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Making concrete last as loading area.

Desertwheeler

Senior Member
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Jan 25, 2014
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404
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Ca
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Miner
We are trying to see if there is a way to help our slab loading areas survive. We have waste piles that are stockpiled on slabs and loaded with large loaders with teeth. When I say large I’m talking letourneau 1350’s and bigger. The piles are very wet and often mud so just raising the bucket off the ground isn’t an option either. Smooth buckets isn’t really an option. So we have considered rails but afraid the concrete will crumble away between the rails and a tooth catch a rail. Any ideas?
 

Tradesman

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Joined
Apr 23, 2013
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1,075
Location
Ontario
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Contractor
We are trying to see if there is a way to help our slab loading areas survive. We have waste piles that are stockpiled on slabs and loaded with large loaders with teeth. When I say large I’m talking letourneau 1350’s and bigger. The piles are very wet and often mud so just raising the bucket off the ground isn’t an option either. Smooth buckets isn’t really an option. So we have considered rails but afraid the concrete will crumble away between the rails and a tooth catch a rail. Any ideas?
How about embedding I beams in the concrete at maybe 3 ft. centres in the direction of the bucket travel and welding a grid of rebar to the beams then pouring a high strength fibre embedded concrete between the beams. I've never done it just spit balling
 

repowerguy

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Mar 18, 2015
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810
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United States southern Ohio
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mixer truck mechanic
Consult your local r-mix plant and tell them your needs. They or their consulting engineer should be able to design a concrete jmf to suit your needs.
What I have seen is you will likely need a microsilica mix with a good bit of steel fiber, be warned, it will be expensive!
 

Desertwheeler

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Jan 25, 2014
Messages
404
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Ca
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Miner
So the problem we have is that the teeth are chewing up the concrete. I’m not entirely sure on thickness but probably at least a foot. We keep getting holes in it and rebar popping up and puncturing tires. At $50k per tire it isn’t good. We usually can repair the concrete in a decent time frame or cut the rebar out if it’s accessible.
In one Loading area running parallel isn’t an issue but the other there is not a set way the loader goes in. The slab is angled two directions which makes it hard to load when you slide around.
 
Last edited:

Bls repair

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Jan 21, 2017
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S E Pa
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Equipment operator,mechanic
Agree with repowerguy.
Could try steel plates anchored into concrete with welded joints.very expensive
 

Desertwheeler

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Jan 25, 2014
Messages
404
Location
Ca
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Miner
Agree with repowerguy.
Could try steel plates anchored into concrete with welded joints.very expensive
Is rebar still needed with that steel fiber?
It would have to be very thick steel other wise I think the loader could peel it up like tinfoil. I wonder how it would last is a very corrosive environment?
 

Tones

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Mar 15, 2009
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3,059
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Ubique
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Ex land clearing contractor, part-time retired
What about a slipper plate that covers the bucket teeth? It could be made so it pins on.
 

Bls repair

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Yes it would have to be thick with joints welded to keep plates from popping.
 

ol'stonebreaker

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Apr 26, 2015
Messages
333
Location
Idaho
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retired
Pretty crazy to me to have that large a loader with teeth working on concrete. Be better to just stockpile on natural ground and teach loader hands to maintain a floor of the material they're loading. That's how it's done when handling chips/seal coat and asphalt rock.
Mike
 

Desertwheeler

Senior Member
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Jan 25, 2014
Messages
404
Location
Ca
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Miner
Pretty crazy to me to have that large a loader with teeth working on concrete. Be better to just stockpile on natural ground and teach loader hands to maintain a floor of the material they're loading. That's how it's done when handling chips/seal coat and asphalt rock.
Mike
In this case the material is a clay mud and fine waste material with lots of moisture from a wet process plant and not permitted to stockpile on dirt. Other wise I agree completely about just having a good loader hand. This stuff is nasty it doesn’t even stack really at all.
 

Desertwheeler

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Joined
Jan 25, 2014
Messages
404
Location
Ca
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Miner
What about a slipper plate that covers the bucket teeth? It could be made so it pins on.
I was told we have tried that in the past and it did not work well. It made the bucket to heavy and never fit well.
 

Birken Vogt

Charter Member
Joined
Nov 30, 2003
Messages
5,305
Location
Grass Valley, Ca
Figure the net present value of the regular rebuilds of the existing style pad into the future (and associated costs such as tires) vs. the upfront cost of the beefed up pad plus uncertainty factor such as if it gets torn up faster than you budgeted for.

I know I am not using the right financial terms for these things but you get the gist, if you are doing work with these size tractors you probably know about NPV and such and how to value upfront vs. future costs.
 

Desertwheeler

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Jan 25, 2014
Messages
404
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Ca
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Miner
It’s only job isn’t loading waste. It has to load stockpiles and dig in digfaces as a backup machine.
 

Desertwheeler

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Jan 25, 2014
Messages
404
Location
Ca
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Miner
I don’t know that they make them that big. Bucket has a capacity of 40 tons.
 

DMiller

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Feb 21, 2010
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Hermann, Missouri
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Cheap "old" Geezer
Worked in a garage where the concrete had steel filings and iron dust mixed into the batches. Took a diamond blade or drill bit to cut it after hardened, had a dark grey color once dried and would develop a rust sheen if left wet for long periods. We ran crawlers on these floors with minimal grouser damage but when came time to replace due to age was major SOB to remove the slabs.
 

Labparamour

Senior Member
Joined
Sep 6, 2013
Messages
732
Location
Washington
I’m guessing you need to contain the run-off/leached liquids of material being stockpiled.
Could you have soil pad with membrane liner underneath to contain liquids?
I know around here, that’s how they construct landfills and manure lagoons.
Then, do as others have suggested: keep thin layer of material to run bucket over.

Darryl
 
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