What are the Advantages of Pumpable Concrete?

Many types of concrete can be pumped, thanks to slight variations in the admixture’s ingredients. Here Madmix, who offer pumpable concrete in the Cambridgeshire area, look at some of the key advantages of ordering and using this type of admixture.

It’s Faster and Saves Time

Using a pump – or several pumps – is much quicker than getting the concrete to its final destination by more traditional human methods. This is particularly important if the project is a large-scale one; you can have several pumps operating at the same time. This means you don’t need to employ as many workers on site, reducing costs and increasing the efficiency of your project.

You Can Regulate the Pour More Easily

Another benefit of pumpable concrete is that you can regulate the pour more easily – you know how much concrete will be delivered in a set period of time. It can also help improve workers’ productivity, as employees can work at a steady pace. Using a pumpable admixture also helps you plan ahead, which again is important it you are working to a tight schedule (and you are less likely to incur financial penalties through any delays).

A faster pour also means that the admixture’s consistency should be more uniform – and the whole pour can take place before the concrete starts to set, improving its overall strength.

Access Isn’t a Problem

Many construction projects involve working ‘at height’ – for instance, flats on multiple floors, or multi-storey car parks. In cases like these, it’s much easier to pump the concrete directly to the area where it’s needed rather than getting it there by manual labour – and it cuts down some of the physical risks involved as well. The same applies to any underground construction project as well.

And many ground-floor projects benefit from pumpable concrete as well – either because of slopes, hills and other permanent obstacles. This includes small-scale domestic work as well as large developments; for instance, a pump may come in handy if you want to lay a patio base in your back garden and there is restricted access at the side of the house.

It Reduces Waste

Using a pump is a clean, precise method of delivery. This will result in far less waste and fewer spillages (which is more likely to occur if the site is difficult to access, or uneven, or you use a wheelbarrow). Again, there could be a cost factor involved here if you have to re-order your concrete – as well as the time you spend cleaning up any unwanted spills, which using pumpable concrete helps to mitigate.

How Do You Make Concrete Pumpable?

You can make concrete pumpable by adjusting some of the ingredients in the admixture – such as adding some extra sand, or by using smaller-sized aggregates in the admixture, or by adding a water-reducing ingredient which will produce a more even mix and also improve the concrete’s overall strength later on.

All these methods can help to ensure that the concrete can be easily pushed through a delivery tube under suitable pressure.

Pumpable Concrete in Cambridge from Madmix

If you think you will need a pumpable admixture for your concrete construction project, call us on 01954 212212 (or click here and fill in the online form) and we will be happy to advise you.

While we do not provide pumps ourselves, we are very happy to recommend Boxfast Plant Concrete Pumping Specialists, who can be called on 01480 531290 (for full contact details follow this link).

We supply accredited concrete from our Cambridgeshire base; this means it is guaranteed to be of a uniformly high quality. You can use our site’s concrete calculator to estimate how much you will need; but don’t worry if you get it wrong because we are happy to take away any excess at no extra cost.