Concreting in the winter months
In the UK – the Northwest especially – we are often at the mercy of mother nature. The cold, wet and dark conditions can make even the simplest of tasks more challenging. As a concrete company, how do we tackle the harsh realities of delivering to our customers in Manchester and the Northwest in general? It’s actually rather simple, I’ll explain below:
- Preparation – if you are ill-prepared for the task ahead, you cannot succeed in providing concrete to your customers
- Dedication – we have hand-picked our concrete guys to ensure before any other factors, they are eager to go
- Maintenance – our team are well-trained in running a tight ship when it comes to our wagons, which takes extra care in the winter months
How to implement this
All of the above points should be a given at any time of year. However, the necessity of these three points is all the more important when the weather is at its coldest. The reasoning? For example, we all understand that our vehicles need a good 5-10 minutes to warm up in the morning.
Now, imagine the vehicle being at least 5 times as complex and much, much bigger! Our concrete wagons are reliable by design, but not invincible. Regular maintenance is paramount, especially in colder temperatures.
To aid with this, you need a team of concrete-savvy operators who have at least 15 winters of HGV driving under their belt, and in-turn can prevent or fix most issues that arise when dealing with nearing-freezing temperatures. Our drivers know their wagons like the back of their hand, which if you ask us, is an invaluable asset to the concrete business.
Knowing when it’s just too cold
Lastly, we have to know when it’s simply too cold. If it’s lower than 3-5 degrees celsius, we cannot risk the integrity of the concrete. For more info on this, please consult the NHBC website.
Despite this, you can always take necessary steps to get around this. For example, you can lay tarpaulin over the setting concrete to avoid is developing a frost. This is very effective in making sure the concrete setting process goes uninterrupted. To learn more about pouring concrete in cold weather, click here.