The construction world is incomplete without concrete or cement. Their frequent use is because of their durability and affordability. There are some specific tools required for the pouring and finishing of concrete.
Therefore, if you are in the construction business you must invest in a complete of concreting tools. Most of the tools are simple and cheap, so it will more convenient for you to buy them. This will save your time and your work will be more stress-free. There are also some advanced tools.
Either you can invest or you can get them on rent. Buying or having rental construction tools depends on your convenience. If you have space and money then my suggestion will be to buy them. If you are planning to buy concrete tools than this article is a must to read with 15 concrete tools for contractors requiring perfect cement.
15 Crucial Contractor Concrete Tools
1) Mixers
There are several types of concrete mixers including batch mixer, drum mixer, continuous mixer, and pan mixer. They may have different shapes and sizes. The selection of a mixer depends on the amount of concrete. Concrete is mixed with water to form a slurry. For proper durability and strength, firstly the concrete and water proportion must be accurate. Secondly, the mixing should be legitimate enough to form a stable construction. The mixers may be manual or advanced automatic. Both the mixers have cost and efficiency differences. The advanced electric automatic mixers have a high-efficiency rate but they are expensive. They are used for large-scale construction work.
2) Rakes
After pouring the concrete mixture, the spreading of the mixture takes place by using rakes. You can use normal rakes but a concrete rake also known as come-along rake works wonders. The proper spreading of concrete helps in drying the concrete, provides finishing and strength.
A come-along rake has a scooped blade for the proper leveling of the concrete. It also has a tine that lifts the mesh into position before the hardening of concrete. The average time for concrete drying is 24-48 hours depending on the water concrete ratio mixing and spreading of the mixture.
3) Tampers
Tampers, also known as jitterbugs, are available in different types including hand tampers and rolling tampers. They push the coarse aggregate concrete below the slab surface to consolidate the concrete. This process takes place in low slump concrete because, in high slump concrete sinking can occur, resulting in separation of the aggregates.
4) Floats
Floats are used for the leveling of moist concrete surfaces. They help in keeping the damp concrete on the top of the layer to give smooth appearance and strength. Floats are made up of different materials like steel and wood. The main two types of floats are:
Bull Floats
Void spaces appear on the concrete after the use of screed. Bull floats remove these empty spaces and give a smooth finishing. Their large blades cover a greater surface area at once. They may have a simple long handle or telescopic handle. The telescopic handles can perform in different areas and on edges by changing its position.
Magnesium Floats
Metal floats are mostly magnesium floats, which work on smaller slabs or areas. The main function of magnesium floats is to level the moist surface of the concrete.
5) Screeds
Screeds are long, straight tubes or boards, used to level concrete after the pouring process. It provides a smooth finish to the moist concrete by removing the excessive concrete. This tool is easy to use and does not require any professional expertise.
The length and width of the screed should be appropriate for proper functioning and area coverage of concrete. There are small screeds, used for making driveways slab, patio, garage and sidewalks. Larger screeds are used for commercial purposes having a length greater than 6 ft.
6) Shovels
The shovel is a multi-purpose and worth buying tool for construction work. It helps in filling the small void spaces, giving a smooth leveled finish to the surface. It also removes excessive concrete. Contractors mostly buy square shovels because they work better on concrete. The round shovels do not spread the concrete efficiently.
7) Trowels
The trowel is among the basic concrete finishing tools. It levels the concrete surface, providing a smooth elegant final look. During leveling, a small amount of water is remains at the top of the surface. Trowels may be coving or finishing.
A coving trowel also known as master finish trowel helps in leveling the edges or the junction area between the wall and floor. Finishing trowel, on the other hand, does not work on the edge. Instead, they work on straight floors. Trowels are available in different sizes. The smaller ones are used in concreting small slabs while the larger one covers bigger spaces.
8) Edger
A concrete edger works on the corners of the concrete slab giving a flat, smooth, and polished appearance. When concrete becomes slightly hard then this tool is used. The timing of use is the only factor that you need to keep in mind.
9) Joint Cutters
Control joint cutters are used to make saw cuts in the concrete to prevent any cracking. The cracking occurs due to shrinkage. The saw cuts should be precise and accurate. The timing of this process is very important, you have to wait until concrete achieves some strength to perform it.
10) Sealer Sprayer
A sealer gives the perfect finish and performance to the construction. The sealer material and thickness are the two most important factors to provide the best outlook. The application of sealer takes place through different mechanisms and sprayer is one of them. The sealer sprayer has low pressure to help the cement end up perfect.
11) Concrete Kneeling Board
To give a more precise smooth finish kneeling boards application is done after the hand troweling process.
12) Vibrator
Vibrators provide strength and make concrete foundation compact. It removes the void spaces and settles the excess water during the pouring or finishing of a concrete slab. There are four major types of vibrators including internal, form, surface and table.
13) Finishing Broom
The passing of the broom gives a non-slippery smooth finish to the concrete surface. The process should be carried out when concrete is almost dry.
14) Laser Level
Before starting the construction, it is quite important to check the uniformity of the surface. For this purpose, a laser level is the best instrument.
