheelbarrow, those devices aren't designed for professionally mixing concrete and could result in a mix that won't harden like it should, has air pockets or won't meet its intended strength. A hand mixer designed for mixing concrete and similar products will prevent those errors.

"A professional mixing tool will help ensure proper material integrity by mixing it correctly," says Bruce Coleman, product manager with Multiquip. "Sometimes a product bag or bucket will suggest an RPM at which to mix a product. Our mixers employ gear boxes with adjustable RPMs that allow you to spin at an optimum rate the product suggests."

The amount of mixing a contractor does on the job will dictate what kind of mixer he might want to have on the jobsite, Coleman explains. If a contractor is typically mixing small batches a few times a week in 10-gallon buckets, he can get by with a single-paddle hand mixer. If he's mixing several 20-gallon batches daily, he might want to consider a dual-paddle model. "In a one-man operation, where a contractor doesn't want to waste time mixing, that's where we would suggest an automatic system," Coleman explains. "These mixers can handle a great volume of throughput every hour."

To optimize a mixing solution, various geometric paddle designs are available to match the material and viscosity. Choices are available for conveying material upward from the bottom of the tub (usually for heavy bag mixes), downward (normally thin liquid products), and for parallel swirling action where higher shearing force is necessary (thick fillers, mortars and sealants).

Attachment mixing

Another option for jobsite mixing is a concrete mixer attachment. One of the benefits of this type of mixing equipment is oftentimes a concrete contractor will already have a host machine working on the jobsite. A skid-steer loader, compact utility loader or other host machine can use a variety of attachments for various projects on the jobsite, including demolition, excavation, grading and leveling, and concrete mixing and dumping. There are several cement bowl attachments available, with models typically screwing onto a high torque auger power head. The hydraulics of the host machine powers the bowl's turning action.

Common sizes of mixing bowl attachments for skid-steer loaders include 5- and 9-cubic-foot models. Bowls for smaller equipment run a bit smaller. Boxer Equipment offers a 3.2-cubic-foot cement bowl mixer for its Boxer line of compact utility loader.

"One of the advantages of an attachment is a contractor can mix 200 pounds of concrete, then drive it where it needs to go and precisely dump it without the need for a wheelbarrow," says Andy Lewis with Boxer Equipment.

Ideal projects for a mixer of this size include a small patio, small batch work, or a job where you need to move concrete around the jobsite such as a fencing contractor who might use his host machine to drill holes with an auger then use the equipment to mix and pour concrete.

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