Can’t (easily) get a truck to my proposed dog pen site so I’m thinking of mixing it by hand in a wheelbarrow.
Question……how many wheelbarrows 2/3 full of concrete does it take to lay a pad approximately 10x 10x 3inches?
How much material? for a 1-2-3 mix?
“Strange things done in the midnight sun by the men who moil for gold”
Replies
A builder's wheelbarrow -- full -- holds about 1/8th of a cubic yard. You're going to need just under a cubic yard of concrete so that's 8 wheelbarrows full or, say, 12 only 2/3rds full.
That's a lot of work mixing by hand -- any of your mates got a cement mixer you could borrow for the day? --- or rent one.
The other consideration is that hand-mixing will be a slow process and you could have problems with blending one mix in with the previous one -- especially on a hot day.
A far better alternative might be to organise a barbeque plus beer and invite all your able-bodied friends [BYO wheelbarrow] and have 1 cu.yd delivered.
IanDG
Edited 7/18/2005 12:35 pm ET by IanDG
That's kinda what I figured...don't think I'd have a problem in cold country, but man it's hot this year . . . and I may not be able to keep up like you said doing the wheelbarrow mix......I'll rent a mixer and hope for a cool breeze.Thanks everybody for the help.
"Strange things done in the midnight sun by the men who moil for gold"
10 foot by 10 foot by .25 (3 inches) equals 25 cu ft. divide that by 27 and you get .925926, just under 1 yard of crete needed for the job, not counting any extra you'll want to have handy. Not knowing the size of the wheelbarrow I can't figure the amount of loads to mix, but the bag should tell you yield per bag and you can go from there....
If you aren't one of the one's I'm talking about,you shouldn't have any complaints....
10x10x3inches.
man, you got some serious size dogs.
"10x10x3inches.man, you got some serious size dogs."
Not necessarily. Our township recently passed an ordinance that all structures for keeping dogs outdoors must be a minimum of 100 sq ft - regardless of dog size. I'm sure other places have similar ordinances on the book
Funny thing - our town requires a permit for any structure >= 100 sq feet hmmm...
...Funny thing - our town requires a permit for any structure >= 100 sq feet...Roar! Nothing like being the cash cow. I can here them planning now..."Let's see, what other ways can we fill the village coffers."be milked.
Maybe air and water need a special users tax added on.
A person with no sense of humor about themselves is fullashid
in addition...call the local crete service and see if they'll make a 1 yard minimum delivery...a lot of places I've worked with are 2 yard......or go to the local H.D. and rent a machine for the morning, should be around 35-50 bucks...
If you aren't one of the one's I'm talking about,you shouldn't have any complaints....
Several other options.
A mixer by the site.
In many areas you can get U-Cart concrete. Often rental places have them. They have a small batch plant and place the concrete in a special trailer for 1/2 to 1 1/4 yards. Can you get a truck and tailer in to the area.
Ready mix with a bobcat bucket and and take in about 2 trips.
You can also rent power buggies (forget the other name) that are basically powered wheelbarrows.
One of my friends who knows about these things said concrete is bad for dogs' paws because of the alkalinity of the cement. It would be wise to call you vet to see if that's true.
Ok . . . here's another question. What would work better than cement? My problem is urine etc. odors and clean conditions for my dogs. What do you other guys use?
"Strange things done in the midnight sun by the men who moil for gold"
Once the cement sets up, it is a lot easier on the dogs feet... (and the concrete keeps the nails filed)
Edited 7/18/2005 10:24 pm ET by Brian
The only other material I've seen is dirt. Hopefully others will have some knowledge.
12"x 12" concrete pavers. I built a 12' x 16' kennel for my two.
Mark
I don't know if they address this problem, but some friends of mine have had excellent results with their dogs using the info from here:
http://www.dogsbestfriend.com/
-- J.S.
Tile? It's what I've seen some vets use.
I think concrete is bad for dogs feet because most outdoor concrete is abrasive (to keep it from getting slippery when it rains). The rough surface tears up the pads on the dogs feet.
If you poured a pad & finished it smooth, it shouldn't be a problem.
That said, it might be easier in your situation (where it would be difficult to have ready mix delivered) to put down some sand, pack it & put pavers on top. Just get smooth pavers (again for the dogs feet).
rubber
http://anti-fatigue.com/HorseAnimalMats.htm