15) Safety Gear
The construction work is full of polluted and dusty environments. Therefore, safety measures should be a priority of every worker. Safety gear includes glasses, facemask, rubber gloves, and rubber boots.
Concrete Contractor Conclusion
For good construction, the tools are very important but more than that the work skills and proper use of tools is also essential. Therefore, make sure you and your workers have proper knowledge of each tool when working with concrete and cement as a contractor.
1) Mixers
There are several types of concrete mixers including batch mixer, drum mixer, continuous mixer, and pan mixer. They may have different shapes and sizes. The selection of a mixer depends on the amount of concrete. Concrete is mixed with water to form a slurry. For proper durability and strength, firstly the concrete and water proportion must be accurate. Secondly, the mixing should be legitimate enough to form a stable construction. The mixers may be manual or advanced automatic. Both the mixers have cost and efficiency differences. The advanced electric automatic mixers have a high-efficiency rate but they are expensive. They are used for large-scale construction work.
2) Rakes
After pouring the concrete mixture, the spreading of the mixture takes place by using rakes. You can use normal rakes but a concrete rake also known as come-along rake works wonders. The proper spreading of concrete helps in drying the concrete, provides finishing and strength.
A come-along rake has a scooped blade for the proper leveling of the concrete. It also has a tine that lifts the mesh into position before the hardening of concrete. The average time for concrete drying is 24-48 hours depending on the water concrete ratio mixing and spreading of the mixture.
3) Tampers
Tampers, also known as jitterbugs, are available in different types including hand tampers and rolling tampers. They push the coarse aggregate concrete below the slab surface to consolidate the concrete. This process takes place in low slump concrete because, in high slump concrete sinking can occur, resulting in separation of the aggregates.
4) Floats
Floats are used for the leveling of moist concrete surfaces. They help in keeping the damp concrete on the top of the layer to give smooth appearance and strength. Floats are made up of different materials like steel and wood. The main two types of floats are:
Bull Floats
Void spaces appear on the concrete after the use of screed. Bull floats remove these empty spaces and give a smooth finishing. Their large blades cover a greater surface area at once. They may have a simple long handle or telescopic handle. The telescopic handles can perform in different areas and on edges by changing its position.
Magnesium Floats
Metal floats are mostly magnesium floats, which work on smaller slabs or areas. The main function of magnesium floats is to level the moist surface of the concrete.
5) Screeds
Screeds are long, straight tubes or boards, used to level concrete after the pouring process. It provides a smooth finish to the moist concrete by removing the excessive concrete. This tool is easy to use and does not require any professional expertise.
The length and width of the screed should be appropriate for proper functioning and area coverage of concrete. There are small screeds, used for making driveways slab, patio, garage and sidewalks. Larger screeds are used for commercial purposes having a length greater than 6 ft.
6) Shovels
The shovel is a multi-purpose and worth buying tool for construction work. It helps in filling the small void spaces, giving a smooth leveled finish to the surface. It also removes excessive concrete. Contractors mostly buy square shovels because they work better on concrete. The round shovels do not spread the concrete efficiently.
7) Trowels
The trowel is among the basic concrete finishing tools. It levels the concrete surface, providing a smooth elegant final look. During leveling, a small amount of water is remains at the top of the surface. Trowels may be coving or finishing.
A coving trowel also known as master finish trowel helps in leveling the edges or the junction area between the wall and floor. Finishing trowel, on the other hand, does not work on the edge. Instead, they work on straight floors. Trowels are available in different sizes. The smaller ones are used in concreting small slabs while the larger one covers bigger spaces.
8) Edger
A concrete edger works on the corners of the concrete slab giving a flat, smooth, and polished appearance. When concrete becomes slightly hard then this tool is used. The timing of use is the only factor that you need to keep in mind.
9) Joint Cutters
Control joint cutters are used to make saw cuts in the concrete to prevent any cracking. The cracking occurs due to shrinkage. The saw cuts should be precise and accurate. The timing of this process is very important, you have to wait until concrete achieves some strength to perform it.
10) Sealer Sprayer
A sealer gives the perfect finish and performance to the construction. The sealer material and thickness are the two most important factors to provide the best outlook. The application of sealer takes place through different mechanisms and sprayer is one of them. The sealer sprayer has low pressure to help the cement end up perfect.
11) Concrete Kneeling Board
To give a more precise smooth finish kneeling boards application is done after the hand troweling process.
12) Vibrator
Vibrators provide strength and make concrete foundation compact. It removes the void spaces and settles the excess water during the pouring or finishing of a concrete slab. There are four major types of vibrators including internal, form, surface and table.
13) Finishing Broom
The passing of the broom gives a non-slippery smooth finish to the concrete surface. The process should be carried out when concrete is almost dry.
14) Laser Level
Before starting the construction, it is quite important to check the uniformity of the surface. For this purpose, a laser level is the best instrument.
15) Safety Gear
The construction work is full of polluted and dusty environments. Therefore, safety measures should be a priority of every worker. Safety gear includes glasses, facemask, rubber gloves, and rubber boots.
Concrete Contractor Conclusion
For good construction, the tools are very important but more than that the work skills and proper use of tools is also essential. Therefore, make sure you and your workers have proper knowledge of each tool when working with concrete and cement as a contractor.
