CONCRETE MIXING RATIOS - WHAT IS THE BASIC MIXING RATIO FOR CONC...

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A concrete mixture ratio of 1 part cement, 3 parts sand, and 3 parts

aggregate will produce a concrete mix of approximately 3000 psi.

Mixing water with the cement, sand, and stone will form a paste that will
bind the materials together until the mix hardens. The strength properties
of the concrete are inversely proportional to the water/cement ratio.

Basically this means the more water you use to mix the concrete (very
fluid) the weaker the concrete mix. The less water you use to mix the
concrete (somewhat dry but workable) the stronger the concrete mix.

Accurate concrete mixing ratios can be achieved by measuring the dry

materials using buckets or some other kind of measuring device. By
measuring the mixing ratios you will have a consistent concrete mix
throughout your entire project.

Mixing ratio to make 1 yard of concrete

To produce a 3000 psi cubic yard of concrete (27 cubic feet) the
concrete mixture ratio is:

1. 517 pounds of cement or (234kg)

2. 1560 pounds of sand or (707kg)

3. 1600 pounds of stone or (725kg)

4. 32 - 34 gallons of water or (132L)

This mixing ratio will give you a concrete mix that is strong, durable, and
good for most concrete projects. A cubic yard of concrete will fill an area 8
feet wide by 10 feet long by 4 inches thick, or 80 square feet @ 4 inches
thick.

At 6 inches thick a cubic yard of concrete will fill an area 52 square feet and
at 5 inches thick, it will fill an area that's 65 square feet.

To produce a cubic yard of 4000 psi concrete, you have to adjust the
concrete mixing ratio to:

1. 611 pounds of cement or (277kg)

2. 1450 pounds of sand or (657kg)

3. 1600 pounds of stone or (725kg)

4. 33- 35 gallons of water or (133L)

As you can see a little more cement and a little less sand is required to
produce this stronger concrete mix that is great for driveways, pool decks,
sidewalks, exterior patios, and commercial garages.

Knowing the weight of the materials and how much water to use should
help you determine how much cement, sand, and stone to purchase to
complete your project.

For estimating purposes, you can make about 1 cubic yard of concrete with
5 1/2 94-pound bags of cement, 17 cubic feet of sand, and 18 cubic feet of
gravel. (It takes about forty 80-pound bags of prepackaged materials to
make 1 cubic yard of concrete.)

Or 1 cubic meter of concrete will require approximately 7.15 bags of

Portland cement, .48 cubic meters of sand, and .51 cubic meters of gravel.

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If you need less than 1 cubic yard of concrete (or if ready-mix is not
available) you can mix your own on site either by hand or using a concrete
mixer like the one pictured above.

To make smaller batches of concrete, use the same proportions, but with
smaller quantities, substituting buckets for cubic feet. (For the mix
proportions given previously, you'd use 1 bucket of cement, 3 buckets of
sand, 3 buckets of stone, and 1/2 bucket of water.)

For any batch size, the most important thing is to keep the proportions of
the ingredients the same. You can double or triple the batch size simply by
doubling or tripling the number of buckets of each ingredient you add to the
mix.

For very small projects, such as

setting a mailbox post or doing
repairs, you may want to purchase a
packaged concrete mix. Such a mix
combines cement, sand, and gravel in
the correct mixing ratios and requires
only the addition of water to create
fresh concrete.

These concrete mixture ratios are designed for the concrete to reach full
strength at or around 28 days. Curing the concrete can be done by keeping
it wet after the first day until the concrete is 7 days old. This is an important
step to take for the concrete to achieve full strength by 28 days.

For more on concrete slabs see the information below:

HOW TO POUR CONCRETE

CONCRETE SLAB CALCULATOR

HOW TO MIX CONCRETE

FORMING A CONCRETE SLAB

POURING A CONCRETE SLAB

Slab Lift by VigoText

- Concrete Slab
Lifting Thailand

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