What to Consider Before Buying a Concrete Mixer Pump

There are many different designs of concrete mixer pump(bomba mezcladora de concreto) available, and the type you buy will depend on the size and type of site, as well as the environment you are working in. For example, small trailer-mounted pumps are often a perfectly good choice if you need something for a residential pour. They’re also a good alternative to a high volume pump if you want a large pour for decorative purposes, because the slower output rate gives you more control. When you’re doing stamped concrete, for example, that slower pour is very useful.

Some of those ‘small’ pumps can reach hundreds of feet, and have variable flow between five to 100 cubic yards an hour. They’re not ideal for those difficult projects on awkward terrain, though, and that’s when you’d want to have a bigger concrete boom pump instead.

AIMIX Diesel Concrete Mixer Pump
AIMIX Diesel Concrete Mixer Pump

Buy or Rent?

Another thing that you should consider is whether buying really is the best idea, or whether it’s better to rent. If you’re not expecting to use the pump frequently, then buying isn’t always the best idea. Renting can be more economical for one-off jobs or even for occasional jobs on a site. Work out how many hours you would typically be using the pump for each year, and then run the numbers. If you’re buying a used pump and expect to hold on to it for a number of years, then it could well pay for itself quite quickly. However, you will need to factor in storage and maintenance when you decide whether to rent or buy.

Truck Mounted Concrete Mixer Pump
Truck Mounted Concrete Mixer Pump

Which Pump to Buy?

If you’ve decided that you want to buy, then do your due diligence. It’s likely you’ve got a concrete mix that you prefer to use for most of your projects, and an exact way of mixing it for best results. Look for a concrete pump that will accommodate the type of mix that you like to use – whether that’s a peak rock pump, or a line pump that can take coarse aggregate(agregado grueso). Read the spec sheets and make sure that you are happy with the output rate too. Remember that faster isn’t always better. A high capacity pump isn’t always necessary, and if you don’t have enough workers to keep up with the pump then it’s going to cause more problems than it’s worth. Indeed, if you’re doing decorative work then your priority might be having a pump that is variable speed because you’ll need to slow it down if the finishing and stamping crew can’t keep up with the output.

Remember that the speeds are ‘best case’, too and that if the pump is being used for long conveying distances it won’t necessarily deliver maximum speed at those distances. There’s a lot to think about. It’s a good idea to ask people who work on construction sites(personas que trabajan en sitios de construcción) if they’re happy with the type of pump that they have and how it performs in the real world. Ask about ease of maintenance too, because over the lifetime of the pump that will matter.