How to make a concrete mixer do it yourself from improvised

Anyone who has ever built a floor screed or put a fence on poles has to face concrete work. If such work is not done by a professional, but by the ordinary owner of the site, then there is no sense in purchasing an industrial unit. A concrete mixer, made from an old milk can or boil-off, will come to the rescue.

Scheme homemade concrete mixers from the barrel.

Why it is impossible to do without concrete mixer?

Some nonprofessionals believe that you can mix a small amount of the solution with a shovel alone. It is possible, but the resulting mixture will be of very low quality.

Firstly, it is very difficult to “shovel” the solution in the trough. Not everyone is able to exercise such physical activity: it is better to install a concrete mixer assembled from the barrel with your own hands.

Secondly, when mixing a large amount of the mixture, the prepared composition turns out to be dry: the solution loses moisture faster than the builder manages to stir it to the desired consistency.

You can not make concrete of good quality and with the help of a drill. If you fix it on the bracket, then lumps of sand will remain in the mixture. The drill should not only spin, but also move in a circle and back and forth. Such a tool designed for drilling, will not survive for a long time. The drill will simply break.

The main elements of the mixer.

To understand the principle of operation of the future mixer, mounted for a small amount of work, you need to understand how the solution is kneaded. There are 3 methods:

1. Gravitational. It is not used in industry: cement is of poor quality. With gravitational mixing, the container is rolled over, and the components “splash” on each other, mixing into a relatively homogeneous mass.
2. Vibrating. The most reliable way to produce concrete on an industrial scale. In the fixed tub the vibromixer is moving. The result is a solution of the highest quality. The method requires a huge expenditure of energy, therefore it is used only for filling especially important structures.
3. Mechanical, forced. It is applied only together with gravitational. In this case, either the mixer rotates in a stationary tub, or the tub rotates with protrusions inside.

Such a concrete mixer, made according to the drawings below, will greatly facilitate the work on pouring screeds and similar structures.

Self-made concrete mixers

There are many self-made designs, adapted for the manufacture of concrete. Their schemes may be different.

The simplest concrete mixer is made from an ordinary milk can, an old cook, an unnecessary large pan. Its drawing is very simple. The technology is also as simple as possible:

Option concrete forced type.

1. Capacity is welded to the axis. If it is aluminum, then several bars are welded to the “vessel”, and the tub is bolted to them.
2. A piece of pipe, stick or rubber band is inserted into the lid. Very tight pull the cover to the handles.
3. To further reduce the cost and simplify the design, you can not use the couplings, but simply cut through the arcuate grooves in the frame and lay the axis on them.

Twisting such a device would not be very easy, however, it is quite possible to mix concrete with good quality.

If you want to get more concrete or you want to make the unit more practical, you will have to use other drawings.

Here is an example of a device for the manufacture of which will be required:

1. Ready-made container for concrete mixers, bought in a store or independently made from a barrel or tank.
2. The frame on which the device will be installed.
3. Gear wheel.
4. Engine (suitable from a washing machine).
5. Axis.

DIY concrete mixer: the order of work

Drawing of a manual concrete mixer.

Work begins with the preparation of the tank. Finished is not cheap, the poem is better to use the materials at hand. An old metal barrel will do. If it does not have a bottom or cover, they must be welded.

Special flanges with bearings are attached to the bottom of the barrel and its lid. That it was convenient to fill up components, the opening is cut in a sidewall.

The cut piece of metal will later serve as a lid that can be hinged with any locking device. It is better to place the hole closer to the lower end.

In order to mix better, the blades are welded onto the inner walls of the barrel and onto the axis.

Their angle must be calculated in such a way that, mixing, the solution is “pushed out” of the barrel.

It is time to collect the foundation. For it, you can use a wooden frame, assembled "in half-wood", but more reliable will be the design, assembled from channels or corners. They can be fastened by welding or ordinary bolts.

So that the base can be easily moved, it can be equipped with wheels, for example, from a transformer, and handles. At the base you need to provide a place to install the engine.

If during the unloading of concrete it is supposed to tilt the tank, then, so that it does not overturn, it is necessary to install a counterweight.

All parts are first applied to the drawing, and only then assembled and fixed.

Such a concrete mixer, made with improvised means, will even work from a manual drive.

The device is a concrete mixer with an electric drive.

If you do not want to engage in hard physical work, you can use any single-phase motor for the concrete mixer. Its rotational speed should not be more than 40 rpm. The best engines for concrete mixers are obtained from the engines of washing machines.

You can do without electric. If there is a motor from a moped, you can install it. Concrete mixer on gasoline also greatly facilitates the work of the builder.

The engine for the concrete mixer from the barrel is securely attached to the base frame. Rotational motion should be transmitted to the bucket via a gearbox or a conventional pulley with a driving belt. Rotating, the tub should not exceed the speed of 30 rpm.

When everything is installed, a shaft is threaded through the tub.

So that the structure, especially mounted on a wooden base, does not turn over and does not “dance”, it can be dug into the ground at an angle of 30 °.

Manufacturing mixer with mixer

Self-made concrete mixers can be tricky. Those who know how to design, like a sample mixer with a mixer in the form of a ridge. It was established that such a model of concrete mixer from the barrel produces a solution of excellent quality, while the speed of kneading increases many times. To obtain a homogeneous mass, it is enough to turn the bucket 5-6 times.

The main drawback of the device is the complexity of the design. Attach to the place dozens of parts and reliably secure them can only be a specialist with extensive experience in the work. Structures of such complexity are justified only in the case when a large amount of mortar is required or concrete work is carried out constantly. For small volumes, the simplest manual concrete mixer is sufficient.