Tips for concrete pump working in winter

For concrete pump, if pouring in cold winter, there will be face a lot of troubles and difficulties. Especially for some new concrete pump workers, the concrete pump cannot start up and work properly due to lack of enough experience. If concrete pouring need at cold weather, what should be prepared and pay attention to? Following will share with workers, concrete pump, concrete information for reference review.

Preparation of concrete pump

Before pumping concrete, it is best to preheat the entire hydraulic system by emptying the pump. At low temperatures, the working performance of hydraulic oil decreases, so the hydraulic oil temperature can be increased by emptying the pump to make the system run more smoothly.

According to the outside temperature, the concrete pump needs to select the corresponding diesel grade to avoid problems.

5# diesel is suitable for use when the temperature is above 8℃;

0# diesel is suitable for use when the temperature is between 8℃ and 4℃;

-10# diesel is suitable for use when the temperature is between 4℃ and -5℃;

-20# diesel is suitable for use when the temperature is between 4℃ and -5℃;

-35# diesel is suitable for use when the temperature is -14℃ to -29℃;

-50# diesel is suitable for use when the temperature is -29℃ to -44℃ or lower.

Concrete pump checklist in winter

For concrete pump, the most important thing is to prevent problems when working in winter. Fixing the problems and change replaced concrete pump parts ahead can work normal and success.

• Warm the engine for 10 minutes, check the oil pressure before starting work.

• Check if there are ice cubes in the water tank, especially for vehicles with electronically controlled commutation. Prohibit the water tank freezing.

• If there is a preheating function, start it first. Make sure the oil temperature rises to 20-30 degrees before working.

• Check and replace engine antifreeze in time, and perform routine maintenance on the engine.  Chassis engine coolant must be replaced if it is more than two years old, and it is prohibited to replace the refrigerant with water.

• Check concrete pipe, wear plate and other wearing parts with carefully, avoid construction interruption due to wearing parts problems at cold temperatures.

For the lubrication system, it is necessary to add lithium grease with better fluidity. In summer, 00# lithium grease is suitable. After zero temperature, 000# lithium grease lubrication system.

Requirements for concrete pump workers

In the cold outdoor environment, our heads, ears, limbs and other body parts become more fragile. Especially if you work outdoors for a long time, you are not only prone to frostbite and chapped skin, but also more production safety accidents due to the cold. Be sure to stay warm, use warm gloves, hats, socks to protect yourself, avoid safety accidents. No matter what kind of environment, safe operation training is first. When entering the construction site, you must wear a safety helmet correctly, and the operators must have a certificate to work. For more safety training information, you are welcome to read this article.

Tips for keeping warm: 

Increase the number of clothes, and organize working time rationally. 

Take more close

If you want to keep warm, you should start with your clothes. Wearing more clothes will definitely prevent you from freezing, so the number of clothes determines whether you can be warm enough. 

Wear cotton shoes.

Of course, in addition to protecting your hands, it is also very important to protect your feet. The cold weather is easy to freeze, which can cause workers to slip and fall. 

While ensuring the safe operation of the workers, we must provide front-line workers with warm and comfortable protection.

Concrete requirements

When concrete pouring in the winter, it is important to remember that it does not cure set immediately. Rapid hydration of concrete can lead to bad quality as well as undesirable surface effects. If you insist to work in sub-zero temperatures, you must use antifreeze.

Using hot water when preparing the concrete mix is one way to prevent the concrete from freezing in cold weather, and preventing the slurry from freezing in the pipes. In cold winter can easily cause frozen pipes, especially when the tank trucks supply is interrupted. Master measures to prevent frozen pipes is needed.

Concrete pouring should be arranged as much as possible during a time when the temperature is relatively high. Pouring with rapid and layered when construction. 

Tips for Concrete Pouring in winter

• Choose high-pressure pumping, because the concrete fluidity become deteriorates at low temperatures. Only by increasing the pumping pressure will the pipe not be blocked.
• Make construction plans and reasonable construction plans in advance. For winter construction, Portland cement is suitable for concrete.
• Remove snow from frameworks, make sure concrete rapid and continuous pouring. Use blanket coverings to ensure that the concrete temperature does not get cold.
• Add EPS board at frameworks till concrete cured. Use admixtures to delay the setting time. After construction is completed, provide effective care.

Cleaning work

Cold temperatures are very unfriendly. When water freezes, its volume will increase, causing pipes to crack. This is a normal phenomenon. Therefore, the first thing is to clean up the water at each work. So after pump pouring, reverse pump draws back all the water in the pipeline and wash out.

The water pump, outrigger water tank, concrete water tank, chassis gas tank, residual water stains in the pump pipe are all easy to be problems. When freezing it will cause shell crack.

The outrigger tank water can be drained through the bottom port. For concrete tank, It is recommended to add discarded hydraulic oil, which can prevent freezing and provide better lubrication effect.

It’s so cold in winter that many people are too lazy to stretch out their hands, let alone wash out the concrete pump.

Some owners skip the washing process after finishing work. Failure to clean the concrete pump will not only affect the appearance of the vehicle body, but also affect the concrete pump working life. In the long time, it will add wear parts replacing cost. Therefore, cleaning work must be done properly in winter.

Concrete pump working protection

In a word, concrete pump, workers and concrete are well protected, so that the construction can be safety. This is also the work requirement we advocate, which can effectively avoid accidents.

When an emergency situation endangering personal safety is discovered during construction, the operation should be stopped immediately or the dangerous area should be evacuated after taking necessary emergency measures.

Operators are prohibited from working under the influence of alcohol, from fatigue, or from making trouble at the construction site. Operators must understand the concrete pump performance and vulnerable parts, and be aware of dangerous parts. Take prompt measures when discovered the problem.

Concrete ump can only be used to transport concrete and cannot lift heavy objects. Be caution when construction sites near high power line, keep an appropriate distance from the wires to avoid touching them. 

After a blockage occurs, reverse the pump to clear it timely. If the reverse pump is ineffective, immediately determine the blockage location and stop the machine to clean the pipeline.

Hope this article is helpful to you, and good luck to everyone in concrete pump industry.