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How Do I Choose the Best Concrete Pump Truck?

Lori Kilchermann
Lori Kilchermann

The best concrete pump truck will carry the quantity of concrete you need and be able to gain access to the ares that you wish to place the concrete. When searching for the best concrete pump truck, you also may wish to compare pumping rates to make certain you select the pump with the highest pumping rate possible. A greater pump rate will speed up the task of pumping your concrete.

A concrete pump truck is a large machine used to pump concrete into hard-to-reach areas. Unlike a common concrete delivery truck that uses chutes and a type of screw device to unload the product into concrete forms, a concrete pump truck uses a powerful pump to suck the concrete out of a bin or hopper. The truck then pushes the concrete through a long, flexible hose where it is directed into the desired pouring location. This is often on an upper floor of a large building or in a very difficult-to-reach area that will not allow a truck to access the pouring location in the traditional manner.

Wet concrete being poured.
Wet concrete being poured.

You may wish to choose a concrete pump truck that has over-sized, floatation-type tires on it to minimize the amount of sinking the truck will experience when operated on soft ground. This could save on costly repair bills from damaged lawns where a truck has sunk deeply into the soft earth. Other considerations for choosing the best truck for your needs are ease of operation and capacity of the truck as well as the length of the pump boom or hose. The power of the pump is also a determining factor when choosing the best pump for your needs. If you will be pumping concrete up to a very high location, you may need a pump with an extremely powerful pump to push the heavy material up to your required pouring location.

A man smoothing out a concrete floor.
A man smoothing out a concrete floor.

Some concrete pump truck designs allow the truck to be used for mud jacking as well as pumping concrete. Mud jacking is the process of pumping a mud-like substance under sagging concrete to raise the concrete back to the original height. Choosing a truck with this dual capability could allow you to open a new business or expand the type of work you are capable of doing.

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    • Wet concrete being poured.
      By: uwimages
      Wet concrete being poured.
    • A man smoothing out a concrete floor.
      By: Lilyana Vynogradova
      A man smoothing out a concrete floor.