cement mixer

[merlin101]

I'm going to be pouring some concrete piers at a off grid camp and there's no a cement truck would get to the site. So you know how much back breaking work I have ahead of me. My questions are If I have a small generator but not sure if it will power a (used) mixer, any ideas? I found a old mixer in good condition but it doesn't have any motor, I was thinking about putting a gas engine on it but what HP? Any help would be appreciated.

[sparky45]

I just finished a concrete job and used a mixer (old Montgomery Ward) that had a 1/3hp electric motor on it and had to string an electric cord (3 cords) a little over 200ft from my shop and the motor worked flawlessly. I suspect the mixer motor will work off the generator just fine.

[rancher1913]

for smaller jobs I use a five gallon bucket and 1/2 drill with a Sheetrock mud mixer paddle, much quicker than the cement mixer. add about 2 inches of water then have somebody pour the cement in as you mix, keep adding until you get the consistency you want.

[merlin101]

Thanks for the replies, I'll buy the mixer and try my genny. I talked to a friend and he will loan me a bigger gen set if needed. Love when a plan comes together!

[bbs70]

Depending on the distance from the truck to the job, you might want to consider renting a concrete buggy.
I drove a cement mixer for 15 yrs and have seen people use these a lot,.
Saves the back and time,

[Hossfly]

I’ve used a small wattage generator/welder to run a mixer, they don’t take much power a bout 1/3-1/2 horse power. Mine would hold 3 sacs of mix and still run good. Some times you would have to help start by hand, just to get it going, then would run fine. Still a lot of work tho. 4kw gen worked fine for 1/2 hp mixer motor belt drive really slow rpm on drum.

[Hossfly]

Ok forgot to mention there a few tricks you will learn when operating a portable mixer. #1 is run empty, add some water first, about 1/2 of what you need for amount of sacs your going to mix. Then open sac down wind pick up and rotate in direction the drum is turning while your dumping in so your not fighting the drum’s rotation, and hold your breath while doing so.

[white eagle]

I just finished a concrete job and used a mixer (old Montgomery Ward) that had a 1/3hp electric motor on it and had to string an electric cord (3 cords) a little over 200ft from my shop and the motor worked flawlessly. I suspect the mixer motor will work off the generator just fine.

pretty much do the same with a Sears cement mixer
run mine off my generator no problem

[wmitty]

What quantity of concrete are you needing to place? If the quality of the concrete is important you need to keep the water/cement ratio at .4 or less to obtain strength and durability. If it will be exposed to freezing conditions it will need an air entraining agent to prevent freeze/ thaw damage. Too much water ruins the concrete.

[smoked turkey]

A lot of the "trick" to a good mixer is in the pulley ratio between the pulley on the motor and the pulley on the drum. I can't tell you what drum speed you need. As I recall mine had a large pulley on the drum and a smallish pulley on the motor. My motor was a 1/3 hp washing machine motor and as such you won't need a very large generator. I'd venture to say a 3-3.5 kw would be big enough. I also had to give mine a little help turning from time to time. It can be a heavy load when you get a couple of sacks of concrete in the drum along with gravel, sand, and water. you will find the learning curve is pretty short! Good mixing and good on you for doing the hard, hot, back breaking work.

[Stan_TN]

Be sure to wear some type of gloves! Cement is rough on a persons hands. Some good latex or chemical gloves when dealing with the stuff. Cement is heck on a person't hands.