# Do you need a concrete mixer to mix 20, 80 pound bags?



## Pianolady (Jun 28, 2012)

Yes rent one. Your back will thank you by the end of the day.


----------



## riddlers (Oct 3, 2012)

I use a wheel barrow and hoe for small batches. Much of it would be dependent upon of you needed to mix all the concrete at once or were using smaller batches throughout the day. If you're mixing all at once, a mixer would help quite a bit. You could also save money and simply buy the ingredients and mix them.


----------



## cleveman (Dec 17, 2011)

You could just mix 20 batches in a wheelbarrow. If you need to mix it fast, get another wheelbarrow and some help. Two guys should be able to mix it all in a half hour.


----------



## sublime2 (Mar 21, 2012)

cleveman said:


> You could just mix 20 batches in a wheelbarrow. If you need to mix it fast, get another wheelbarrow and some help. Two guys should be able to mix it all in a half hour.


Lol! Half an hour? 
Take that long to just dump the bags!


----------



## Daniel Holzman (Mar 10, 2009)

Cleveman, you must be Hercules. I mixed enough concrete for 12 sonotubes, each 10 inch diameter, and 3-4 feet deep. That is a bit over 20 cubic feet. I mixed each batch in a plastic wheelbarrow using stone, sand and portland cement purchased from a local supplier.

It took me about half an hour per load to mix it, transport it to location, place it, and vibrate it into position. One cubic foot of concrete weighs about 150 lbs, which is about the limit for my wheelbarrow, so I ended up spending about 10 hours total mixing and placing concrete. I would gladly have hired a truck, but the location was such that truck access was impossible, and besides it wasn't even a full yard of concrete. A mixer would likely have saved me 10-15 minutes per load, but I would have either had to rent one (figure the time to drive to and from the rental place) or buy one for a one off project, so I elected to hand mix. Not bad if you need the exercise. But then again I split nine cords of wood by hand two years ago, so maybe I am not the best role model if saving time is your objective.


----------



## cleveman (Dec 17, 2011)

I don't know what to tell you guys. If I had a helper and we each had 10 bags, I think it wouldn't be much of a job. I just fill the wheelbarrow with the right amount of water and hoe or shovel the kwikrete across it 3 or 4 times and dump. A hoe makes it much easier. Obviously I would have the materials and water next to where the concrete was being used.

Then again, my dad and I built the log cabin that I was born in.


----------



## SPS-1 (Oct 21, 2008)

5 gallon bucket isn't going to do it. 
You could do it in a wheelbarrow.
You could even take a scrap piece of plywood, and frame a box of 2 x 10's around it as a mixing area.
But after you finish, you will wish you rented a mixer. Its hard work.


----------



## Davejss (May 14, 2012)

Wheelbarrow and a hoe. Piece of cake.


----------



## tibberous (Mar 25, 2010)

I just bought this:

http://www.homedepot.com/webapp/wcs...-_PP_OMS_Ord_Conf-_-pip_203195237__W168493319

And this:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0000AX6QL/ref=oh_details_o00_s00_i00

Still have no idea how to do rebar - but my stuff won't be here for a week anyway.


----------



## tibberous (Mar 25, 2010)

Btw, I bought 50 bags of this: http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc...ngId=-1&keyword=crack+resistant&storeId=10051

Will that help with not needing rebar? All I'm trying to do is build a 4x6x3 foot deep waterproof hole out of concrete -- seems like it shouldn't be super hard? It isn't free standing, shouldn't the dirt hold the water in like a normal pond?


----------



## GBrackins (Apr 26, 2012)

cleveman said:


> Then again, my dad and I built the log cabin that I was born in.


gotta be one of my favorite quotes .... :laughing:

thanks for the chuckle


----------



## jomama45 (Nov 13, 2008)

tibberous said:


> I just bought this:
> 
> 
> And this:
> ...


Just be careful when using that on the walls, it has far more power than 99% of DIY'ers will ever need and can move/distort your forms in no time.....




tibberous said:


> Btw, I bought 50 bags of this: http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc...ngId=-1&keyword=crack+resistant&storeId=10051
> 
> *Will that help with not needing rebar?* All I'm trying to do is build a 4x6x3 foot deep waterproof hole out of concrete -- seems like it shouldn't be super hard? It isn't free standing, shouldn't the dirt hold the water in like a normal pond?



No you still need a little rebar IMPO, especially in the connection between the floor & walls............


----------

