Concrete Suppliers – Mixture Ratio Experts

In the construction industry, concrete suppliers are sometimes compared to being the life blood in any construction work, be it large-scale or regular projects. Their main job is not just the delivery of the ready concrete mix but also its production and preparation (mixing the material ingredients, etc.) which actually is the most critical phase of all.

They are tasked to fulfill the needed requirements in producing a good product. This would mean satisfying all the important properties of concrete to produce the expected strength, durability and water tightness.

Cement

Cement is the first important material and the first requirement of a good concrete. The other needed materials include the supply of satisfactory type of sand, the coarse aggregate and the needed water.

With these ingredients of the best graded, best shaped and clean aggregate, the strongest and most durable concrete can be created. One item is needed though: there has to be the right mix and the right process to produce the expected best quality.

Where there is too much fluidity, the result can have certain defects. The improper handling of the needed items during the process of making the concrete can cause segregation of the aggregate particles by sizes. The end result is a poor, non-uniform concrete.

Curing

Producing the best graded and the best quality of materials would also need the proper curing process. Curing protects the material against loss of moisture during the setting.

The other very important factor to consider is the fact that the concrete has a very high compressive strength. On the other hand, its tensile strength is low. (Tensile strength is resisting stretching, bending, and twisting.)

Durability

Durability is the characteristic of the material to resist deterioration due to exposure of expected conditions. Concrete, even the ordinary kind, needs to be watertight and weather-resistant when exposed to the elements. For example, floors need to be abrasion-resistant. When concrete is strong, it is more durable.

In the manufacturing process, a good concrete needs a water-cement ratio that can give a maximum strength consistent with the requirements in its workability. For instance, maximum strength and durability cannot be achieved unless the coarse aggregate is well-graded, is clean, hard and durable, and free from undesirable components.

Water

Another ideal situation is that an excellent mix is one with just the right amount of water to hydrate the cement. Care needs to be taken to avoid the mix to be too dry and stiff for pouring into the forms.

For the mix to be fluid enough to be poured into forms needs to contain enough water that is over the amount that will combine with the cement.  This water is also like to evaporate eventually and can likely leave voids or pores in the concrete.

Your concrete suppliers would know exactly the correct ratio of the amount of water to be used for the compete hydration of the cement, to achieve the consistency of your concrete mix after taking into consideration the list of your own project requirements where the concrete shall be used.