Cement Truck Questions

[Tim_T-Bonham.net]

@DocCathode

I’ve wondered this for years. How heavily would you have to modify a cement truck before you could use it as a giant milkshake machine?

You already have a place to pour in the ingredients, a big rotating drum to keep them mixed, and a pouring chute. Is there a feasable way to keep the whole drum refrigerated?

Milkshake mixers move much, much faster than the mixers on a cement truck. You would have to modify the truck to make it turn that fast. And it would be pretty hard – spinning a big steel container that fast would take a really big engine, and would be real hard on the container pivots.

And how would you deal with the idiot that wants a different flavor?

[TriPolar]

@t-bonham@scc.net

Milkshake mixers move much, much faster than the mixers on a cement truck. You would have to modify the truck to make it turn that fast. And it would be pretty hard – spinning a big steel container that fast would take a really big engine, and would be real hard on the container pivots.

And how would you deal with the idiot that wants a different flavor?

Well what about soft serve ice cream then?

And you’re not supposed to call me an idiot on this board.

[cochrane]

Of course, it is absolutely mandatory that any discussion of cement mixers must contain this explosion. Figuratively speaking. I doubt anything on earth can contain this explosion.

[Polycarp]

I guess it’s my turn to make the customary nitpick: what sidewalks, highways, dams, bridges, and so on are made of is concrete, which is produced by agitating together a mixture of water, sand and cement. Though they’re often called “cement” sidewalks, etc., the meaning is that cement is a major ingredient in the substance they’re made of, not that it is that substance. Cement is any of several binding substances, by far the most common being Portland cement, a powdery substance that is primarily (>90%) calcium oxide and calcium oxide silicate, with minor components of magnesium oxide, calcium sulfate, and iron- and aluminum-containing rock flour. It’s a relatively pedantic point, but occasionally important to draw the distinction.

[robby]

@Polycarp

I guess it’s my turn to make the customary nitpick: what sidewalks, highways, dams, bridges, and so on are made of is concrete, which is produced by agitating together a mixture of water, sand and cement. Though they’re often called “cement” sidewalks, etc., the meaning is that cement is a major ingredient in the substance they’re made of, not that it is that substance. Cement is any of several binding substances, by far the most common being Portland cement, a powdery substance that is primarily (>90%) calcium oxide and calcium oxide silicate, with minor components of magnesium oxide, calcium sulfate, and iron- and aluminum-containing rock flour. It’s a relatively pedantic point, but occasionally important to draw the distinction.

Absolutely correct. While I didn’t make the nitpick myself, you’ll notice that I used the correct terminology in my own reply–over six years ago.

[Enright3]

Regarding cleaning out the drums; when I was working construction a long time ago; my company needed some gravel for pouring in the footings. I don’t know why we put the gravel in a cement truck; but when we emptied the truck, the inside of the drum was shiny and new. We always wondered why not always just put some gravel in there to clean it up. I’m guessing that’s because someone has to do the work of putting gravel in a cement truck.

[bardos]

I also occasionally use gravel to clean out my (180 litre) cement mixer. Cement mixers as well as cement trucks inevitably get a buildup of hardened cement or concrete. Somehow you just can’t get it all out by spraying with water. The gravel tumbling around acts like , well, super sandpaper or maybe small little hammers and chisels, and dislodges many odd bits of stuck hardened cement.

[Magiver]

As a note, when I’ve ordered concrete for a project and specified a stronger mixture the polymer was added on-site.