Mixing Vs Delivery

Tom M

Besides the whole crew size thing blal bla bla.....at what point do you guys rent a mixer or have cement delivered? 40 bags? 50 bags? 4 holes is one thing 12 is another. I just got quoted about $200 more for delivery on something that would take all day vrs 1 hour. It still has to set up of course and money is money.

redwood

Well, I have a job coming up with 45 small footings (a very low deck) and we will mix them ourselves. I would need a pump as well as the truck, if I had it delivered. Plus mixing it ourselves does not put any time pressures on us. When the holes are ready, we can start mixing.

We have our own small mixer and if you build many decks, you should have one as well.

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Mark
Los Gatos, CA
www.creative-redwood-designs.com

Nail banger

I have a small mixer from HD, I use this for 95% of my footings. A local excavation company has a short pour truck that mixes on site. If there is alot of footings its sometimes cheaper. In the end I go with whatever will save the most time/money

BuiltByMAC

Up to 15 bags, I'll use a wheelbarrow.
15-30, I'll rent a mixer. (I know I should buy one, but there are so many other things to buy too!)
Over 30 (or more than 1/2 cu. yd), I'll have it delivered and pumped. I'll save money on the concrete itself by ordering it from a short pour truck. The pump will cost me $200 but it's worth it because of time saved...

Mac

onhitch

Over 30-35 bags i get a truck to save my back. Over 50 bags i get a truck to save money.

John Hyatt

Friday we did 72 80lb bags total labor= $352 total material=$285. mixed up with a shovel and barow. A little less than a truck and a pump. The sack creet would have been a little more but lowes was giving 49 cents off a bag and a free bar B Q lunch. J.

AtlanticWBConst

First off, electric mixers are inexpensive.

You should never rent one, when you can put the money into owning one.
I think I paid about $300.00 for the one we use. I bought it new.

I have since converted several other GC's, who do decks, to owning their own too. I did this, by simply allowing them to borrow mine to use, on one of their deck jobs....

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AtlanticWBConst

FWIW: About 2 years ago, I was pricing up a multiple level deck job that required 30+ pier footings.
My Excavation Contractor was going to loan me his bobcat w/auger and his worker for $300.00 (for the day, to dig all the holes) =
I was planning on getting a delivery on that job.

...I ended up dropping that HO because he wanted me do do that $60K+ job for $35K....loser.


BTW - If you set up an account with a concrete company, you will get a better rate (contractor rates per yard).

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- Build Well -

RenovatorLLC

I factor a redi-mix delivery for footings and piers on every deck that I need to dig. The less I have to haul/ mix/ schlep around, the longer I'll be able to keep working.

woodchuck2

For me it depends on if the job is time/materials or a set rate. I have no problem taking my time and pouring by hand and i will be making money off the material. I also own two mixers, both electric and i charge the customer a rental fee for them too.

woodchuck2

I like to haras the guys at Lowes/Home Depot about the broken bags. I picked up 20 broken bags one day from Lowes for $5, some crete was missing from spills and it was a pain to handle but i charged the customer full price, nice little profit.

JonM

We have a guy here that delivers small (any size batch) in this, for only a few bucks more then mixing it myself....

MALCO.New.York

Some guys get all the toys!!!! Nice lookin' rig!

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John Hyatt

See the thing with that job was a looooog winding driveway and the Wallet was not signing off. All it takes is the creet truck chiping off a 2' piece and I am paying for a new apron. Add in the price of a pump truck or the hassele of unloading/l loading a mixer that still has to be filled,dumped into the barrol,cleaned up and paid for of course I figure I made around $300 filling up those piers just that day plus the normal price I bid in.

I would have used a Georgia Buggy,I love those things, but the grade was total down hill, we would have been sideways all the time. Tiping the buggy would not have been pretty.

So I picked up a pallet of bags from my local,about all I want to carry placed in the middle of my 16' tandom running down the freeway, we got that in the holes about lunch time,all three of us went to lowes,they loaded 30 more on while the Guys and myself got a really good free lunch. Placed all the creet in the holes around 3 after starting at 8 bang bang back home in time for the green flag.

I also got to see how my new guy holds up when the job has got to be done in order for it to set up over the weekend. I love a day like that pushing the sweat and bones up around the limit its good for the ol Man. Of course I dont use a program to draw deck plans either so mabey I am stuck in the old school. But I G D F Love It!!!! John Mon

neolitic

All of them around here quit waiving
the minimum for contractors last year.
This year they all started adding the
fuel charge which seems to go up daily.
Contractors discount doesn't add up
to that much anymore.

BTW: With the banks putting the
squeeze on their operating loans,
the net 30 discount is going to
disappear as soon as the first
supplier has his back against
the wall.

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Tom M

I should have mentioned that the 2 bills is just showing up then we have cost per yard and there after per minute over 15 mintues truck time. Those cheap electric mixers are probably an even wash on a yard alone but I just dont feel like storing it right now. Probably foolish but Im still trying to regroup after this past winter.

dlcj

[...I ended up dropping that HO because he wanted me do do that $60K+ job for $35K....loser.]


Not to get off subject but, holly crap!! $60k for a deck. Maybe a boardwalk 100 yards down the beach or on the Builtmore but a deck on a home! I must see some pics.

Btw- dad and I use a 25 year old electric mixer that holds one wheel barrow full for up to 1 yard before we call the truck. Up to 2 years ago we used to lay all our own blocks and used that same concrete mixer to mix mortar. We still do if its less than about 500 blocks.

Bone Saw

for me, its not JUST about how many bags, but how many bags also taking into account the terrain and any delivery obstacles. I ALWAYS get a delivery on a moffat, so I can get 80 or 130 bags put right where I want it (in the center of the decks footprint right next to my mixer) I have an electric mixer that will mix 2 80# bags at a time ( which would overflow even the deepest of wheelbarrows and would be otherwise unmanageable anyway)
SO ultimately it really boils down to how unmanageable is the terrain for wheeling crete around and can you get a moffat to put your crete where you want it...
If either or both of the 2 criteria are questionable I'll get redi mix and a pump, otherwise how many bags really isnt a factor, considering I've mixed and poured 120 80# bags for elevated graded beam piers and been done by noon
then you dont have 1/2 a yard of pump "cleanout" to get rid of later

btw, metered trux are the only way to go for deck footings, now if they had metered trux with a pump that would be the cats ass

deckman22

We got 'em here. Cheaper rates on the concrete too when using their pump & creet trucks.

It has to be a big pour before I go that route tho. For most deck footings we mix 'em in a wheelbarrow.

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redwood

I'm slightly amazed that some of you mix quantities of concrete in a wheelbarrow. You must be working hourly.

The electric mixers are relatively cheap and mix the concrete as fast as you can put it in the barrel. The only drawback is hauling it around. Mine disassembles into 3 pieces with one bolt.

I will definately pump if the job calls for it, but most don't warrant the expense unless they are deep footings.

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Mark
Los Gatos, CA
www.creative-redwood-designs.com