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INSIDE THE LEATHER HEALTH & SPORTS PAGE
By: Charles W. Boatright December 15, 2021
How Staying Fit can Save You Money– Repairing the Concrete Tarmac at our Hangar Mixing 45 – 50LBS Bags of High Strength QuiKrete® Concrete
If anyone has ever worked with concrete and especially removing an old slab of concrete with a concrete saw, jackhammer, and mixing/batching out, and finishing replacement concrete, then you know it is not a job for the faint of hearts. You have to be in great shape at any age to work with concrete and removal, especially with a jackhammer. I got bids for repairing a damaged section of our tarmac that was a lot more than what I wanted to pay; especially if that same money could go toward other capital improvements around the hangar and on aircraft.
The repairs that we were making that is marked off was to a 4.0 ft. x 4.0. ft. x 10 in depth section, or about 0.59 cubic yards of concrete. When you are placing less than 3- yards of concrete, it is difficult to get a concrete plant to batch-out an half yard of concrete. If they do, they usually will charge for the minimum batch quality of 3-to-5 yards at $120.00/cubic yard.
So I had Lowes® deliver (45) 50 LBS size bags of QuiKrete® Fast-Set 4,000 psi test Concrete (0.0139 cy/bag) to our hangar. The consistency of the concrete is usually measured by a slump test between 2 and 4-inches. I mixed the concrete to a 3- inch slump consistency so that I could retain the 4,000 psi yield compressive strength of the concrete at high early.
Just For reference
50 LBS Bag is 0.375 cubic foot, or 0.0139 cubic yard
80 LBS Bag is 0.599 cubic foot, or 0.0222 cubic yard
I use two rebar mats (bottom/top) consisting of (32) No. 5 (5/8-inch) rebar on 6-inch centers x 3 ft.- 9- in length for both mats. To speed up the job, I had the rebar precut where I wouldn’t have to use a cutting torch to cut rebar to size at the hangar. I had the fabricator shear the rebar off to the length that I needed. I used wooden horse to hold the rebar mat to keep the work at waist level while I was tying the mat together with rebar tie-wire so that I didn’t have to bend down and back up with 64 year old knees. This is where doing squats during my workouts come in real handy.
NOTE: On sizing rebar, the size of rebar is determined by the numerator in one-eighth inch increments, so 1/2- inch rebar would be No. 4 rebar (4/8- inch) and 3/4-inch rebar would be No. 6 rebar (6/8-inch) diameter.
If you have a farm, have odd jobs to do around the house, or workshop, rebar tie wire would be something that I would highly recommend that you get a roll of from your local hardware store, it is handier than bailing wire and easier to work with as well.
Now this is where Fitness, Strength and Stamina Pays Off at Age 64
The potable mixer that I used could mix up to 6 cubic feet of concrete per batch, or about 16 bags of concrete per batch. But I only batched out 4 cubic feet in order to use a wheelbarrow to place the concrete and rod it into place to eliminate voids. So I batched out 4 batches and lifting a total of (45) 50 LBS bags from a pallet up to about chest height that is a great workout. This is where those military lifts and curls come in real handy.
A partner of the hangar has a rental business that had a Mini-Ex with a concrete saw attachment with two men to cutout a section of the damaged tarmac. The partner also had a jackhammer and compressor that I used to breakup the concrete into section in order to be hauled off on the second day of the project to a concrete plant.
What to do with Salvaged Concrete?
If you have salvaged concrete from a large project that you need to be haul off, some concrete plants in your area can purchase this salvaged concrete from you for processing into crush aggregate for sub-base material, that is highly sought after material. Rubble concrete can also make great riprap for erosion control on a project.
After the second day of the project of jack-hammering and had the rubble hauled off, I then tied rebar mat together and place the mats into the pit with assistance. Then on the third day, I mixed, placed, and floated out the concrete followed by putting a tine finish on the concrete about 40-minutes later to provide traction. Most tarmacs are tine finished. Runways on the other hand are composed of a 12-inch concrete base with an 4- inch overlay of asphalt to absorb impact of aircraft landing.
The Three Day Project
This project took a total of three days to complete in the first part of October of 2021 when the weather was cooler and if I wasn’t in good shape following a regular diet and workout program, I wouldn’t have been able to attempt this project and saved approximately $10,500 in material and contract labor cost. I was just out the cost for the 45 bags of 50 LBS concrete, rebar, and rental on the concrete mixer for a half day. The Mini-Ex with saw and two operators were covered, because the rental company owner was partners in the hangar. So the total cost of the project was only cost $475.00.
Now for the Aftermath and Recovery
Now on the fourth day when I rolled out of bed to hit the deck at 05:30 hours (5:30 a.m.) when I was woken up by my trusted furry friend, Sebastien, pictured above. Now, did I experience soreness and stiffness to my back and both knees in the area of level of 5, with 10 being the worst soreness and stiffness? The Answer was YES, I most certainly did! But nothing that Ibuprofen couldn’t take care of and a day or two of rest.
I tell this story in such detail to demonstrate how important it is to stay healthy and fit at any age where you can do large scale projects and save money around the house and farm. I realize that the reason that people diet and exercise is to look and feel good and to avoid medical and hospital bills. But, now you have another incentive, DO IT for the DO IT YOURSELF PROJECTS that gives you satisfaction and confidence. And at the age 64, I feel as good as I did at age 34 and with satisfaction and confidence that money can’t buy you.
The more you can do for yourself the better you will feel about yourself. I workout to keep active, and I pray and trust that God will give me health and independence for decades to come. I’m able to do this because I follow The DELPHI DIET & FITNESS System. Below is a photograph taken last month in November at our hangar after a photo shoot we did for our Fall & Winter Apparel that I carry in my Online Store, THE QATSPY®. Our featured line is the US WINGS® Military Leather Jackets and the Indiana Jones-Style Leather Jacket that you might have seen in the movies.
We also can personalize the US WINGS® Leather and Nylon Jackets with LOGOS and Biker Rocker Patches, as shown below. This is part of our name, The YORKER Personalized-Style & Tailor-look Apparel Quarters.
OUR FEATURED LINE OF APPAREL THE US WINGS® LEATHER JACKETS
